Life Without Regret

“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.” [1]

Let me make a prediction: your biggest regret at the end of your life won’t be the things you did that you wish you hadn’t; your biggest regret will be the things you didn’t do but wish you had. That prediction is based on research conducted by two social psychologists, Tom Gilovich and Victoria Medvec. [2] According to their research, time is a key factor in determining what we regret. Over the short-term, we tend to regret actions—things we did that we wish we hadn’t. But over the long-haul, we tend to regret inactions—things we didn’t do but wish we had. The study conducted by these two researchers found that action regrets outweigh inaction regrets 53 percent to 47 percent during an average week. But when people look at their lives as a whole, inaction regrets outnumber action regrets 84 percent to 16 percent.

I have my fair share of action regrets; and I’m certain you have such regrets as well. I am certain that we have each said and done some things that we wish we could unsay and undo. Who hasn’t secretly wished that they could fly counter-rotational around the earth at supersonic speeds and reverse time like Superman? Okay, maybe not that; but we have wanted do overs. However, I’m convinced that our deepest regrets at the end of our lives will be the risks we never took, the opportunities we failed to seize, and the dreams we didn’t even attempt to pursue. This is especially true in the realm of the spiritual. To be certain, there will be regrets of choices not made in relationships, choices not made in work related opportunities, but the greatest regrets each of us will experience will fall within the realm of failures in the spiritual realm.

I reflect on times I didn’t confront church members that were dishonouring the Lord. These were people whom I believe to have been genuine brothers and sisters in the Lord. However, they became instruments of Satan through their emphasis on self-interest. In some instances, these self-willed souls did the cause of Christ great harm, and I regret that I did not act more aggressively to stop their destructive actions.

I am also aware of some who were instruments of Satan because he is their father. I have little reason to believe these individuals ever showed any reason why I should believe they were twice-born. Sadly, I cannot recall a single thing about their conduct that would make me think they were children of the living God. Oh, they talked the talk, but they never walked the walk. And looking back, I regret that I did not confront them more vigorously in their deceit and error. I regret that I allowed them to continue their nefarious work that injured the people of God.

Moreover, I am deeply aware of times I failed to stand firm, hesitating even momentarily when the battle was most intense. The message is intended to be encouragement for those who are younger in years, perhaps younger in the Faith, to heed what is written in the Word. The time is short for any of us. Perhaps the Master will return shortly, but whether His return occurs in a short time or after a long time, our time to accomplish anything of lasting worth is limited. Let us hear what is written and put it into practise.