Made New
“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24
Have you ever looked at an old photograph of yourself and felt embarrassed by your lack of fashion sense or overuse of hairspray? “Ugh, what was I thinking?!” you mutter as you flip through the photo albums of your youth. I’ve done this too many times. My “awkward phase” spanned well beyond my junior high years. Oh that I could take back the years of home perms, unibrows, and braces. Have you ever looked back at a season of your life and felt equally embarrassed, even ashamed, not of your wardrobe but of your heart? I certainly have. What I wouldn’t give for another chance to check my heart before making some truly terrible choices that led to some truly painful consequences. They say hindsight is twenty-twenty because it’s true. I can see now the times in which my heart was selfish, angry, stubborn, or materialistic. It’s embarrassing to remember but I can say confidently that God didn’t let me stay that way.
I love the Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis. There is a beautiful scene in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in which Eustace, a selfish, arrogant young boy, makes a decision of greed that turns him into a dragon. Eustace is miserable and uncomfortable in his new dragon body. After living this way for a while, Aslan, the Great Lion, arrives to relieve Eustace, but the process is painful. Little by little, Aslan uses his great claws to carefully tear away the layers of thick dragon skin. When he is done, Eustace is a boy again. His body had been transformed, but more importantly, so had his heart. Aslan had made him new.
When I share pieces of my past, regarding my former way of life, I choose to focus not on the corruption of my heart, but on the transformation that took place. God didn’t leave me there. He brought me out of the dark corners of my sin and gave me new life. He altered my attitude, my perspective, and my purpose. I don’t shamefully say, “I can’t believe who I used to be!” I proudly proclaim, “Look how far God brought me! I hardly recognize my old self anymore!” I am not who I once was, and neither are you. Thank God for that.
Study & Reflection: Read Ephesians 4:22-24. Think about your “former way of life.” Make a list of bad habits, attitudes, and choices you’ve made on one side of a sheet of paper. Now think about what you’ve learned and how you’ve grown from each of them. How has God transformed you and made you new? Make a second list on the opposite side of the paper of how you see your new self reflected in God’s work in your life. Now, cross out the first list. Better yet, tear it off and throw it away. Your old self does not define you.
Prayer: Father, thank you for loving us too much to leave us in our shame. Thank you for making us new, even though the process can be painful. Help us to surrender our old way of life and trade it in for the new life of righteousness and holiness you have in store. When the embarrassment of our past creeps in, help us to shift our focus to your good and healing work in our lives. May we walk today in the freedom your transformation gives.