Ryan Daffron

“And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.” — Genesis 6:5–6

SOUNDING

In Noah’s day, the world unravels fast. Violence everywhere, corruption in every corner, people drifting into darkness like it’s the normal way to live. And then Scripture shows us something we rarely picture: God grieved. He wasn’t distant or cold. He wasn’t shrugging at human suffering. He felt it deeply. Before judgment ever enters the story, heartbreak does.

That word “regretted” can sound like God made a mistake, but that’s not what the Hebrew idea carries. It means His heart was moved, weighed down, by the pain humanity brought upon itself. It’s the grief of a parent watching a child self-destruct. Not regret of creation, but sorrow over the destruction sin unleashed. God isn’t second-guessing Himself; He’s entering into the emotional cost of human rebellion. His regret is compassion, not confusion.

And that same heart is turned toward you. When you struggle, drift, fail, or carry the consequences of your own decisions, God isn’t rolling His eyes. He doesn’t detach or harden. His heart moves toward you, not away. Your pain doesn’t ricochet off heaven it lands on a God whose love is tender enough to feel it and strong enough to carry you through it.

BEARING

God grieves for you, not at you.

Prayer

Lord, thank You for being a God who feels deeply and loves fully. Meet me in the places I hurt.

DROP IN

Write one sentence about something that grieves your heart and ask God to sit with you in it.