Moving from death to life is painful. It is not simply a shedding of a skin, like a snake during molting, but a shedding of that which we hold dear. It is the shedding of that which bring us comfort, peace, momentary pleasure and control. These things are what holds in bondage to a life that leads to pain, sorrow, and death. God desires to give us new life but to do so we must allow him to shed our old self and put to death the sins that rob of us true joy in order to clothe us with mercy, love and the righteousness of Jesus Christ.