Have you ever revisited a painful memory? You become filled with sadness and regret as you repay it in your mind. You wish you could have done things differently, so that the outcome would have been different. If you were to actually go back and revisit the experience, would the outcome really be different, maybe but maybe not. The problem is, when we are young, we do not have the knowledge, understanding, nor wisdom that we do when we are older. Thus, we do things, and the outcome is painful and hurtful. But it is those experiences that shape us into what we are today. In the early 1990’s I was the Associate Minister, at the First Christian Church, in Edmond, Oklahoma. Babe was an elderly woman that I would visit, on a regular basis. She was kind and loving, full of wisdom. As we were talking one day she said to me, “Denise, you are a better minister because of all the things you have experienced in your young years. God has turned those horrible situations round and uses them for good, so that, you can help others.” interesting thought. I believe that this is true. God does use those painful experiences you have gone through to help others. Whatever mistake, failure, trouble, trial, or bad decision you’ve experienced, God tells us, “I’ll still use it for good in your life. And I expect you to use it to help others.” (2 Corinthians 1:6-7) As believers, in our Lord, God helps us through all situations and circumstances. He is with us, even in our darkest moments. Psalm 18:28 tells us, “You, LORD, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.” I truly believe, God can help us to forgive ourselves and recognize that sometimes a painful experience, can be used to help others. It is something to remember. God Bless. Amen.