The Straight Way
Please read Luke 3:1-6
Jesus entered history two thousand years ago to fulfill the long-promised coming of God’s kingdom on earth. With his birth in Bethlehem, the promise became a reality. We remember and celebrate his birth at Christmas, but Advent is a time when we prepare ourselves for Christ’s second coming to complete creation in God’s image.
Our gospel reading reminds us of the prophetic words of John the Baptist, who invites us to prepare the way of the Lord. How am I to prepare? “Repent.” This second week of Advent is an opportunity to contemplate the direction we are heading as people of God and to change direction when necessary.
The shortest route between two points is a straight line. This is why it bugs me to fly south, say, to Atlanta, to go north, say, to New York City. Alas, I have no control over the airlines, so I simply deal with the cognitive dissonance of not taking the shortest route. These days, the uneasiness from going in the wrong direction may be the least uncomfortable of all the uncomfortable parts of flying.
On the other hand, when I am driving, I am in control! “Make his paths straight!” to prepare for the Lord’s coming, says John the Baptist. Those who have ridden anywhere with me know that I take that charge seriously. I am always looking for the straightest way. That translates to not backtracking. Not ever backtracking.
And finding the hypotenuse opposite a right angle.
No matter what navigation aid I use, from paper maps and road atlases to AAA TripTiks to Google Maps and Waze, I always find a straighter way. I know better than all the greatest cartographers. Maybe not the quickest way; sometimes I lose time, yes, but I win on mileage.
Once, my colleague and I had to get from Parkersburg to Weston. The obvious route is to take Route 50 East to Clarksburg and pick up I-79 South to Weston. That is a right angle, and Weston is within the triangle created by the right angle. There had to be a straighter way. So, as we entered Ritchie County, I started thinking about a possible hypotenuse. As we were refueling in Ellenboro, I looked at the map on my phone and found it: I’d get off 50 and take Main Street to Salem, Patterson Fork to Raccoon Run, well, some of the roads didn’t have names, but I have a good internal compass.
As I was paying for the fuel, Kim overheard me asking the clerk if my plan made sense and the clerk’s clear answer: “Your best bet is just to go to I-79.” As we pulled out of the station, Kim said, “You’re not going to I-79, are you?” Repent! Make a U-turn.
Somewhere between Hog Lick and Possum Holler I almost started to have second thoughts about my intuition. Repent! Just then, we caught up to a logging truck. Quite a few logging trucks, actually. I was never an Eagle Scout, but I participated in scouting long enough to know that when the logging trucks in front of you are loaded with logs, they are going toward civilization, not away from it. So, I just followed the logging trucks for several miles, inch by painstakingly slow inch, to WESTON! Bingo. I was right all along.
Here is my confession. That is not even the worst example of my going to great lengths to avoid backtracking. The worst example, so far, involved a call to 911 to find out where I was stuck and a four-wheel drive to get me. Then a tow truck to take me back the next day to get my car. All to avoid…backtracking.
Sometimes, despite the clear directions from road signs, maps, and signals, we get so far off course that the only way to get right is to repent. To turn around and get back on track. To backtrack, hard as it may be.
As we live in between the already and the not yet, between the coming of Christ in Bethlehem and His second coming, we might examine where we are in relation to where we should be. Where do we need to make a course correction? Repent! Make a U-turn.
Prayer:
Dear God as we prepare for the coming of Christ, change our hearts and lives to conform to your ways. Amen.
Rev. Jeff Taylor
Our gospel reading reminds us of the prophetic words of John the Baptist, who invites us to prepare the way of the Lord. How am I to prepare? “Repent.” This second week of Advent is an opportunity to contemplate the direction we are heading as people of God and to change direction when necessary.
The shortest route between two points is a straight line. This is why it bugs me to fly south, say, to Atlanta, to go north, say, to New York City. Alas, I have no control over the airlines, so I simply deal with the cognitive dissonance of not taking the shortest route. These days, the uneasiness from going in the wrong direction may be the least uncomfortable of all the uncomfortable parts of flying.
On the other hand, when I am driving, I am in control! “Make his paths straight!” to prepare for the Lord’s coming, says John the Baptist. Those who have ridden anywhere with me know that I take that charge seriously. I am always looking for the straightest way. That translates to not backtracking. Not ever backtracking.
And finding the hypotenuse opposite a right angle.
No matter what navigation aid I use, from paper maps and road atlases to AAA TripTiks to Google Maps and Waze, I always find a straighter way. I know better than all the greatest cartographers. Maybe not the quickest way; sometimes I lose time, yes, but I win on mileage.
Once, my colleague and I had to get from Parkersburg to Weston. The obvious route is to take Route 50 East to Clarksburg and pick up I-79 South to Weston. That is a right angle, and Weston is within the triangle created by the right angle. There had to be a straighter way. So, as we entered Ritchie County, I started thinking about a possible hypotenuse. As we were refueling in Ellenboro, I looked at the map on my phone and found it: I’d get off 50 and take Main Street to Salem, Patterson Fork to Raccoon Run, well, some of the roads didn’t have names, but I have a good internal compass.
As I was paying for the fuel, Kim overheard me asking the clerk if my plan made sense and the clerk’s clear answer: “Your best bet is just to go to I-79.” As we pulled out of the station, Kim said, “You’re not going to I-79, are you?” Repent! Make a U-turn.
Somewhere between Hog Lick and Possum Holler I almost started to have second thoughts about my intuition. Repent! Just then, we caught up to a logging truck. Quite a few logging trucks, actually. I was never an Eagle Scout, but I participated in scouting long enough to know that when the logging trucks in front of you are loaded with logs, they are going toward civilization, not away from it. So, I just followed the logging trucks for several miles, inch by painstakingly slow inch, to WESTON! Bingo. I was right all along.
Here is my confession. That is not even the worst example of my going to great lengths to avoid backtracking. The worst example, so far, involved a call to 911 to find out where I was stuck and a four-wheel drive to get me. Then a tow truck to take me back the next day to get my car. All to avoid…backtracking.
Sometimes, despite the clear directions from road signs, maps, and signals, we get so far off course that the only way to get right is to repent. To turn around and get back on track. To backtrack, hard as it may be.
As we live in between the already and the not yet, between the coming of Christ in Bethlehem and His second coming, we might examine where we are in relation to where we should be. Where do we need to make a course correction? Repent! Make a U-turn.
Prayer:
Dear God as we prepare for the coming of Christ, change our hearts and lives to conform to your ways. Amen.
Rev. Jeff Taylor
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