no regrets

            I’ve often considered how my life might have been different had I made different choices.  For instance, I initially went to college right out of high school but dropped out after a semester. What would have happened had I stayed and finished my education then (rather than now, 30 years later?) Perhaps I wouldn’t be living here.  Would I still have my beautiful children?  Would I have met my husband?  It isn’t that I haven’t a good life thus far, I have.  There is just that idea of “what if” and letting my imagination wander.  Or is it regret?

            I like the poster that says; “No one gets to the end of her life and regrets what she has done; only what she hasn’t done.”  Is regret a useful emotion? In general, I would say, no.  If the things we regret are fixable, then it could be a good thing. But to regret things that are unfixable is wasting time.  The root of regret is found in the word regression, which means to go backwards, returning to a less developed state.  While reminiscing can be fun and we can learn from history, God wants us to keep moving forward, we aren’t to live in the past.  Luke 9: 62 “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”  Remembering that I am exactly where God wants me to be keeps me from regret. Even the potholes of my life journey have purpose in shaping me into the person God has called me to be.  No regrets!

           
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  1. harleyJanuary 9, 2012 at 1:27 PM

    We can have regrets, but we cannot change what is in the past. There is a destiny factor in our lives. For me personally, if I didn't like baseball, I would never have made Brewer trips as a teenager and my never having made trips to Brewer games would not have opened a door to my going to college in Milwaukee. If I hadn't gone to college in Milwaukee, there is a very good chance I would not be living in Racine today. That is a destiny that I don't think I could relive and change. There is a destiny we can all change going forward and the word is used at Phillippians 3:18-21. The 19th verse says: "Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things." A destiny of that kind is based on the heart's desire. That is why we are to store up treasures in heaven. Galations 6:7,8 rings true: If our chief concern is pleasing the desires of our flesh we will reap destruction, but if we sow with a view to the spirit, that is the key to eternal life.

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