Monday 4 November 2013

An Open Letter to My Future Daughter: Regret

Baby-girl, 
There are people who will try to make you regret things in your life. They may be well-meaning, and they may be the people who are closest to you. They will try to make you regret decisions you have made because they don’t understand them. They will see something you have done as a mistake and want you to regret it so you don’t do it again. Don’t give in
Never regret anything that made you stronger or wiser. Never regret anything that developed your character, helped you realize your identity, or helped you learn a priceless life lesson. I know too many people who carry around too many regrets, and we’re not supposed to live that way. 
Yes, we will do things we wish we hadn't. We will say words we wish we could take back, and we will make choices that we’ll wish we hadn't. But we don’t have to carry the weight of that. See, not only did Jesus take on the weight of our sin on that Cross, but He also took on the weight of our guilt, shame, and regret.
Look for the positives, sweet-heart. Purposely look for the things you did learn, or can learn from certain situations. Don’t regret something just because someone thinks you should. Only you know what you learned from some things. Only you know how your character developed because of certain trials you walked through.
And baby-girl, don’t regret heart break. I know it’s so easy to do, but it’s not worth it. A broken heart means you tried for something. And I want you to always be the type of girl who tried. Who took a chance, who took a moment to live, to fly, to love. When you’re in the moment and living the emotions of heart break, I know all you will feel like doing is regretting the choice to even open your heart to somebody. I know there are people around you who will feed that regret by saying you never should have let that person into your life in the first place. But it happened for a reason. No one comes into our life by accident, my love. Every meeting we have with people carries a purpose, and is part of God’s grand plan. So don’t regret it. When you feel like regretting, make a list of everything you are thankful for about that situation. Write a letter to yourself or to the person about all you learned from them or that situation. 
And baby, pray. Pray until you run out of words and then listen, listen for Jesus’ quiet whisper of who you truly are in Him. You are not your mistakes or your victories. You are not your shame or your guilt. And you don’t have to live the way other people tell you to just because they don’t understand everything you do. Only you know the words Jesus has spoken to you, sweetie. 
Listen to wisdom, but run everything through the filter of your faith, the filter of God’s Word. And remember – ‘to live would be an awfully big adventure.’ 

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