[Faith-talk] FW: [reachingouttoothersgroup] Fwd: Living Above Regret

[Eric Calhoun]

Original Message: 
From: LRSBNA at aol.com
To: reachingouttoothersgroup at yahoogroups.com
Subject: [reachingouttoothersgroup] Fwd: Living Above Regret
Date: 
Thu, 26 May 2011 08:48:40 EDT



 
  
____________________________________
 From: thecuttingedge at ollison.org
To: lrsbna at aol.com
Sent: 5/25/2011  9:08:21 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: Living Above Regret



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Living  Above Regret  
by Dr. Larry  Ollison  
 
The world is full of people who live their lives  wondering what might
have 
been, what could have been, or what should  have been had they only made 
different choices all those years ago.  
Too often when a person is young, they lack the wisdom  to make the hard 
choices that can benefit their future. Many times the  young make choices 
based on the feelings of the moment, or are forced  into choices because
of peer 
pressure or parents. Little do they know  that decades later they will 
relive those moments of choice and wonder  what could have been, what
would have 
been, what should have been. 
The Word of God tells us that we are not to look back,  but to stay
focused 
on what lies ahead. Athletes are trained to not look  back, but to keep 
their eyes on the finish line. Why? Because looking  back will slow you
down 
and cause you to focus on where you've been  instead of where you are
going. 
Sometimes the past actually does contain unresolved  issues. The
knowledge 
of broken lives and broken hearts, as a result of  your bad decisions,
can 
sometimes become overwhelming and the temptation  to go back in time can
be 
very strong. But almost always it results in  even more broken hearts and
the 
pain is multiplied.  
So the answer is actually quite simple. We must somehow  resolve the
regret 
and get rid of the guilt. But you can't do this on  your own. You need a 
strength beyond what is natural and that strength  only comes from the
power 
contained in the grace of God.  
First, you must make the hard decision to not go back.  You must
recognize 
that things wouldn't be the same because the years  have changed 
circumstances and the people involved. Secondly, you must  come to the
realization that 
you are not a teenager anymore, and make-up  or motorcycles will not
change 
that.  
Now don't take me wrong. I am not saying that you can't  have old friends

and that you can't resolve old issues. You can. But  resolution involves
love 
and forgiveness. Regret involves guilt and  pain.  
God's plan is simple. Forgive yourself, walk in love,  and press forward 
for the good things that God has ahead for you.  
Some people have lived with regret for so many years  that it has become
a 
part of them. Their personalities have developed  and been shaped by the 
haunting memories of the past. But, as you look  forward toward the
freshness 
that God has for you and you understand the  concept that God saves the
best 
for last, then peace will come into your  life and regret will be gone -
at 
last. 
"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." (Philippians 3:12-14)  
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens  me." (Philippians  
4:13)




 
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