Today's Devotional
I’m a runner and have been picking up trash during my runs for more than 20 years. As I talk to God about the trash (and the people who put it there), my conversations have led me to three inescapable reasons I ought to continue to pick up the trash:
It is something of a test whenever I encounter the trash. It’s not a trial, not a burden, but simply a test. Am I the kind of person who sees a problem and walks past, hoping someone else will take care of it? Or, am I someone who will do something to help, even though it seems a mere drop in the proverbial bucket?
The moment I am there with the trash is an adventure, really. Here I am, at this moment that has never existed, with this situation before me. It’s there, and I’m here. I can do something to help or not. But the third of the aforementioned reasons always leads me to respond to the extent that I can. If I walk past without doing anything about the trash, I am (in that moment, at least) a person who walks past.
I’ve decided that I’d rather be someone who stoops to pick up the bottle, cup or bag. It feels better. And, when I make that choice, I am moving toward becoming the person I want to be. Hopefully, that choice becomes a part of me in terms of my willingness, discipline and self-concept. Those qualities are less likely to suddenly shift if the discipline is practiced repeatedly. If the choice is healthy and positive, the results seem to carry over to other moments of my life.
The moment I pick up trash is a moment of investment that pays interest and dividends in the future – in the world and in me.
— Dr. Kevin Tully, First UMC Waxahachie, CTC
kevin@fumcwaxahachie.org
