Your Trash Is God’s Treasure!
by Hannah Keeley
We were on our way out of the church building when I noticed that Klara was hanging behind, staring into the trash can. Then I saw something that most moms dread seeing. Klara reached down into the trash can and pulled something out. Yeah, that’s my kid–the one going through the trash at church!
“Mama, look!” she said, running in my direction.
I looked at what she was holding in her hand–a plastic horse with two limbs missing. Not really something you would carry to “Antique Roadshow,” but she was still excited about it.
“Wow, Klara,” I said. “What are you planning on doing with that?”
With this look on her face that said…
‘Is my mom really that dense?’ she replied, “Umm, fix it up. What did you think I wanted to do with it?”
Good question. I was kinda hoping for “put it back in the trash can.”
After we got home, Klara immediately gathered up her craft supplies and went to work. With some odds and ends, lots of tape, and plenty of paint, she had fixed the horse in minutes! She showed it to me, and I was totally impressed! Then I watched her. She went and got her shoebox where she had created stalls out of old paintbrush handles and rubber bands, and very gently placed her “new” horse inside one of those stables. It seemed to have been custom made for him! She gazed at her horses, petted them, and placed the lid back on the shoebox stable. There they were. All safe and sound.
The horse had been rescued. It had a home.
Home is such a beautiful word. I think it must be the most lovely word in the whole English language. Home. Just say it, slowly, and relish the warmth of it. Home.
Sometimes, we feel a bit homeless. We feel like that horse in the trashcan–broken and abandoned. Pieces of us torn apart and scattered. Chapters of our life destroyed and stolen from us. It doesn’t seem fair. Other horses get to run in the fields and snuggle down in a stable. And we are tossed in the trash, trying desperately, but hopelessly, to pull ourselves together.
Then God steps in. He’s the game changer.
“Once was lost, but now am found” becomes so much more than a lyric we sing at church. It becomes our reality. God picks us up and places us in a wonderful place called home.
I can’t read the first three verses of Psalm 40 without my heart swelling up within me:
“I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings. And He has put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many shall see and fear (revere and worship) and put their trust and confident reliance in the Lord.”
Now THAT is a happy ending! No matter what pit you may find yourself in. God is strong enough to lift you out, and He loves you enough to do it today! He hears you. He draws near to you. And when it seems that hope is gone. He lifts you out! Praise God! He is our Rescuer! He is our Redeemer! He will put your feet upon a rock and put a new song of joy in your mouth.
God is still in the business of happy endings. He has a perfect place for you. A place of peace and comfort. A place that was custom made for only you and He has the power to lift you up, mend your spirit, and place you there. You can find your home–with Him!
Did this message bless you? I sure hope so! Keep the blessing going by sharing it on Facebook or Twitter, or forwarding the link to a friend. Remember, Mama, keep growing and keep going. God wants to bless you like crazy!
~ Hannah
Hannah Keeley was once in overwhelmed mom living in a cluttered house, deep in debt, out of shape, and barely hanging on. But one day, after finding herself sobbing uncontrollably into a pile of clean laundry, she realized God has bigger and better plans for her (just like He does for each one of His children). Beginning that day, she began making changes in her life that took her from overwhelmed to overjoyed. Today, she’s helping moms do the same. Hannah, her husband, Blair, and their seven children live in Richmond, Virginia, and are having the time of their lives!
