Regrets: Ah yes, I've had a few...I think we all have.
Drop the name "Sinatra" in almost any conversation and people my age will know you mean Ol' Blue Eyes, the Chairman of the Board, leader of the Rat Pack...The late Frank Sinatra.
Some of the lyrics to his signature song "My Way" can move you to tears. "Regrets, I've had a few, but then again too few to mention…" for example.
It is not common knowledge, but "My Way", which became a classic anthem of sorts, was originally the creation of two French composers -- Jacques Revaux and Gilles Thibault -- along with Egyptian-born French singer Claude François. Canadian singer Paul Anka added the English words to the song, turning it into one of the all-time favorites we all now know and love.
The original French composers, along with Anka and Sinatra, may have had "too few to mention," (or admit to) -- regrets, that is -- as a way of justifying having lived life their way...and the jury remains out on that one.
But I am the first to confess to a long string of regrets and it includes not doing, as well as doing, a lot of things...Some of which I could attribute to "doing it my way."
Come to think of it, missed opportunities––the roads not traveled––may even outnumber mistakes. And we make matters worse for ourselves with the woulda, shoulda, coulda lament that is as old as the Bible itself.
Right off the top, I can assure you that in truth a) we all try to make the best decisions possible in life using the information available at the time, and b) we all mess up from time to time. But it doesn’t help the pain to point that out, does it.
Regret is sorrow or remorse over something that has happened or that we have done. Regret can also be a sense of disappointment over what has not happened, such as regretting wasted years.
Either way, regrets can be nasty things that we impose on ourselves.
How many decisions do you think you make during the average day? Dozens? Hundreds, perhaps? Psychologists believe that the number is actually in the thousands. Some of these decisions have resounding effects over the course of our lives (like whether or not to go to college, get married, or have kids), while others are relatively trivial (like whether to have a ham or turkey sandwich for lunch).
So as you look back at your life and think about some of the poor choices you have made, you might find yourself wondering why you made those decisions that seem so poor now in retrospect.
Why did you make a certain decision? Why did you say something hurtful to someone without really thinking? Why wasn't I more attentive? Why didn't I show more compassion? Why did I over-react? Why didn't I try harder...?
If only I could take back certain things...If only this and if only that...
I am reminded of a story told by a man named Will Ream who recalled trying to figure out what was best for his children, and having some regrets about how things worked out with his family and marriage. He knew he could have done some things differently...and he was feeling very abandoned, even by God.
His children were the one thing that had kept him going up to a point when desperation finally got the best of him. He was on the brink of committing suicide. With a knife on his lap and his feet dangling over a cliff, out of nowhere he suddenly heard the voices of his children pleading: "Pray dad, pray!"
..."and I did!" concluded a mercifully unburdened and very much alive Will Ream as he recalled the lowest point of his life and how God pulled him out of it...In the nick of time.
To be human is to have regrets because making mistakes is a universal experience. The Bible gives much instruction that, if followed, can help us get over our tendency to second-guess ourselves -- to be weighed down with regret.
God’s commands and boundaries are written down for us in His Word, and the more we adhere to them, the less we have to regret.
Having regrets is a waste of precious time. It impedes the joy of life. So stop beating yourself up for things in the past that you cannot change. If you haven't already, get it/them off you mind once and for all with a simple, heart-felt, repentant prayer to the Holy Creator.
Forgiveness is there for all of us...All you have to do is ask for it...You'll be glad you did!
NOTE: I'll be elaborating on the subject of "regrets" later this month during Sunday worship services at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church in Chatsworth and Geneva in Chesley.
No comments:
Post a Comment