I have some regrets in my life, decisions that I should have made. Sometimes I wish I could go back to those moments and make different decisions and maybe my life would have been different and I won't have these regrets. They are not necessarily sinful decisions, but just in my perspective, not ideal.

     I can't help but thinking that the appeal of the idea of reincarnation- being born as a different person, may have something to do with this phenomenon of regret. Some people probably long for a second chance to get their life right.

     As I reflected on this, I thought about the question "Is there really such a thing as a perfect life?" I thought about the man who had made a bad business decision and wishes he could change that decision. Is he sure that life won't pose other problems for him? Maybe that bad business decision put him in a place where he would not make more bad business decisions that could have made his situation worse. The world seems to be replete with suffering, that no matter how good we are at making decisions, we cannot avoid. A different path would just seem to present other set of problems and regrets. Being reincarnated would just subject a person to the cycle of regret and longing.

     I reflected on a Christian response to the problem of regret- "God works all things together for good for those who love him and are called according to his riches" This response puts "bad" moments in our life into proper perspective. Instead of occasions for despair, they become opportunities for God's goodness to shine through. There is a God behind our bad decisions who is willing to direct our lives in such a way that some good comes out of them. We may not be able to see how, but with an attitude of faith, we can wait expectantly for that good.

    I see two choices from this reflection. We can go around longing for a second chance to make things right in our life. Or, we can seek God's ways and find that God works out our bad decisions for good, and ultimately brings us to a place of eternal rest- no more striving for the best life knowing that with him, we already have the best.