I think at all the injustices in the world, acknowledge their existance, yet feeling powerless to change things. How long will I cry out for justice? Deep down, I have doubts, do I really even believe it's possible.

John Piper writes
"When I think on these things, it makes me tremble at the prospect of living a trivial, self-serving, comfortable, middle-class, ordinary, untroubled American life. I can’t keep eternity out of my mind. Life is short and eternity is long. Very long. It is a long time to regret a wasted life. "

I look at all my friends, and wonder if we are indeed deceiving ourselves. That we may be destined for a quiet suburban lifestyle, backyard bbq's, home improvement projects, a small yard. Living in our gated communities, our kids safe, commuting to our jobs located not in the city, but another suburb.

Suffering, Mercy, and Heavenly Regret
by John Piper

When I think of the atrocities in the world, like the
genocides of the 20th century, it makes me want to
live my short life on earth with as few regrets as
possible. Germans killing Jews during World War II (6
million); Turks killing Armenians, 1914-1915 (1.5
million); the Khmer Rouge killing Cambodians,
1975-1979 (2 million); Saddam Hussein’s troops killing
Iraqi Kurds, 1987-1988 (100,000); Serbs killing
Bosnian Muslims, 1992-1995 (200,000); Hutus killing
Tutsis, 1994 (800,000); Americans killing unborn
children, 1973-present (40 million). Not to mention
the 60 million people killed by the Communist regime
mainly under Stalin. There were others.

Add to this the suffering owing to natural disasters
like the tropical storm in November, 1970 that killed
about 400,000 people in Bangladesh, or the earthquake
of Gujarat, India in January, 2001 that killed 15,000,
or the AIDS epidemic in Africa that has taken the
lives of 2.5 million people. Then add the sadness and
pain and eventual death of your own family.

When I think on these things, it makes me tremble at
the prospect of living a trivial, self-serving,
comfortable, middle-class, ordinary, untroubled
American life. I can’t keep eternity out of my mind.
Life is short and eternity is long. Very long. It is a
long time to regret a wasted life.

Which raises the question: Is there regret in heaven?
Can regret be part of the ever-increasing, unspeakable
joy of the age to come, purchased by Jesus Christ
(Romans 8:32)? My answer is yes. I am aware of
promises like Revelation 21:4, “He will wipe away
every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no
more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor
pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
But I don’t think this rules out “tears of joy,” and
it may not rule out “regretful joy”.

Why do I think this? I do not see how we will be able
to worship Christ and sing the song of the Lamb
without clear memory of the glorious, saving work of
Jesus Christ and all that it involved. According to
Revelation 5:9, the saints will sing “a new song,
saying, ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open
its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you
ransomed people for God from every tribe and language
and people and nation.’” Ransomed from what? Will we
have forgotten? This song and this memory will make no
sense without the memory of sin. And the memory of sin
will be hypocritical without the confession that it
was our sin that Jesus died for.

It is inconceivable to me that we will remember our
sin for what it really was, and the suffering of
Christ for what it really was, and not feel “regretful
joy.” The intensity of our joy in grace will be fed by
the remembrance of our unworthiness. He who is
forgiven much, loves much (Luke 7:47). But this does
not mean we should sin so that grace may abound
(Romans 6:1). The holiest will be the happiest. But it
does mean that regret will not ruin heaven. There will
be kinds of joys, and complexities of happiness, and
combinations of emotions in heaven of which we have
never dreamed.

But all this leaves me trembling that I not throw away
the one short life that I will look back on for all
eternity. Just think of it. You have one life. One
very short life. Then an eternity to remember. Does
not the suffering in this world seem inexplicable to
you? Is not this great global (and intensely personal)
suffering a call to magnify the mercy of Christ by how
we respond? Is not suffering a seamless fabric
stretching into eternity for unbelievers? And
therefore, are not Christians the only people who can
respond with relief to the totality of misery?

Shall we not then live our lives – and prepare for
heaven – by strategizing in all our vocations and with
all our talents and all our money to relieve suffering
(now and forever) for the glory of Jesus?