To Turn // Proverbs 22:6

Today’s verse is quite well known. I don’t think Solomon intended this to read in such a definitive way; after all, he himself wavered from what he learned from his dad, King David. The big idea is that teaching strong values gives a person something to fall back on when they go astray. I think about the parable of the Prodigal Son who returned home once he realized that he made a mess of his life. It occurs to me that alone is a value worth instilling in a person. We can be so afraid to make mistakes that we end up paralyzed by fear to the point we never try anything new. How much better would it be if we recognized that we can recover from even our worst errors? This speaks to me about the nature of repentance, which is a fancy way of saying, “to turn away from.” We serve a God of grace, mercy, and forgiveness who long to see us turn away from our bad behaviors and back to Him. Perhaps that was the impetus of Solomon’s proverb…that even when we turn away from God He longs for us to turn back to Him. We need to be trained in the power of repentance so when we do turn from the way we should go we can always turn back to it. That is the ultimate right turn that corrects all of our wrong turns! So, if you are in a position to train up someone, make sure you teach the importance of recognizing our mistakes, turning away from them, seeking forgiveness, and striving to get it right. God wants our repentance and longs to restore us. Let’s turn our lives to Him accordingly, no matter the mess we’ve made of our lives.