I used to have a job installing fence. One thing you have to do a lot of in that job is digging holes, a lot of holes. I became really good friends with a set of post-hole diggers. I also developed a lot of blisters.
My soft hands weren't used to all of that abuse. Those first few days were extremely painful. Over time, however, something happened; my hands developed callouses. The skin on my hands toughened up and lost sensitivity. The once painful blisters were now hardened callouses. I could work all day without discomfort.
Sin works in much the same way. At first it is painful, maybe not physically, but it pains our conscience. Over time, if you continue in that sin, callouses will develop and the pain will go away. Your skin, your heart, becomes hardened to that sin. What once caused great regret becomes something you can do all of the time without a second thought.
I haven't dug a post-hole in many years and my callouses are long gone. It would once again be a painful ordeal to dig a hole. The same thing can be true of spiritual callouses. If you stop the sin, the callouses will go away and your spirit's sensitivity will return. A hardened heart isn't a life sentence.
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