Forgetting Your Past (Dust: An Elysian Tail)

Dust: An Elysian Tail
Developer: Humble Hearts
System: Xbox 360, Steam, Windows Store
Genre: Platformer Action RPG

One of the most beautiful games I have played is Dust: An Elysian Tale. In this saga you control an amnesia ridden warrior named Dust who is summoned by a talking sword and a sass talking flying Nimbat named Fidget. Together they must uncover Dust's past.

Dust's past keeps catching up with him as he soon discovers he was a warrior for the evil General Gaius, the overlord who is causing destruction to the land. Dust was one of the top warriors in Gaius' army and now there is a search for him. But Dust is no longer aligned with the evil warlord and is now seeking redemption through the eradication of the General's evil works.

Sounds a lot like the Apostle Paul (minus the Amnesia). He was one of the top persecutors of the Christian faith back in Roman occupies Israel. His main goal was to send Christians to their death. But then he is summoned by the Lord Jesus Christ, who literally knocks him off his high horse. Paul sees Jesus and goes blind. He immediately repents of his persecution of the Christians and sets out to make things right. He says this about his past.

And more so, I now realize that all I gained and thought was important was nothing but yesterday’s garbage compared to knowing the Anointed Jesus my Lord. For Him I have thrown everything aside—it’s nothing but a pile of waste—so that I may gain Him. Philippians 3:8

In layman's terms, Paul has come to grips that the past he was once living is complete garbage compared to what he can do now in Christ. Like Dust, who worked for an evil empire that was making the world worse, Paul saw the restoration of lives and the glory of God in this new Christian life. He choose to work for a greater power.

Are you like Dust with a past full of mistakes and errors? Maybe it is time you align yourself with a greater power that puts a final nail in the coffin of your past. God offers us a way to remove our old selves, which are imperfect messes through sin, and be restored so that your new self can thrive on a greater power. That is God's love in a transformed person.