“I
should have listened to my professor and finished my thesis and get my degree.
I should not have filed for that divorce. I should have
bought the farm, instead of working on these boring machines from 9 to 5. I should have gotten our kids baptized like grandma asked. I should have had my camera ready for those birds flying over the bay."
Some were a bit more serious, for example, one individual said I would go back to when I was 20 and NOT smoke that first blunt. There were more than a couple of people who agreed with that post.
Some were truly heartbreaking, like this one: I wish I could go back and tell my daughter that she would be OK and stay in treatment instead of getting the news that she committed suicide from an overdose. Or, I wish I could go back to the person I married and tell them I regret being addicted to my alcohol and drugs and get back to my family and have my kids respect me.
Some were a bit more serious, for example, one individual said I would go back to when I was 20 and NOT smoke that first blunt. There were more than a couple of people who agreed with that post.
Some were truly heartbreaking, like this one: I wish I could go back and tell my daughter that she would be OK and stay in treatment instead of getting the news that she committed suicide from an overdose. Or, I wish I could go back to the person I married and tell them I regret being addicted to my alcohol and drugs and get back to my family and have my kids respect me.
Regrets, I’m sure, we’ve all had a few… Some in the grand scheme of things aren’t too big a deal (I should have gotten that tractor in green instead of blue); while another might be a life-altering moment that puts us on a different track - that, in hindsight, is a bad decision. A decision that because of our blindness, stubbornness, ignorance, whatever the reason – we made that choice and it has affected us for the rest of our lives.
Many
of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said “this
saying is hard; who can accept it?. . . as a result of this, many of his disciples
returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.
I’m sure for Jesus that it was hard watching someone make a decision that he knew, eventually, they would regret.
What is striking though is that the choice here is whether to stay and continue to follow Jesus or not. The choice to stay didn’t mean that the doubts disappeared (really, we are going to be eating your flesh?). The choice to stay didn’t mean perfect understanding that what Jesus was saying would eventually come to light (how does that piece of bread that cup of wine at Mass become Jesus’ body and blood?).
But then again, just look at those who did stay. Peter and the twelve would prove more times than not how little they understood what Jesus was saying to them, and how often their doubts would re-appear and make them screw up.
Yet, they stayed despite all of those doubts and confusions because Jesus hadn’t given them any reason not to trust Him. Yes, “this saying is hard” – but Jesus offers that if we trust him, stick with him, continue to follow him – it won’t make things easier – in fact things will probably become harder. But it’s a choice we will never regret. Because we too will come to make Peter’s words our own – We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.
I’m sure for Jesus that it was hard watching someone make a decision that he knew, eventually, they would regret.
What is striking though is that the choice here is whether to stay and continue to follow Jesus or not. The choice to stay didn’t mean that the doubts disappeared (really, we are going to be eating your flesh?). The choice to stay didn’t mean perfect understanding that what Jesus was saying would eventually come to light (how does that piece of bread that cup of wine at Mass become Jesus’ body and blood?).
But then again, just look at those who did stay. Peter and the twelve would prove more times than not how little they understood what Jesus was saying to them, and how often their doubts would re-appear and make them screw up.
Yet, they stayed despite all of those doubts and confusions because Jesus hadn’t given them any reason not to trust Him. Yes, “this saying is hard” – but Jesus offers that if we trust him, stick with him, continue to follow him – it won’t make things easier – in fact things will probably become harder. But it’s a choice we will never regret. Because we too will come to make Peter’s words our own – We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.
Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who are
troubled with regrets from their past. May your spirit of understanding and
truth bring people back to the church. May the faith community, your parish and
neighbors welcome you back with open arms and the spirit of God’s love and
mercy.
