Verse 1 is referencing the end of Chapter 6 of II Corinthians and the promises God makes to us for our lives. It is a reminder of just how we short sell ourselves and the vision and purpose for which God created us when we sully our lives with things that do not glorify Him.

I was in a meeting recently when our senior pastor demonstrated this by passing around balls of Play-Dough which he had us make things from. The items we made were, admittedly, from Play-Dough but, still, they looked like something. The Play-Dough stayed fresh and new and pliable. And then he had us add in a handful of dirty. The Play-Dough became something you didn't want to touch. It was no longer formable. This was a great demonstration of what happens when we throw stuff into our lives that God doesn't want there. The good news of course is that, whereas the Play-Dough was ruined, God forgives ... He grants us grace and mercy ... He removes the dirt and even uses the dirt as a foundation for building something stronger.