My husband and I returned home one dark night. As he unlocked the door, I heard something. As I leapt toward the door, I realized it was only the neighbor’s lawn sprinklers. My husband laughed at my startled reaction.
Earlier that day I was walking through our neighborhood and spotted a snake on the road. Never mind that the snake was about a mile from our house. It clearly was headed our direction. And never mind that the snake was dead, because it had been alive at one time to have gotten onto the road.
I let my mind get the best of me for the rest of my walk. Was it a poisonous snake? Did it have relatives lurking in the weeds next to my pathway? Before its fatal accident, had the snake been aggressive or would it have been more afraid of me than I was of it? I had no answers for these questions which fueled my jumpiness later that night. When the sprinklers began, I was certain the hissing was indeed a snake.
Our past can have a strong impact on our present. Things we’ve experienced and words that have been spoken can affect us for a lifetime. Good or bad. Sadly, it’s the bad that seems to stick more easily with us.
Past experiences can influence the decisions we make. Disappointments we have known may cause us to react negatively, possibly fighting something that is not real. To move on, we must stop replaying these things in our minds. It may take a while, but our thinking patterns can be changed.
“Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious – the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.”
Philippians 4:8 (MESSAGE)
It’s time to forget about the dead snake on the road, leaving the past in the past.
One day I will be able to hear lawn sprinklers turn on without being startled. I’m counting on it.