Trash

This blog was actually written on February 19, 1997, when I was a junior in college. I have been thinking about this a lot lately and thought I would include it here.

This morning I was thinking about the gigantic trash compactor right outside of my dorm room. This one compactor serves over 300 people! Right now it is overflowing. there is a stream of trash flowing out of its mouth and down the sidewalk. It has not been emptied in a long time. What a shame, and what a sight for sore eyes when one walks out the back door!

Our lives are sometimes exactly like this trash compactor, only each person has their own garbage bin: our minds, our bodies, our souls. Many times we just let more and more "trash" enter in. And we have an instinct or mechanism that will compact the trash and leave room for more to be added. But pretty soon, just like the trash compactor outside of my dorm, there is no more room! Nothing else can be compacted. The "trash" begins to flow out. It can be seen in our actions and expression and can be heard in our attitudes and negative words. And many times, even though we know that is is full, we still try to put more trash in on tope of what is already flowing out. Pretty soon, the garbage that we carry is reaching to others, affecting them, too! It seems too much to handle, that there is nothing we cn do. And that's true. We cannot do anything to fix our problems, at least not alone.

Then, one day, the trusty garbage collector shows up with his gigantic truck. He has come to empty the trash compactor of all its contents, all its trash. And when he finishes the job, the trash compactor is like new again. We, too, have a garbage collector. His name is Jesus. If we just trust him, He will come and take all of our "trash" away. He'll make us new creatures. However, unlike the trash compactor, our purpose is not to fill ourselves up with trash again. Insteaad, we are to allow ourselves to be filled with the power and presence of God through the Holy Spirit, so that good, positive, and edifying words and thoughts will flow from us, rather than the garbage of the world. We must remember, though, that we are not perfect, and because of this fact we will sometimes be consumed by the "trash" again. But we can always trust Jesus, our garbage collector, to come at any time we are willing and empty the bad things and replace them with his goodness and mercy. Also, we must let this goodness and the love of Jesus flow deeper and wider than the trash ever did, so that others may know of the joy and the peace we have found!

Create in me a clean heart, O God. And renew a right spirit within me. Psalm 51:10