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A prayer for parental regret

Merciful God,

Certain phases of parenting have come and gone,

and though I know regret is a waste of time,

there are things I wish I’d done differently.

Words I should or shouldn’t have said,

choices I’d like to redo,

help I wish I’d asked for,

wise advice unheeded,

anger untempered,

frustration and fatigue

I wish I’d handled with more maturity.

Lord, I take a deep breath in your presence,

acknowledging that all my regrets are in the past,

and what is here now is your love and forgiveness.

(pause and take some deep breaths)

Cultivate in me the humility of an apprentice,

so that every regret would feed the soil

where patience, empathy, and wisdom grow.

May I be quick to apologize, change course,

or take that extra step in love when I feel like giving up.

And may every mistake I am yet to make

soften my heart and deepen my dependence

on your grace.

Thank you that your mercies are new every morning,

your faithfulness revealed in our weakness.

And through it all, help me parent

with this same approach—

grace upon grace upon grace.

Amen.

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Alli R. Dahlgren

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