While going through some old files recently, I found the following poem. I’m not sure when I wrote it, but judging by the handwriting, it was more than twenty years ago. Though the inspiration behind it is long forgotten, the sentiments expressed within are still meaningful to me.
Would I Turn Back Time?
If I could turn back the clock and go back in time, what moments would I change?
Would I let fall by the wayside—
-those lonely hours when I longed for companionship and found a relationship with God?
-the pain and grief that taught me to be compassionate towards others?
-the divine intervention that led me along unfamiliar, uncharted paths and brought me into the fullness of God’s love?
-the times when I was defeated that made the victories, though often far between, sweet?
O, would that I could erase the years of foolish pride and earthly conceit that led me far from You
—but not the failures and earthly stumbles that brought me to my knees in humble pleas, praying “Forgive me, Father,”
—where I found eternal peace.
Not one moment would I change, could I do so, for every moment is a footstep in my walk with You.
Carol Underhill 