Category Archives: Sorrow, Grief & Regrets

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October 4, 2014

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Bible Stories, Forgiveness, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets

SEND IT INTO THE WILDERNESS (Day of Atonement)

10-4-14 wildernessWEBHappy is the person whose sins are forgiven, whose wrongs are pardoned. [Psalm 32:1 (NCV)]

Today is the Day of Atonement, a Jewish holy day. The book of Leviticus describes the rituals the Israelites were to perform on this most sacred day of the year. In one ceremony, two goats were taken from the people. One goat would be given to the Lord and the other would be the “scapegoat.” The goat given to God was sacrificed as a sin offering to make atonement for the sins of the people; its purpose was forgiveness. The second goat was then brought before the altar. The priest laid his hands on the goat and confessed the sins and transgressions of the people. He then sent it away into the wilderness; its purpose was to remove the people’s guilt.

The Christian, however, doesn’t need this kind of yearly ritual. Our sacrifice has already been made: Jesus was our sacrificial lamb. It was his blood that was shed for our sins. Because of him, once we repent and confess our sins, they are forgiven and forgotten. God forgives us and lets us start anew, free from guilt.

Sometimes, however, we don’t accept His forgiveness. We hang on to our guilt by replaying our actions, blaming ourselves and others, and regretting our failures. We carry embarrassment, humiliation, and shame around even after God has forgotten all about it. Perhaps we need to take a lesson from the ancient Israelites. Knowing that a sacrifice has been made to atone for our sins, we need to send our guilt out into the wilderness, never again to be seen!

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. [Psalm 103:12 (NLT)]

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April 7, 2014

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Faith & Hope, Salvation: A New You, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Today: Make it Count

He’s Just Around the Corner

2014-4-7Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die.” [John 11:25-26 (NLT)]

Dear Lord, console those who mourn and fill them with hope. Wipe their tears and help them find comfort in both their faith and memories. Reassure them that life for the believer does not end at death but will continue forever in your loving presence. Guide the bereaved through their grief and bring them to a place where they again will have laughter and joy in their lives.

I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life. Yes, I am the bread of life! Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died. Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh. [John 6:47-51 (NLT)]

“Death is Nothing at All”
[Henry Scott Holland, Canon of St. Paul’s Cathedral]

Death is nothing at all.
I have only slipped away into the next room.
I am I and you are you.
Whatever we were to each other, that we still are.
Call me by my old familiar name.
Speak to me in the easy way which you always used.
Put no difference in your tone.
Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow.
Laugh as we always laughed at the little jokes we enjoyed together.
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me.
Let my name be ever the household word that it always was.
Let it be spoken without affect, without the trace of a shadow on it.
Life means all that it ever meant.
It is the same that it ever was.
There is absolutely unbroken continuity.
Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight?
I am waiting for you, for an interval, somewhere very near, just around the corner.
All is well.

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January 21, 2014

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Faith & Hope, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Today: Make it Count

Looking Forward

They will come home and sing songs of joy on the heights of Jerusalem. They will be radiant because of the Lord’s good gifts — the abundant crops of grain, new wine, and olive oil, and the healthy flocks and herds. Their life will be like a watered garden, and all their sorrows will be gone. The young women will dance for joy, and the men—old and young—will join in the celebration. I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing. [Jeremiah 31:12-13 (NLT)]

Lord, don’t let me spend a lifetime mourning what might have been; open my eyes to what is yet to come.

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December 31, 2013

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Holidays & Holy Days, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Thanks & Praise

New Year’s Eve – What Do You see in Your Rearview Mirror?

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. … Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord. [Psalm 107:1,43 (NLT)]

New Year’s Eve is a time we often contemplate the past year, frequently with regrets and sorrow. We ponder the many “would have’s”, “should have’s” and “could have’s” in our lives. We may have lost a loved one, suffered ill health or financial difficulty, or struggled with personal challenges.

As we enter this new year, let’s look back on the joys of 2013. Reflect on the many ways you saw the hand of God at work, the times you heard his voice or felt his embrace, the moments you knew He was guiding or even supporting you. Today, let us look at the past year with grateful hearts for the many blessings and joy God sent to us. May the rear view mirror of our minds only reflect God’s kindness and love.

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. [Psalm 103:1-2 (NLT)]

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December 28, 2013

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Family, Friends & Fellowship, Forgiveness, God's Grace & Love, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets

Remember When?

Wash away all my guilt and make me clean again. I know about my wrongs, and I can’t forget my sin. [Psalm 51:2-3 (NCV)]

As we gather with friends and family over the holidays, we may spend time reminiscing and sharing memories. “Remember when…?” we ask. Sometimes this recollecting causes us to pause and shudder. A memory of a wrong we committed rears its ugly head and we begin to feel shame and guilt. We remember the things we should have done and failed to do and the things we did that we shouldn’t have done but did. We remember harsh words, short tempers, deceitfulness, and other failings. We may remember, but, thank God, He doesn’t! Once forgiven, our sins are also forgotten.

Thank you, Lord, for your loving gifts of forgiveness and forgetfulness. Thank you, Lord, for this coming new year and another opportunity for us to get it right!

I will forgive them for the wicked things they did, and I will not remember their sins anymore.” [Jeremiah 31:34b (NCV)]

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December 26, 2013

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Forgiveness, God's Plan, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets

Let Go of the Past if You’re Going to Reach the Goal

I do not mean that I am already as God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal, but I continue trying to reach it and to make it mine. Christ wants me to do that, which is the reason he made me his. [Philippians 3:12 (NCV)]

It is wise to remember that, no matter how old we may be, we continue to be a work in progress. Our past, no matter how checkered it may be, should never keep us from a future of service and blessings. God doesn’t care about our past. His concern is not where and how we started our lives; his concern is where and how we finish those lives.

The apostle Paul certainly had a troubled history; he had zealously persecuted the early Christians and was even present when Stephen was martyred. Paul, however, never let his past keep him from moving forward to become the man God wanted him to be. He became the greatest Christian evangelist that ever lived. Let’s not forget, God is never finished with us. What plans does He have for you this upcoming year?

Brothers and sisters, I know that I have not yet reached that goal, but there is one thing I always do. Forgetting the past and straining toward what is ahead, I keep trying to reach the goal and get the prize for which God called me through Christ to the life above. [Philippians 3:13-14 (NCV)]