Living with regret is a bit like living with stones in your shoe. They don't even have to be big, just pebbles, and you know they are there!

For several years I struggled under the burden of regret when my father passed away. The last time I saw my father alive was Christmas day and I was 18 years old. I had very little time off from college and spent most of it with my friends. I even went out of town to hang out with a friends' family. I knew when I got there, I should have spent more time with my family,my dad especially. I made a fast decisions and regretted it later.

I had no idea I would never see my dad again. I would have chosen differently had I known. For a long long time, regret bit at my heart.

I discovered that guilt and regret are very good friends.

What do should we do with regrets? How do we get those stones out of our shoe and keep them out? Do you have any stones in your shoes?

It makes a big difference if you are able to go and ask forgiveness but that is not always possible. It was too late for me.

In my situation, I had to let myself off the hook. There is an old saying " the hardest person to forgive is yourself".

So, I did eventually forgive myself and asked Jesus to forgive me. In 1 John 1:9 it tells us that if we confess our sins ( that is the bad stuff we do) He will forgive us, and the cool part is He forgives us completely. He wipes the record spotlessly clean.

That is what I needed and maybe that is what you need too. It is not hard and it does feel better!

I did learn from my mistake and tried to make different choices in the decisions that followed.

Make sure though, that your regrets are fair. I know that some people feel regret when it is not there fault. It is very important to just claim to your regret or guilt and not other peoples ! May God give you wisdom to know when that is.

If you do these few simple things I have suggested, you will find those pesky stones in your shoe, quietly dissappear. Wouldn't that be nice?