How Do I Deal with Regrets?

Does the Bible talk about regrets and how to deal with them, even regrets since getting saved?

I do think that the Bible has something to say to us about regrets in our life. However, I don’t believe that God wants us, as disciples of Jesus Christ, to focus on our regrets in the past. I don’t think that it’s productive at all. It also has the potential to be greatly used by Satan to really disqualify us and set us aside.

We need to live our Christian lives in the present and not so much in the past, whether it has to do with the regrets of the past or even the glories of the past. We certainly shouldn’t be living too much of our Christian life in the future either, dreaming about what might be and what might happen, while never giving focus to the present. It has been said that the present is the moment where eternity touches time. In fact, one way to define eternity is “the eternal present.”

So, we’re not supposed to live primarily in the past or in the future. We certainly look to the past from time to time, and we look to the future from time to time; it’s unhealthy not to do so. But we live our Christian lives in the present. Paul showed us this kind of attitude in Philippians 3:12-14.

Philippians 3:12-14 – Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Friends, that’s a legacy. That’s a heritage. Paul says, “I forget those things which are behind, and I reach forward to those things which are ahead.” Paul was not a man who lived in the past. Certainly, Paul would talk about his testimony. I think it’s interesting that in many of Paul’s sermons in the book of Acts, he mentions his testimony and refers often to his conversion. Paul did not ignore his past. He would mention it and think about it from time to time, but he didn’t live in the past. No, he lived in the present, because the present is where eternity touches time. It’s the eternal present.

It doesn’t do us any good to dwell on the regrets in our past, even those which were self-inflicted. I know that some people’s lives are burdened by these things. You were disobedient in your youth, in your prior years, you just weren’t wise. You did a lot of self-destructive things, and now to some extent you’re paying a price for that. But let’s just be real. You’re not going to get better by dwelling on the past.

God’s solution is what’s in front of you in Jesus Christ. Embrace it with all of your heart. Move forward and think about the present. Think about how you can honor and glorify God today. You might think, “Some of those ill effects of the past are with me today. They kind of seem inescapable. How can I get away from them?” Well, maybe you can’t get away from them, but God can still work redemption, even when things seem to be set against you. Don’t despair. Keep your eyes and your focus on Jesus Christ and His great work for you.

I believe the godliest approach for us to take is to simply not dwell on these things. We’re not going to focus on the regrets of our past, even if they were self-inflicted. Instead, our hearts and minds are going to dwell what God wants to do in our lives today. Friends, yesterday is gone. You can’t change it. You can’t fix it. Well, maybe there are some things you can fix from the recent past. Maybe there is some restitution you need to make, or maybe there are some things to set right. But beyond matters of proper restitution or setting things right, there is so much of the past that is just gone. Repent, put your focus on Jesus Christ, and live in a focused, surrendered way to Jesus Christ, trusting Him today.