How do I deal with regrets?
Psalm 32:5Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.” And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.
Psalm 51:7, 9-10Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. . . . Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
Acts 3:19“Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.”
1 John 1:9If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
Ask for God’s forgiveness. He has an endless supply, but you must ask for it. Regrets carry the weight of past sins; genuine repentance lightens the load with God’s help.
Psalm 85:2You forgave the guilt of your people—yes, you covered all their sins.
Psalm 103:3He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.
Psalm 130:3-4Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you.
Isaiah 1:18“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.”
Acts 13:39Everyone who believes in him is made right in God’s sight—something the law of Moses could never do.
Romans 3:24God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.
Hebrews 8:12I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.
1 John 2:12I am writing to you who are God’s children because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.
Receive God’s forgiveness. Forgiveness isn’t worth much until you accept it. God’s forgiveness may generate feelings of gratitude, humility, freedom, but it is a deeper reality before it is a feeling.
Psalm 32:1Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!
Psalm 51:12-15Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you. Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves; then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness. Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you.
Isaiah 54:4Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. Don’t be afraid; there is no more disgrace for you. You will no longer remember the shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood.
Romans 4:6-8David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it: “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.”
Ephesians 1:7He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
Rejoice in being truly forgiven. Forgiveness is a time for celebration.
Ezekiel 18:22All their past sins will be forgotten, and they will live because of the righteous things they have done.
Ezekiel 33:16None of their past sins will be brought up again, for they have done what is just and right, and they will surely live.
Romans 6:20-21When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom.
2 Corinthians 5:17Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
Philippians 3:13No, dear brothers and sisters, I [Paul] have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.
Titus 3:5He [God] saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.
Regrets are like a dirty window that keeps us from seeing clearly what is in front of us. But God is in the cleaning business. He washes away the sins of the past as well as the guilt over those sins. If he forgets them completely, so can you. You can choose to move forward joyfully, without carrying the burden of regret.
