When Paul was known as Saul, he was a famous enemy of the church. His zeal for persecuting the church made his conversion all the more shocking, and his testimony even more powerful. And Paul could have used those facts to rationalize away his regrets. This is perhaps the most common response to regret that pop-psychology can give. “You learned from your mistakes. Your experiences made you who you are. You have grown, and you shouldn’t regret the process that got you here.” That kind of thinking—who does it glorify? It glorifies the self. That kind of thinking calls our evil good because it turned out well. And that is a lie. If good things have come from regrettable actions; if you grew, if you gained wisdom, or a family, or the ability to empathize and be compassionate, don’t give the glory to yourself. Be like Paul and give it to God. This is how we balance repentance and thankfulness. This is how we love our lives and regret our sins at the same time. We remember the words repeated at the end of our theme song. “You are holy. You are righteous. You are one of the redeemed.” If you could write a letter to your younger self, is there anything better to write than this truth? Anything you could try to change about your past could lead to unintended consequences you never imagined. Any letter you wrote couldn’t guarantee 100% improvement without tradeoffs. When it comes down to it, exactly what I would have told younger me, is exactly what I need to know now, and in the future: the truth. "You are holy. You are righteous. You are one of the redeemed; set apart, brand new heart. Oh you are free indeed.” We move forward in the truth.