Trips sometimes have wrong turns.

Jeroboam reigned in Israel twenty-two years. When Jeroboam died, his son Nadab became the next king. (1 Kings 14:20 NLT)

This is the point in Bible-reading that many will give up.  That’s because it starts to get confusing.  The kingdom of Israel is now split into separate kingdoms in the north and the south.  The kings names are hard to pronounce.  To make things worse, they keep changing kings and jumping back and forth between the story in the north and the story in the south.

Meanwhile, Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen from among all the tribes of Israel as the place to honor His name... (1 Kings 14:21a NLT)

It’s worth the time reading, though, because much can be learned about how God worked with people in very tumultuous times.  When we go through difficult times, then, we can draw confidence that God will never leave us or forsake us as we choose to walk with Him.  If we choose not to walk with Him, though, God will let us go.

During Rehoboam's reign, the people of Judah did what was evil in the LORD's sight, provoking His anger with their sin, for it was even worse than that of their ancestors. For they also built for themselves pagan shrines and set up sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree. There were even male and female shrine prostitutes throughout the land. The people imitated the detestable practices of the pagan nations the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites. (1 Kings 14:21b-24 NLT)

How about you?  Have you ever been on a trip that took a “wrong turn”?  Have you ever taken a “wrong turn” in life?  What do you do when you recognize that it was a wrong turn?  Do you get back on track?  Do you get back with God?