Dealing With Regrets - Pastor Ekpenyong

Philippians 3:13-14  “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.”

2 Corinthians 5:17  “Therefore, if anyone [is] in Christ, [he is] a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new”

Everybody has got to deal with regrets because many stay trapped in the past. Sometimes, it's not the result of a sin committed. It can be a person you didn't rightly discern.

John 4:10 “Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

It can be an instruction neglected or not properly carried out.

2 Kings 13:18-19  “Then he said, "Take the arrows"; so he took [them.] And he said to the king of Israel, "Strike the ground"; so he struck three times, and stopped. And the man of God was angry with him, and said, "You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed [it!] But now you will strike Syria [only] three times." 

It can be a season you didn't maximize.

Luke 19:44 “ They will level you to the ground and kill your people. One stone will not be left on top of another, because you didn’t recognize the time when God came to help you.”

The only connection you have with the past is your memory - FORGET IT!

Let the past loose it's hold on you. 

It's preventing you from enjoying today and taking bold steps tomorrow. 

Regret STEALS NOW! 

When you make a mistake, receive forgiveness and move on. That's the only way you take the valuable lessons in that experience and be the better for it.

Refuse the temptation to spend the rest of your life regretting your actions of the past. Your past has been taken care of by the Father. Therefore, refuse to live in regret.

You deal with regret by walking in faith.

2 Corinthians 5:7 “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”

Faith operates NOW!

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Regret steals now!

Remember the devil's weapons are discouragement and depression. Regret leads to both.

IN DEALING WITH REGRETS:

1. Acknowledge that the situation will work for your good. You must realize that God is intentional and dynamic. 

Therefore, He works everything to suit His purpose. To you it was a mistake, to Him it was necessary for purpose to be accomplished.

1 Corinthians 2:7-8  “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God [a]ordained before the ages for our glory,  which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” 

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Genesis 45:5  “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.”

2. Be of good cheer 

Be encouraged! Cheer up! Put in good spirits!

Acts 27:21-25  “But after long abstinence from food, then Paul stood in the midst of them and said, "Men, you should have listened to me, and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss. And now I urge you to take heart, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only of the ship. For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve, saying, 'Do not be afraid, Paul; you must be brought before Caesar; and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you.' Therefore take heart, men, for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me.”

 It is very important that you encourage yourself in the LORD.

1 Samuel 30:6 “Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”

Self pity will keep you immobilized so that your future is no different than your past. Stop beating yourself for a mistake that has passed.

You're forgiven, forgive yourself.

The difference between Judas Iscariot and Simon Peter is that Peter received forgiveness and forgave himself whereas Judas didn't.

3. Believe God.

 His word does not change because of a mistake you made. What we call coincidence, is God choosing to remain anonymous in our lives. 

That means, He orchestrates events in our favour without our knowledge.

Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, to say what is false; or the son of man, that his purpose may be changed: what he has said, will he not do? and will he not give effect to the words of his mouth? 

 4. Shake off the Beast.

Acts 28:4-5 When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, the goddess Justice has not allowed him to live.” But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects. 

It is true I made a mistake but I refuse to be the mistake! There may be scars but choose to turn them to stars.

Gratitude, in my personal experience, has helped me to deal with scars.

Psalms 124:6-7 “Blessed be the LORD, Who has not given us as prey to their teeth. Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers; The snare is broken, and we have escaped.”

- A king once had a slave who, in all circumstances said: "My king do not be discouraged because everything God does is perfect, no mistakes..."

One day, they went hunting and a wild animal attacked the king, the slave managed to kill the animal but couldn't prevent his majesty from losing a finger. Furious and without showing gratitude, the king said; "If God was good, I would not have been attacked and lost one finger!" The slave replied: "Despite all these things, I can only tell you that God is good and everything he does is perfect, He is never wrong!" Outraged by the response, the king ordered the arrest of his slave.

Later, he left for another hunt and was captured by savages who made human sacrifices. On the altar, the savages found out that the king didn't have one finger in place so he was released because he was considered "not complete" to be offered to their gods.

On his return to the palace, he authorized the release of his slave saying; "My dear, God was really good to me! I was almost killed but for lack of a single finger I was let go! But I have a question: if God is so good, why did he allow me to put you in jail?" His reply: " My king, if I had gone with you, I would have been sacrificed for you because I have no missing finger."

Stand in your place of authority and shake off the beast.

Refuse Condemnation.

Romans 8:1-2 “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

Refuse Accusations.

Romans 8:33 “Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.”

Revelation 12:10‮-‬11 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.

Refuse Fear.

 2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear,but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

Turn the mess into a message.

Help somebody with your story.

 5. Enjoy NOW.

Walk by faith - your convictions and not by how you feel.

Your victory is NOW!

Regret steals now!

Psalms 118:24 This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Demand restoration.

Joel 2:23-27 “Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you— The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame. Then you shall know that I am  in the midst of Israel: I am the Lord your God And there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame.”

Rejoice in the spirit for you're enjoying restoration!

You are the resurrection and life!

Hallelujah!

Glory be to God!

Walk fearlessly in love!