Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! (Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV)
“The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago. The second-best time is now.” – Chinese proverb
Do you have anything in your life that you regret?
Maybe it was a relationship that harmed more than it helped.
A financial decision that left you burdened.
An opportunity you let slip by.
Or trusting someone before really knowing who they were.
Regret is a natural outcome of reflection—but it doesn’t have to be a dead end. Regret can actually be a powerful force for growth, if it moves us toward better choices, deeper healing, and wiser living.
As a parent of older teens, I can look back and see things we did well—and things I wish we had done differently. I could sit in regret over missed moments… or I can choose today to build strong relationships with them now.
As a musician and artist, I could lament the years I barely touched my craft. But those years were not wasted—they were spent investing in other areas of life. And today, I can open that book of Beethoven piano sonatas or take out my flute and begin again.
When it comes to my health, I could regret the times I didn’t care well for this body—this temple of the Holy Spirit. Or I can resolve today to return to habits of strength and wellness.
As someone who’s followed Jesus for a long time but only recently encountered the charismatic and prophetic dimensions of the Church, I could regret not learning some of these new things earlier. But instead, I choose to keep growing and receiving what God has for me now.
Regret doesn’t have to keep us stuck. Isaiah urged us not to dwell on the past, but to see the new thing God is doing. Paul told us to forget what is behind and press on—strain forward—toward what lies ahead.
That’s good news: the past can inform us, but it doesn’t have to define or limit us.
Yes, the best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago.
But the second-best time? Is right now.
So let’s move forward in faith, with intentionality, leaving behind regret and holding fast to hope.
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:23 NIV)
Faithful God,
Thank you for your grace that covers our failures. Thank you for your forgiveness for the sins of our past, and your hope and goals for our future. Thank you for opportunities to reflect on and learn from our past; help us to glean the wisdom you have for us without succumbing to crippling regret. Help us to seek you with all we are so that we can see and strive for the good and new things you have for our lives. We ask this in Jesus’s name, AMEN.
…Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal… (Philippians 3:14-15 ESV)
Know also that wisdom is like honey for you:
If you find it, there is a future hope for you,
and your hope will not be cut off. (Proverbs 24:14 NIV)