“Desire denotes a real longing or craving. Hence righteous desires are much more than passive preferences or fleeting feelings. Of course our genes, circumstances, and environments matter very much, and they shape us significantly. Yet there remains an inner zone in which we are sovereign, unless we abdicate. In this zone lies the essence of our individuality and our personal accountability … .
“Like it or not, therefore, reality requires that we acknowledge our responsibility for our desires… .
“Some of our present desires, therefore, need to be diminished and then finally dissolved” (Maxwell, “‘According to the Desire of [Our] Hearts,’” 21–22).