How time flies! Although I am now 22 years old, there is one event in my past that I will never forget. It happened on my way to my grandparents’ home during the Spring Festival in 2000.

This is China’s biggest festival of the year, and it’s a time when people from all over China visit their friends and relatives. I was 10 years old at that time, and my parents and I traveled by bus to visit my grandparents. Because of the holiday, many people were crowded onto the bus, and the moment I spotted an empty seat, I immediately claimed it as my own.

After several stops, an old man got on the bus, and I noticed that it was hard for him to hold the handrail, even though he tried his best. I noticed that there were no more empty seats for him, and I tried to avoid looking at the old man by continuing to look out of my window at the scenery passing by. No one would give their seat to the old man. I wanted to stand up and give him my seat, but I was afraid of hearing other people say, “That boy just wants to be praised.” So, I did nothing, but just kept on enjoying the scenery outside my window.

After a few more stops, the bus drove into the mountains and the road became quite bumpy. Suddenly, the bus jolted to a sudden stop, and the old man went flying toward the front of the bus. As the bus driver assessed the damage, we found out that the old man had broken one of his arms. Overwhelmed with regret, I asked myself again and again: “Why didn’t I give my seat to the old man?” I could have prevented this tragedy from happening.

Twelve years have passed, and every time I think about this incident, I feel ashamed. It was my duty to help elderly people as much as possible. Now, I know that helping others is not for praise, but an act of true kindness. From that incident, I also realized that I shouldn’t care too much about what other people might think. If it’s the right thing for me to do, I will do it without hesitation. Although people have their own opinions, the old man will always be my teacher.

Additional Comments — Indeed, like my former student, we all live with regrets. Most of the time, those regrets can be bundled under two general headings, and we call them “Sins of Commission” or “Sins of Omission.” Under the first, we find a whole list of those things that we have done that we know we shouldn’t have done simply because they are just plain “wrong,” and under the second, there are also many things that we should have done, but didn’t. And I suspect that for most of us, the “Sins of Omission” show up a lot more frequently.

Interestingly, the Apostle Paul faced the same issues. In the Book of Romans, Paul said, “…I am not doing the things that I would like to do (sins of omission), but I’m doing the very things that I hate (sins of commission) (Rom. 7:15, 19). In the end, Paul said that only Christ could give him the victory over his propensity to sin, whether through “commission” or “omission.”

In my student’s situation, he was feeling guilt over the “sin of omission” for not giving his seat to the “old man.” But guilt can often have a positive effect on our lives, just as it did with my former student. His “omission” led to a renewed commitment to be kind to others and offer them help in time of need, regardless of what others may think. I pray that such commitment may be ours as well, and as we allow Christ to live and work through us, we can follow through on those things that we know we should do, and in the end, be a rich blessing to others.