RECALCULATING--A generation ago, the primary tools for navigation were a compass and a map. The compass was used to maintain the proper direction. It revealed “true north” – the one constant in a variable world that enabled the traveler to remain on course. True north never changed. The map enabled the traveler to plot his course in relationship to “true north.” Navigation was not as much about where one was as it was about where one was in relationship to where one wanted to go. In our world, the compass and the map have been replaced by GPS. Global positioning is not as much about where one is going as it is about where one is. With little planning or forethought a traveler now merely puts in the coordinates of his destination and then sets off on the journey. If one makes a wrong turn, a pleasant voice announces, “recalculating,” and makes the necessary adjustments to help one find their way back to the base course.

Our culture has divorced itself from the compass (absolute truth) and the map (scripture). Consequently, we often find ourselves off course, struggling to rediscover the morality that our parents and grandparents took for granted. We are in need of serious “recalculating” if we are going to arrive at our desired destination. The Bible word for this recalculating is the word, “repentance” – an action to which we are all called, and often.

Luke uses the word “repent” more than any other gospel writer – both in his gospel, and in Acts. This series will explore what we can learn from these selected scriptures.