Just let go . . .

I'm a doodler. If there's a piece of paper and a writing implement in front of me when I'm on the phone, I doodle. Back before they became obsolete, I embellished quite a few Yellow pages. Today's entry started out as a doodle a number of weeks ago. I liked it so instead of tossing it I shoved it in my desk drawer. I discovered it this morning when I was looking for something else, so I thought it would make a good entry into my Lenten Journal.

In her comment to yesterday's blog entry, My dear friend Shirley reminded me of some sketches I did when we were in college together. I had forgotten about them. I've forgotten a lot of things, as we all do. But Shirley had a stroke when she was in her early 30's (Shirley, I hope I remembered that correctly : ) and she lost some memories. I think it impressed on her the importance of memories and history because she is a nut for both. That's just one of the things I love about her.

There's a lot about my past I remember fondly, and some I'd rather not recall at all. That's what I love about Jesus. He knows my history, every detail, good and bad. He knows the memories I cherish and he knows the ones that make me cringe. But he gently pries those bad memories from me, telling me to softly, "just let go." He takes them and nails them to the cross where the blood he shed for me still clings. Then I take his scarred hand and we walk away, smiling because the pain is behind us now. The victory is won, and there's still enough room on that cross for all the world's bad memories and sins. It's time to share his story and his invitation to just let go.