Hi, hope everyone is having a blessed day. I know that we have to confess that God died on the cross for our past transgression and we have to repent but for practical purposes, I'm going to bring up a situation and then explain my relatively simple solution. I came back home after a long time away about a week ago. Before then, I had a terrible relationship with my brother-we used to always fight, scream curse words, and try to bring each other down. But now, since I've come home, we seem to get along and matured to the point where we can watch each other's back and hold each other accountable for our goals in life.

I felt like we have made amends for past failures, and even though I sometimes wish I didn't do all those horrible things as kids, I say to myself, "you had the time in the past it's no big deal, it was to make amends but some reason you didn't an its ok since you (in the present) knows the solutions to the past. "

So essentially, I just say you had it in the past. is there anything wrong with that view?

All we need to do is confess our sins, repent, and God will have removed that sin, as far as the East is to the West scripture tells us. There's no need to hang on to regrets, instead move forward with God, and be different.

blessings to you :hug:

Sometimes regrets persist because confession is needed. We need to confession everything (that we can recall) - in our prayers to the Lord. Literally listing and confessing our sins to Him. Yes, sometimes a blanket "forgive me of my sins" is fine, but I find that when I say to Him - even about things past - such as, "You know God, when I younger, I was angry alot with my mother and treated her alot of times with disdain. Forgive me of that" - I find that regrets disappear. Trust God to remove your sins as far as the "east is from the west". Psalm 139:23-24 - "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me,and lead me in the way everlasting!" 1 John 1:9 - "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Romans 8:1 - "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

Sometimes regrets hang on because we haven't expressed sorrow and remorse to the other person. And in some cases, it isn't wise to bring up details of the past to the one that we have offended (such as if a man used to lust after a woman he was not married to) and sometimes it is necessary. Ultimately our sins are before God alone, but I believe that offering apologies and expressions of remorse to those we have offended is in some cases the catalyst for restoration of fellowship and peace in our own heart. Have you said to your brother, "Hey, remember when we were younger and we fought all the time and said and did things that were stupid to each other. Well, brother, for my part in all of that, I am sorry." You don't have to list specifics with him, that's not always wise - but confessing, even in generalities, is good and necessary. James 5:16 - "Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results." I realize that some will say that this verse only applies to those who are physically ill, but regrets and remorse can lead to depression and other ailments if not dealt with correctly.

And sometimes regrets won't leave us because it's the devil tormenting us because he enjoys being the "accuser of the brothers and sisters in Christ". He LOVES for us to live in the past - even if we have gone through the proper confession and repentence - he loves to throw our past mistakes in our faces. He mistakenly believes - because the devil is not omniscient - that perhaps if he accuses us long enough that he can override God's grace and/or make us trust more in our regrets than in God's grace. But the devil is dead wrong. If this is your situation and you have confessed and repented, then ask God to rebuke the devil for your sake and for Him to restore your joy that's found in His salvation. This is what King David did after pouring his heart out to God confessing his sin. Psalm 51:12 - "Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit."

Hi, hope everyone is having a blessed day. I know that we have to confess that God died on the cross for our past transgression and we have to repent but for practical purposes, I'm going to bring up a situation and then explain my relatively simple solution. I came back home after a long time away about a week ago. Before then, I had a terrible relationship with my brother-we used to always fight, scream curse words, and try to bring each other down. But now, since I've come home, we seem to get along and matured to the point where we can watch each other's back and hold each other accountable for our goals in life.

I felt like we have made amends for past failures, and even though I sometimes wish I didn't do all those horrible things as kids, I say to myself, "you had the time in the past it's no big deal, it was to make amends but some reason you didn't an its ok since you (in the present) knows the solutions to the past. "

So essentially, I just say you had it in the past. is there anything wrong with that view?

Oh good, I'm glad you were finally able to make it home again. I hope you and your parents were able to iron things out? How is college treating you? I'm also glad you were able to reconcile with your brother. Being grown up a bit more does help, doesn't it? It's normal to finally recognize the foolishness of ... well, our foolishness ... and grow up past it and learn to make amends with people and be restored to them. That's the whole point of repentance and forgiveness: Restoration. Good on you for experiencing it!