Make Room for Grace

In my little neighborhood, Monday brings the city trucks around to pick up the trash and recycling. People begin putting their bags of trash in the alley on Sunday. The rules are specific and are to be strictly obeyed. If successfully navigated, come Monday evening all find themselves trash free. The alley is clean and straight and ready to begin a new week with a clean slate.

As I cross alley after alley on my daily walk, I see all the bags set out and am reminded how much trash we accumulate from week to week. It is astounding. This trash takes many forms, but the common denominator is clear: we set out for pickup that which we no longer need, or want, in our home.

As I made my way through the neighborhood I began to realize that each week our lives, as well as our homes, accumulate a varying amount of stuff that we need to be aware of and to which we need to be attentive. There are attitudes and habits in our lives to be set aside and given up if we are to grow and know joy in our lives.

Our frustration at the things in our life which are beyond our control. Our bitterness over disappointments that come our way. Our need to have someone to blame for whatever causes us to be angry or afraid. Our refusal to let go of the past and move forward into our future. Our inability to forgive ourselves and others.

All these things take up room in our lives. And all these things accumulate more quickly than we realize. They fill up space that could be filled with love and joy. They block our view of the new and hopeful possibilities around us. They go bad and spoil all that is good.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to put all this “trash” out each week and start over with a clean slate? Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know that every week, every day, is a new beginning? Wouldn’t it change everything to know we don’t have to drown in all the stuff from our past but can instead welcome the new with confidence? Well, we can. It is called grace.

Peace.