I don’t have many regrets. It’s not because things go perfectly, but because I tend not to regret when they don’t. Not if by regret we mean dwelling on a failure with an inability to let it go. I’m certainly not perfect; far from it. But I tend to look on the times things didn’t work out perfectly, or even close to how I imagined them, as learning experiences. I think it was Thomas Edison who said something pithy about not failing time after time in his effort to make the incandescent light bulb, but having found lots of ways not to make one! I suppose that’s how I look at things.

What that means is that as I ponder where I’ve been, I am not filled with regret and stuck on moments that didn’t turn out how I wanted. Every moment has been a learning moment that has defined where I went next. Even the outcomes that aren’t what I originally intended join in to help shape me and set the course for where I am headed next. 

I recently found affirmation for that approach when listening to a presentation by Dewitt Jones, the famous photographer known for his decades of work with National Geographic. When reflecting on his career, he noted the times he thought he had the shot he wanted, only to find a better one close by from a different angle, or a few minutes later when the light had changed, or by getting closer or further away from his subject. His point was to remind all of us that we don’t always get what we expect, but that we can still find the possibility if we look for it. What made all of his shoots successful was that every time he went out to take photographs, he believed that he would find a beautiful shot or a great image.

There’s something to that approach. An openness to find something wonderful each time we engage in an activity will yield amazing results. If our expectation is that things can only go one way, it is much more likely we’ll be left disappointed. And of course we cannot look in the rear view mirror and second guess ourselves if we did the best we could at a particular point in time with the information, energy, and passion we had at any given moment. 

This is true in prayer. If we give God only one way to answer our prayers, it is very likely that God is going to fail (from our perspective) to answer our prayers. If, on the other hand, we approach God with an openness that acknowledges that God has something to say to us in return and that we’re open to whatever God may be trying to say, it’s a fair bet that we’ll hear something. It may even be something unexpected. 

If life doesn’t work out the way we want it to; if our prayers go seemingly answered, perhaps it is our expectations that are off the mark. As Jones would say, we must be open to the possibility in everything. When we are, amazing things happen. When we limit the possibilities, it’s harder for the amazing to take place. So maybe our prayer for today is not to ask God for exactly what we want or what we think we need, but to ask what God has to say to us, and then listen carefully for a response. I believe God has something to say to us, and I hope you do, too.

Tom+

Most gracious God, you created the universe by calling out and bringing all things into being; as you continue to call out to your creation, give us ears to hear and open hearts to receive, that we might hear and know the desires of your heart for your children; we ask this through him who called out to us on your behalf, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.