All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.
- from Ephesians 2:3
 
Yesterday we reflected on our common experience with transgression and sin: we all used to live in death. Today, we want to dig a little deeper.
 
Many of us have permanent lenses attached to our rear-view mirrors. We see the past either through rose-colored glasses or cracked glasses. Some of us round up in our every memory of our history: we have lots of positive stories of beauty and faithfulness, few (if any) stories of meaningful failure, and no healthy sense of shame. Others of us do the exact opposite: we feel every mistake, carry the weight of every misdeed, and seethe with anger at our own disappointment with ourselves.
 
Jesus liberates us from both distortions by telling us the truth about ourselves. As Tim Keller said: “You’re more sinful than you care to admit and more loved than you could ever imagine.”
 
God changes the story of our past, but he doesn’t rewrite history. He adds new chapters. And each new chapter reshapes how we see the entire story.
 
We once were part of a community trapped by our desires and thoughts. We kept trying to gratify our cravings and they kept becoming bigger, stronger, and more corrupt. Those cravings pulled us into dangerous circles of relationships. They could never be satisfied.
 
That kind of life is hardly life at all. And Jesus invites us into something much better.
Rather than being driven forward by our cravings, we’re drawn forward by God’s love. He daily does good work in us to transform our desires and thoughts. And with him we experience a life that is truly life.
 
Where do you need to see your past differently, correcting a rear-view mirror? Where do you need the Lord to transform your cravings today?