Kudzu: The Beautiful Killer

A house swallowed by kudzu

Kudzu is a plant native to Japan.  It was introduced into the American south during the great depression as a means to fight soil erosion.  Hundreds of young men went to work planting the vine in the southern states through the Civilian Conservation Corps.  And it grew...At the rate of up to a foot a day in some conditions.  It grew over power lines, it grew over road signs, it grew over vehicles and houses.  It swallowed barns and tractors.  It grew over trees and vegetation, creating eerie and beautiful leafy sculptures, these fantasy-like landscapes covering once fertile farm lands.  And it killed everything it touched.  The trees, the grass, the fields, all were eventually swallowed up by the beautiful plant and, cut off from the sun, they died.

How many times in my life have I harbored a grudge against someone over a real or perceived offense?  I know of the call to forgive but I keep this bitterness in a secret place in my heart.  I validate it by telling myself I'm justified to be angry.  I seek out people who will affirm my hurt and ignore those who speak of grace and healing by telling myself that they don't understand how bad I've been wounded.  I go about the business of my daily life and believe that my bitterness will stay small and manageable, even as I water and feed it. But Hebrews 12:15 tells us that I am a fool, "See to it .... that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled".  You see, bitterness never stays in one spot.  It spills out of the planter, climbs the walls and escapes through the windows.  Over time, it covers everything and, if left unchecked, changes the way we interact with our friends, our family, our God.  How we deal with this issue of bitterness has the potential to determine the course of our lives, the quality and depth of our relationships.
There's a reason we are told to  "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice"Ephesians 4:31.  Nursing a hurt slowly changes who we are as we begin to define ourselves by the wrongs done to us and not the freedom provided for us.

Choosing to forgive someone is refusing to be consumed by past wrongs.  Its refusing to seek your own revenge.  Its refusing to be defined by your anger.  Instead, its choosing to give to others what God has given to us.


Kudzu was able to thrive in the states of southeastern America because its seeds found the perfect conditions to thrive.  The climate was ideal and the soil was welcoming.  The beautiful vines were tended lovingly at first but then escaped, swallowing and killing as it grew.  Bitterness looks to do the same.  The question that demands examination is this.....Are you fertile soil?

“Everyone thinks forgiveness is a lovely idea until he has something to forgive.” - C.S. Lewis