I love ivy. I love the way it climbs with beautiful, lush greenness, enhancing the facades of grand, old buildings, and throwing itself like a glorious shawl over bare brick walls. It softens the appearance of harsh concrete, and shrouds broken-down skeletons of picket fences and wooden shacks.
There is, however, a problem with ivy. It is tenacious. And voracious. It grows with vigorous determination! Its tiny roots burrow into mortar, weakening walls as it brings with it moisture which expands and contracts with the weather. And it will very quickly dominate any structure it adheres to if it is not kept strictly under control. Even eradication of this vine is difficult! Not only must its tendrils be stripped away, and its ground roots removed, but numerous applications of herbicide may be needed to thoroughly destroy any remnants! Tough plant!!!
I was thinking that there are some memories in our lives like that. Memories that, if kept in their proper place, are innocuous enough - maybe even add a little colour to our past. But some of these memories are determined to take a more prominent role in our thoughts, and if we allow them to, can infiltrate almost every aspect of our lives, affecting our current interactions. If they are causing negative associations in our lives, they need to go!
Easier said than done though. Memories are burned into our brains and are not readily eradicated. We can try to deliberately 'forget' - push those memories deep into the darkest parts of our minds and hope they stay there. Sometimes that can help! Scientists tell us that redirecting our thoughts helps us develop new pathways that become more deeply etched into our minds the more often they are traced. So refusing to follow a line of thought, and deliberately choosing another thought path, can help! But they also say that 'burying' unwanted thoughts and emotions does not 'deal with' them and can cause them to fester like an untreated wound. So what is the answer to our 'ivy' problem?
Unfortunately, it is not possible to simply chop the affected areas from our brain. We must learn to somehow positively deal with the memories of our past. From my experience, that too is difficult. Eradication of our problem thoughts may take many applications of an effective 'herbicide'. And the only remedy I know that can destroy noxious thoughts, is the very pure and unrestrained love of Jesus. Expert gardener of my heart. Many times over he has poured that powerful love into the darkest memories in my mind, freeing me from their strangling hold. And that release is available to me as many times as I might need it! Thank God for that beautiful love.
