"You can't change your past, but you can change your future." - Reggie Dabbs
Your past is permanent. There isn't anything that you can do that will make your past go away. However the cool part about God is that he takes us, ugly past and all, and turns our lives into something beautiful and valuable. So yes, your past may be permanent, but when we hand our pasts over to God he gives us the opportunity to be something greater.
We wanted to give people the opportunity to live out the concept of giving their pasts to God. To do this we took index cards and had people write things that they need to let go of. Once they finished they rolled up the paper and placed it inside a balloon that we then filled with helium. We asked people to let go of the things that they we holding onto that they needed to give to God.