Have you ever been involved with a project that involved a complete transformation of something? Often I think about houses, where a long-neglected property is paired with a landscaping crew and a pressure washer, resulting in a place that looks completely different and vastly better than it did before the work began. When I’ve been involved with similar sorts of efforts, one of the mistakes that I typically make is a failure to snap some pictures of what things look like before we got started. Once the project is finished, we can all agree that it looks so much better, but without the side-by-side comparison of before and after, it is hard to remember how bad things looked previously.
If the transformation occurs in the life of a particular person, there’s a fine balance that needs to be struck between remembering past behavior and not allowing the past to keep you from moving forward in a healthy manner. The Christian life is meant to be one in which a transformation takes place, impacting a person comprehensively as their eyes are opened to behavior that is contrary to God’s will and they are filled with a desire to stop sinning. They are meant to metaphorically die to the past self, living as if they were a completely new creation. However, if the person completely forgets how awful their behavior was previously, they might minimize the extent to which their behavior has changed and their life has improved, which in turn can reduce their empathy for people who are in the trouble that they had escaped from. Over time, it can also reduce the gratitude that the person feels for having undergone the transformation, as they stop thinking about how bad their prior condition really was.
At the same time, if a person cannot let go of their past, even as they are forgiven and endowed with the ability to move forward in a positive manner, it can become difficult to accept that they really have been changed. As they become more aware of the improper nature of their past behavior and the correct path to follow, guilt and shame keeps them from moving forward. Instead of realizing that their transformation was meant to inspire others, they allow themselves to be held captive to the very things that have been washed away and forgiven. While they may not regress to where they once were, they render themselves unable to lift others out from the depths that they had escaped.
Friends, as painful as it may be, we do need to remember key points from our past. Our story is made up of our entire history, and it reminds us of how far we have come, and what is possible for others. Yet we must never be held captive by things that have long since been settled. We cannot live in reverse – forward is the only option. So go ahead look at the pictures of the past, and even share them with others if it can help inspire them. But remember that if your life has been transformed, it is because you have an abundant life to live, and you can only do that by letting go of what has been so that you can embrace what is, and what is to come.
Peace and blessings – Pastor Aaron