No Regrets

Do not suffer remorse. Repentance is of the Lord, but remorse is not His tool unless it is of the sort that leads to repentance. Remorse by itself, apart from repentance, is a bitter brew. Do not partake of it.

Scripture: ...I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way...2 Cor. 7:9 NIV

Look Ahead

The Lord knows the path you’ve traveled. He knows of your pain, of your remorse, and your sorrows; those that have been self-inflicted and those that pierced your heart as wounds inflicted by others. His love and His compassion are yours and you belong to Him. Do not be afraid of the path before you; blessing lies ahead. Learn to wait upon the Lord. Learn to trust in Him even though you cannot see the prize. He will provide for you. Only do not flirt with evil; it has no part of you, and you do not belong to it.

God knows your heart. Read the message to the church in Philadelphia in Revelation 3:7-13. God will vindicate you, but first you must step out of His way. You impede the Holy Spirit’s work when you attempt to be judge and jury of your fellow human beings; this is not your job. You will make yourself a menace to others, and this is not God’s will. He desires that you be well-loved and well-respected. There comes a time when those you seek to correct have a better hope of making a turn-around without you dogging their steps. Withdraw and allow God time to work in the memories and in the thought processes of those you seek to change; God can remake memories. He is with you. Allow Him to guide your footsteps in a different direction. Blessings are ahead, and if you will give God time and space to work, blessings are behind as well. God is above time and space. He can literally remake the past. But in order for Him to do this regenerative work, you must step aside.

Scripture: Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14

Prince or Pauper?

The searing pain of a blow to the heart can cause you to question yourself. You may feel that you are holding your wounds too closely, or that you are brandishing and cherishing the ways in which you have been hurt. You may even allow yourself to be convinced that you are somehow to blame for the degree of pain that you have experienced. The Lord disagrees with this assessment! You were in distress. He has been your Savior. The fact of your injury is real, but the Lord has delivered you out of this distress. Now you are angry that you ever were in distress at all! What more do you want your Heavenly Father to do for you? He has delivered you.

You desire vindication and independence. Having suffered previously, you seek to protect yourself against further pain. God allowed suffering in the past and you did not understand why. Not understanding, you fear that you will have to suffer again. This perspective of fear blended with a desire for vindication is the disease that causes the servant who becomes the mistress of the house to be a menace to herself and to others (Proverbs 30:21-23). The cure is to allow God to change your perspective. Were you a slave? Or were you royalty in slave’s clothing? Were you enslaved by others? Or did you choose to bow to God’s will and His way in faith believing, as an undercover agent assumes an identity for the sake of the mission? Choose your perspective.

The Lord is your Vindicator. A day will soon come when those who have caused you pain will fall at your feet and acknowledge that you have been loved and that you have been chosen. You are now and always have been a child in the Father’s house. Walk with confidence. View yourself as the precious and chosen child of the King that you are. This perspective will enable you to respond with the generosity of God’s mercy to those who will one day serve you.

Scripture: I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Rev. 3:9 NIV