Taking out the Trash

Several years ago I found myself telling God about all the life circumstances I was worried about at the time.  There were many unknowns and I didn’t have answers to my questions. Back then, I was poster child material for the ‘Type A’ personality and ‘Type A’s’ don’t like not knowing what’s going to happen the next day, week, month, year, etc.

When I finished conveying my list of worries, God simply told me He was taking out the trash.  I was like “that’s nice God, but trash day isn’t until the end of the week, and none of my worries involve trash or waste disposal so what about my real problems?!”.  He then gave me the explanation…

It’s Thursday.  Trash day is tomorrow. Our trash needs to make it to the curb by the time the garbage truck makes its way to our house. Hubby tells me first thing in the morning not to worry about the trash because he’s going to make sure it gets to the curb.

If I see my husband as consistent, reliable, and trustworthy, then I won’t think twice about the trash.  He said he’ll take it out and I have every reason to believe him. However, if I see my husband as the opposite, I’ll walk by the trash all day wondering if he’s going to take care of it…thinking “maybe I should just go ahead and do it to make sure it gets done – that way I won’t have to waste precious mental energy and time keeping track of whether it’s done or not.”

What if it gets to be late Thursday night after hubby has gone to bed and I see the trash still sitting in the kitchen?  If I trust him, I know he probably plans to put it out before leaving for work. If I don’t trust him, I end up taking out the trash myself while huffing and puffing because he didn’t do what he said he would (even though technically I didn’t give him the opportunity to follow through).

God is taking out the trash. What that means to me is directly proportionate to  WHO He is to me. Do I have the proper perspective?

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” – Hebrews 13:5

“God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” – Exodus 3:14 ….HE IS anything we need.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”   – Hebrews 13:8….He has proven himself to be faithful time and time again.

If you find yourself  ‘staring at the bag of trash in the kitchen’, spend time researching who God is.  It’s easy to trust Him when we remember He’s the same God who created the universe!

31 Days TrashImage Credit: Erin Kass Photography

12 thoughts on “Taking out the Trash

  1. Oh my!!! I sincerely LOVE this post. I can even relate to whether or not MY hubby IS going to take out the trash or not! And the way you’ve used that scenario and completed your lesson……..wonderful, absolutely wonderful!

  2. This actually cracked me up, as I’ve been checking on whether the “trash was taken out” for the past four months—as we’ve been searching for a new home in our new town. I struggle with trust in a greater plan, and love this perspective you’ve shared.

    1. Thanks Deirdre. I love how God reveals Himself to me in such normal concrete ways! Praying for God to give you peace as you continue on this journey and for Him to just blow you away when you finally find ‘the one’ 😉

  3. Oh yes. Do I do the same thing with my husband. And with God. Is He *really* gonna come through – we call them LMD’s around here – “Last Minute Deliverances” – and they happen ALL the time. Each time our faith grows a little stronger. Thanks for this reminder.

    1. It’s always ‘funny’ how our ‘last minute’ is God’s ‘on time’ huh? All that worrying for nothing! 🙂

Leave a Reply to Robyn Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *