Return

Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Joel 2:13).

A well-known expression — and the title of a novel by Thomas Wolfe — is “you can’t go home again.” With this comes the assumption that things won’t be the way they were — and if they are, they will probably be worse. There is something inherent in our nature that resists going back, returning, especially if we’ve burned a bridge or two on the way out. So we tell ourselves, keep looking forward, don’t look back. 

But this assumes that progress can only be made by moving forward, that there is nothing to gain by turning around and returning. And while this might be true in some relationships, it is not true with God.

The Lenten season is a pause before the rebirth of spring, to slow down, reflect, and return to the Lord. We bring not just the good stuff, the parts we are proud of, the parts we hope others notice. No, God desires all of you, your whole heart, your hurts, your trauma, your pride, your apathy, and your anger. All of you.

And who knows? Maybe it is when we bring all of ourselves that we are met with a surprise: God’s grace, love, compassion, and mercy.  And maybe we find we can go (return) home again. 

‘Return to me,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘and I will return to you’ (Zechariah 1:3).