{"id":4622,"date":"2025-05-13T09:13:44","date_gmt":"2025-05-13T13:13:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/js1cd06kre.onrocket.site\/?p=4622"},"modified":"2025-05-13T09:13:44","modified_gmt":"2025-05-13T13:13:44","slug":"if-only-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/13\/if-only-2\/","title":{"rendered":"If Only"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0<\/em>click here<\/a>

Beware a pair of words that have the power to steal your life:\u00a0If only.\u00a0<\/em>

Relationship expert Les Parrott asserts, \u201cOnce you begin a sentence with if only<\/em>, you have sealed the deal with regret.\u201d\u00a0

If only I had saved a few dollars every week, the way everyone told me, I would be financially secure right now.<\/em>

If only I hadn\u2019t skipped that meeting, my whole career might have taken a different direction.<\/em>

If only I hadn\u2019t flipped out when my partner made that mistake, we might be happily married today.<\/em>

If only I had lost weight when I only had a few pounds to lose, I wouldn\u2019t feel so horrible whenever I step onto the scale.<\/em>

If only I had worked harder in school, I wouldn\u2019t be stuck in this job.<\/em>

If only I had sought God when I felt close to him, I wouldn\u2019t feel so lost today.<\/em>

If only <\/em>statements are deadly because they force us to live in a place where we no longer have the opportunity to change our lives:\u00a0the past.\u00a0

Living in the past yields regret.\u00a0Living in the future generates worry.\u00a0

While it\u2019s true that God exists in all dimensions of time and space simultaneously \u2013 past, present, and future \u2013 there\u2019s only one moment in which we can relate to God directly.\u00a0

That would be this moment.\u00a0<\/em>

A number of years ago I came emotionally unglued when talking to a friend of mine, a church colleague. I was right on a particular issue \u2013 I just knew it \u2013 and I wasn\u2019t going to pass up the opportunity to declare my disappointment that my will (and what was obviously common sense) had been thwarted.\u00a0

At one juncture my friend calmly interrupted my rant and said, \u201cGlenn, just take a breath.\u201d\u00a0

But I would have none of that. I was deriving way too much pleasure from my evident rightness.

That is, until the conversation ended.\u00a0Then I was left alone and feeling utterly foolish.\u00a0

If only I had waited ten more minutes before speaking. If only I had decided to walk way.\u00a0If only I had taken the wonderful advice that my friend had given to me:\u00a0Glenn, just take a breath.<\/em>\u00a0If only I had stood down, then life would be beautiful, peace would rule on Earth, and the Indiana Pacers would finish off the Cleveland Cavaliers in their NBA playoff series this evening.

Les Parrott points out that every if only<\/em> is powered by a pair of lies.\u00a0

The first is that life would somehow be simple and easy if only the past were different.\u00a0The second is that we must inevitably remain locked up in the prisons of our past actions.\u00a0

In truth, we have great power.\u00a0That power is embodied in our next play:\u00a0Will we trust God now<\/u><\/em> or allow regret to be our master?

Before day\u2019s end I drove to my friend\u2019s house and stood there on the porch.\u00a0I was greeted with a disarming smile:\u00a0\u201cI knew you probably had a terrible day, Glenn, and I almost drove over to your place.\u201d\u00a0Within minutes we shared the gift of reconciliation and began thinking about our next steps forward.

The Bible couldn\u2019t be clearer: \u201cNow is the time of God\u2019s salvation, now is the day of salvation\u201d (II Corinthians 6:2).

The past is an impossible place to live.\u00a0Which is why God is always pointing us toward a better future.\u00a0

But it will be better only<\/u><\/em>if<\/u><\/em> we trust him in the present moment, and allow the power of each and every if<\/u><\/em> only<\/u><\/em> to be broken.
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To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast,\u00a0click here Beware a pair of words that have the power to steal your life:\u00a0If only.\u00a0 Relationship expert Les Parrott asserts, \u201cOnce you begin a sentence with if only, you have sealed the deal with regret.\u201d\u00a0 If only I had saved a few dollars every week, the way everyone told me, I would… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4623,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[926,342,296],"class_list":["post-4622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-present-moment","tag-regret","tag-worry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4622"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4622\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4624,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4622\/revisions\/4624"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}