Regret and Repentance
Everyone dreams of living without regrets, yet when we look back on our lives, we inevitably find things we wish we had done differently, whether many or few. Even if our lives have not been perfect, we might still feel that we have lived well if we can say that we have no regrets. Yet living such a life is by no means easy.
Daniel Pink, a bestselling author and business thinker, collected and analyzed a wide range of regrets through a survey of approximately sixteen thousand people in 105 countries and compiled the “World Regret Report.” The report divides regret into four categories: regret over failing to build a stable foundation, regret over lacking the courage to seize opportunities to learn and grow, regret over failing to do what was right, and regret over not maintaining closer relationships with others. The findings showed that as people grew older, they tended to regret their relationships more than their education, health, or careers. They also regretted the things they had failed to do more than the things they had done.
In a book based on the report, Pink emphasized the positive role of regret and concluded that dealing with regret constructively makes us more fully human. Rather than becoming depressed and condemning ourselves for what we failed to do, we can use regret as a springboard for better action and thereby grow and mature.
How, then, can we live without leaving regrets behind? Solomon, who enjoyed the greatest wealth and splendor the world could offer, lamented the futility of life in his later years, saying, “Meaningless! Meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” Yet he also wrote in Ecclesiastes that humanity’s duty is to fear God and keep His commands. A life that is neither empty nor regrettable is one spent serving God and living according to His Word.
No one is entirely free from regret. However, rather than wasting the present by dwelling on what has already passed, we should use our past mistakes as stepping stones and move forward. Christ Ahnsahnghong explained the difference between regret and repentance through the examples of Judas Iscariot and the apostle Peter. Both committed the sin of betraying Christ. Judas, however, became trapped in self-reproach and negative thoughts, allowing his response to end in regret alone. Peter sincerely repented of his wrongdoing and walked the path of repentance by lovingly caring for the flock Christ had entrusted to him.
Peter was not alone. James, John, Paul, and many other apostles transformed regret into repentance and went on to live worthy and meaningful lives. They repented of the times when they had left or persecuted Christ and devoted themselves to the gospel. At the end of their lives, they faced their final moments without the slightest regret, confident in the crown of righteousness prepared for them (2 Ti 4:6–8).
At the end of life, everyone will stand before God’s throne and receive either judgment or reward according to their deeds. While we still have the opportunity, let us look toward our heavenly reward and diligently do what God desires and finds pleasing. Then, when that day comes, we will not be left regretting the things we failed to do, saying, “I should have preached the word more diligently,” “I should have prayed more,” “I should have loved more,” “I should have been more thankful,” or “I should have been the first to apologize.”
