A Life Filled With Regrets …

I was thinking the other day about the regrets many people carry in life.  In fact, if we are all honest with ourselves, we all have some regrets. Maybe it is wishing we hadn’t bought that one item, or going on a date with that one classmate, or taking that one trip that seemed to be more of a diseaster than a good vacation?  It could be just about anything, but I’m sure we all have at least one.

So, what do we do with our regrets?  It’s one thing to have to deal with one or two regrets, but what if our life is filled with more regrets than we care to remember?  Makes it pretty tough to rise above them, doesn’t it?

Sometimes, one can experience so much regret that they think there is nothing good for them.  They think that they don’t deserve or are even worthy of anything good, and because of it many give up the hope of better times and a good life.  It can be a paralyzing thing, regret that is.  Is there hope for someone with regret?  Or even someone with a lot of regret?

Yes, there is.  It’s through Jesus.  He gives us the reason for the hope of life and the victory over regrets.  It is at the feet of Jesus that we are able to relinquish our regrets and give them to Him, and He in turn gives us freedom from them and a life we would not otherwise have.  His grace and mercy is so precious, and it is something never to take for granted.  That doesn’t mean that we will forget our past regrets, but it means that we no longer have to be in bondage to them.  And if we will remember to trust and leave those regrets with Him, giving our lives to serving Him each day, He promises to turn all those regrets into something good.

The results of our regrets may stare us in the face each day, but once we’ve given them to Jesus we can trust Him that He will take care of them.  People may want to remind us of past regrets, ensinuating that we won’t be able to change and rise above them, but don’t listen to them.  Listen to Jesus, the One who created all things including you, the same one that died to give you freedom from past regrets, and listen to HIm when He says you are a new creation once you became His follower.

As we remember Jesus in the manger during this time, let us also remember to leave our past regrets at the feet of the cross He hung on for us just 33 years after His birth.

Merry Christmas!

Copyright 2012 – John Johansson