Regret

 Regret is the feeling of sadness and disappointment for something that happened. As I look back over my life I have a lot of regrets. Sinful choices. Poor decisions. Impulsive actions and reactions. If we only had a time machine where we could go back and correct our mistakes. There are no do overs. We only get one shot at life. No mulligans. There is grace. There is forgiveness. There are second chances sometimes. 

Sometimes the opportunities for second chances passes us by. We have to live with the consequences of those choices. That can be tough to live with if you approach life always looking back over your shoulder. Paul's  admonition for us in Phil 3:13 is true. Forgetting what lies behind. Pressing forward to what lies ahead. 

We cannot go back and undo the past. Instead of regret, we should repent where necessary and move forward. It is easy to get stuck in the rut of regret. We end up spinning our wheels but never making any progress. We can learn from past mistakes but we cannot go back and undo them. 

What do you regret? A lost love. A wrong career path. A bad investment. Discovering that the grass is not always greener on the other side. There is nothing you can do to go back and relive those moments. So quit looking backwards. Focus forward. There is still life to be lived. Things to achieve. Dreams to fulfill. God ordained assignments to accept. 

Regret wallows in self pity. Repentance deals with the sin and moves ahead. Which one more defines your life? Yes, learn from the past but don't remain stuck there. Don't waste your life in regret. Step into the next opportunity. Devote yourself to failing forward. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try again. With bull dogged determination keep pressing forward in faith to the things God has ordained for your life. That sure beats living in regret.