Grief Of Repenting

I could not stand, for guilt that weighed me down;
I could not weep, for shame lowered the eye;
Neither could I speak, for nothing would sound;
My ears were closed, lest comfort grief belie!
Dear Lord! Where hides Gilead's balm*,
Or the solace that dries the inner tear;
Your lazaret**, where angels restore calm
To troubled hearts when sin produces fear?
Don't look at my evil-caused nakedness,
Lest your holy eye see through tattered pride,
Expose my shame, and add to my distress!
Your mercy alone can healing provide!
These storms of remorse would've destroyed my soul,
If Christ His forgiving ardor withhold!

*soothing ointment **clinic for troubled hearts

"Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." (1 Corinthians 7:10)

The apostle Paul makes clear that 'Godly sorrow' is no cause for grief; it is a sorrow that brings repentance from the wrongdoing that would have kept a person from salvation. When one receives sudden illumination that he has been living without the love of Jesus, it is normally a time of grief, because the knowledge of how he has mistreated his Savior makes him sorrowful.
That kind of sorrow is Godly, and it results in his salvation. He is motivated to change his lifestyle to the way the Bible teaches, and to turn away from the ways of this world, which are selfish---e.g., gaining wealth, power, career success, popularity, immersing oneself in entertainment, expensive dining and dress, in short, doing the things that are self-centered rather than others-centered.

'Worldly sorrow', on the other hand, is grieving at the loss of those God-ignoring activities that dominated before a person has committed to a life of Christian service to others and, looking back, to grieve over what he has given up---the things of the world. That type of sorrow can chip away at his faith and may even bring about a reversal of lifestyles. He may not destroy his own salvation, but it will destroy those people that his faithful life would have otherwise won for the Lord!