The Story of Mariann’s Heart
Chapter One: The Snake Inside
Mariann was like any other girl. She liked to play dress up and read books. When the other children wanted to play, Mariann always had plenty of ideas. Yes, most of the time she was a fun big sister to have around. But she had a snake problem.
It wasn’t that Mariann was afraid of snakes. Sometimes she and her brother, Bob, would catch little black garter snakes and hold them by the back of their necks. But her problem snake couldn’t be controlled that way. That was because it lived deep in her heart. It was an invisible snake called SIN.
All children are born with the egg of sin inside their heart, which soon hatches into a little sin snake. Mariann’s snake was still quite small when she first found it. She didn’t know it was bad to play with, until it told her to bite little brother, Bob. “That’s very naughty!” Mommy said, and put some soap in her mouth. It tasted so horrible that Mariann decided that she’d better keep that little snake shut up. She didn’t like getting in trouble.
But the snake inside didn’t like to be shut up in the closet of her heart. Being a slippery thing, it hid under the couch. It was at bedtime when Daddy discovered it. “Come, Mariann, it’s time for bed!” he said, but Mariann didn’t listen. That snake had wrapped itself around her ankles and kept her from obeying! Daddy picked her up and shook it off. It seemed like a little naughty attitude to him, but he didn’t know how fast it could grow.
Like all snakes, the snake in Mariann’s heart did grow. It grew longer. It grew smarter. It grew stronger. By the time she was nine, it knew how to lie and argue and disobey very well. Of course, Mariann had learned that Mommy and Daddy didn’t like what the snake did. So most of the time she kept the snake hidden. But when Mariann was in big trouble it would come out to rescue her. At least that is what Mariann thought.
Once, when she broke something in her grandpa’s shed, the snake helped her shove all the pieces into a dark corner. Another time, when Mariann was in big trouble, the snake bit her and told her to tell a lie about it. “If you don’t, I’ll bite you again!” it hissed. Of course, Mariann told the lie as fast as she could. But when Daddy found out he was concerned. “Lying is wrong, Mariann. It hurts you and it hurts others,” he said. “You must tell the truth!” Mariann was surprised to see tears in his eyes. Maybe it wasn’t so safe to have the snake around.
Mariann worked harder than ever at being a good girl and not letting the snake out. Except when she was alone, or with a friend who wasn’t afraid of sin snakes. Bertha had a snake that was bigger and blacker than Mariann’s. But she wasn’t afraid of it. When the girls played together, their snakes thought of some very bad things for them to say and do. It was like being dragged into deep, dark snake holes. At first Mariann’s skin would prickle all over. She knew her parents wouldn’t like it, if they knew. “We’ll never tell,” the girls promised each other.
Poor Mariann! She didn’t know how dangerous the snake inside her heart had become. She thought that she could keep it hidden. But when she was alone it would come and coil around her mind, whispering evil imaginations. Sometimes the thoughts would be so interesting that Mariann would forget everything else, until a door slammed. “Oh, you must let go!” she would say, pushing it away. Usually the snake got mad and would bite her before it slithered off. The bite didn’t hurt so much, but it began to poison Mariann’s mind.
At last Mariann decided to lock the snake up. She found a large jar, called self-control, and stuffed the snake in when it was sleepy. She learned that it wasn’t very active when she listened to Bible stories or obeyed her parents. “I’m done with you,” she said, screwing on the lid. But the snake knew that Mariann was addicted to its poison. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before she let it out again. “Just for a few minutes,” she whispered. “But no biting!”
Chapter 2: The Snake-Destroyer
What was happening to Mariann? She thought she was in control of the sin snake, but really it was controlling her! Often when she tried to be good or nice, the sin-poison would give her bad feelings and thoughts. Slowly but surely it was taking her down a very dark path, full of trouble and misery. Mariann didn’t see the danger. But I’m thankful that God did, and He had a plan to rescue her.
Of course, Mariann didn’t want to be in trouble. “God wants us to live right,” her parents told her. “Do you want to believe in Jesus and become a Christian?” Mariann thought about that. It was hard to keep the snake locked up so she could act like a good girl. Maybe if she said she believed in Jesus, the snake would leave her alone. She knew Jesus was always good and it never seemed like any sin snakes bothered Him.
So Mariann decided to “become a Christian” and be baptized. She decided not to play with Bertha and her snake anymore. A Christian wouldn’t do that. Besides, those dark holes were creepy. And Mariann decided to read the Bible more. It had a lot of good things to say about God and Jesus. Mariann began to feel better about herself.
One thing still bothered Mariann, though. The snake was still there. “Don’t worry,” it whispered. “No one needs to know I’m here.” But often, when she was alone, she would feel the snake slithering up to coil around her mind. Would a Christian really have these bad thoughts? she wondered. Her heart was never really peaceful with a sin snake deep inside.
As Mariann grew older and learned more about God, she began to realize a wonderful thing. She learned that Jesus had come to destroy snakes inside people’s hearts. Really, truly destroy them, not just keep them in a jar and try to control them. But Mariann was afraid to tell anyone her problems. “You don’t want anyone to know about me,” whispered the snake inside. “If you tell on me, you’ll be sorry!” Mariann shuddered and didn’t say a word. She was a captive in her own heart, and the snake knew it very well.
I’m glad to say that Someone else knew it, too. Jesus, the Snake-Destroyer Himself, had been standing outside Mariann’s heart door. He had heard everything the snake inside had said. He knew all about every time it had made her lie or disobey, about the deep black holes it had dragged her into, and the poison in her mind. And Jesus loved Mariann. He had come to rescue her.
“Knock, knock!” Mariann heard the tapping at her heart as she lay in bed, and she was afraid. What if that Someone came in and saw the snake? “Knock, knock!” The knocking sounded louder. It must be important. “Mariann, I want to speak with you,” a strong voice called. Was He stronger than the sin snake inside?
“Who is it?” Mariann asked. But she knew before He answered. It was Jesus.
“I have come to rescue you, Mariann.” He sounded gentle, but did He really want to help her? “I know all about the sin snake in your heart,” Jesus said. “I have come to destroy it. Will you let me in?” The snake began to hiss loudly, “You don’t want anyone to know I’m here—remember, you are a good Christian girl!” Mariann felt her skin prickle. “Oh, I am afraid!” she cried, looking into its glittering eyes.
“Do you want to keep a snake in your heart?” Jesus’ voice was quiet and calm. Mariann’s heart throbbed with the great question. Did she want to keep hiding that horrid snake? She thought of all the black and evil things it had made her do. She was ashamed of them. Was it worse to have others know, or to keep the snake hidden? Mariann never felt safe anymore with the sin snake there. Wouldn’t it be better if she let Jesus destroy it once and for all?
Mariann took a deep breath. “I want to get rid of the snake,” she said, grasping the door handle. As she pulled it open, the snake inside coiled up to strike. There stood the Snake-Destroyer, Himself. How big and strong Jesus was! Mariann clasped His hand tightly as He stepped into her heart. The sin snake twisted into a knot and tried to hide its head. But it was no match for Jesus. With a mighty stomp of His heel, He crushed it.
—To be continued next issue
See also: Part 2