Taking Out the Trash

Today I wanted to talk about cleaning our apartments effectively.  (Or homes if you've got a bigger place to live in than most missionaries.)  As much as I would like to have someone come in and clean out everything for me, we can't have maids that do it.  So we have to do it ourselves.  Are you ready?  This plan is going to help you get your home clean in 3 easy steps!

First, go around your entire living quarters and collect all of those objects that are cluttering up your life.  Whether it's the wrappers to the chocolate you ate yesterday or that closet full of lotion you've received for every anniversary, birthday, and Christmas for the past 5 years, pull it out and put it in the trash!  That's right!  Into the trash!  If you don't really use it and it's taking up space and you don't really need it just let it go and throw it away!

Have you done that?  Great!  It's okay if you can't fit everything into the little garbage that lives under your sink on your first try, that's why we have extra grocery bags, so we can eventually fit everything...eventually...so after you've done that, you need to take the garbage out.  Yes.  Out of your house.  The garbage man won't come inside to take it all away, you've got to take it out to him.  

Sometimes that takes a little bit of extra work.  Maybe you have a really long drive way or you live 6 floors up in a high-rise apartment building.  Trust me, it's worth it.  You don't want all of those bags and bags of garbage stinking up your home, you have to get it out.  

If you're like most people, you don't just leave the trash bags on the the sidewalk.  No, you have to put it in a specialized compartment, formally called a "trash can".  That's the third step.  Use an authorized can to put your trash in.  And then...just walk away.  Leave it alone, don't go back to retrieve something, just return to your much cleaner home.

Doesn't that make you feel better?

You know...this process of cleaning out your home - taking out the trash - reminds me of something...it too is a process that we all must go through if we want to live happier lives.  It's called repentance.  I'll ignore your shudder and just keep going.

Have you noticed that?  Taking out the trash and repentance seem to have a negative air about it when really the whole reason it's there is to improve our lives.  To make it so we don't have to live with excess waste that we produce.  Now I'm not going to merrily skip down the hallway as I throw my trash into the "rubbish" chute, but perhaps I'm going to look at it a little
more like it's a blessing and less like it's the bane of my existence.

What does it mean to repent?  Basically it means we take out all of the things we've done wrong in our life, when we make mistakes and feel guilty about something we did we can change and live a happier healthier life.  Repentance is the way that we can be relieved of the things that hold as back.  How, do you ask? 

Well, by taking out the trash.

First thing you'll need to do is to do a self inventory of the things that you do or have done.  What are some of the things that just get in the way of things?  Eat up time?  Clutter your day?  Put them all in a mental pile.  What about some of the excess things you do that aren't really productive?  (You know, like that weekend where you spent 7 hours just watching movies?  I know.  I was there.)  Put them all together and become determined that they won't be a part of your life.  Make the decision to stop.

Next?  It takes a little bit of effort, but you need to make the effort to stop.  Ask for forgiveness from those you may have harmed, spend some time and effort on your knees talking to Heavenly Father in prayer about what is going on.  Prayer is a form of work, after all.  This process might be long and it may be challenging, but with every step you take you'll be closer to getting rid of the things that hold you down.

Just like you have to put your garbage in an authorized trash bin, there is only one way that we can be rid of our transgressions.  That way is through Jesus Christ.  We can't forgive ourselves of our sins and expect to be made clean, we simply do not have that power.  But He does.  When Christ suffered in Gethsemane and on the cross, He took our sins upon him, paying the debt and making it possible for us to be cleansed from it.

Just like the trash man though, he won't come into our houses and into our lives and forcefully take out the things that aren't good for us.  That would take no effort on our part and we wouldn't learn anything from it, nor would we appreciate it.  We need to do our part by asking for forgiveness and taking the steps necessary to give him our sins, to give him the things that we have done wrong.

When we have done that...we walk away.  We don't go back.  We don't say "just kidding, I think I'll keep this" to our favorite sins.  We don't remember the things that we've done in the past and hang it over our heads for eternity.  No.  Once it is taken care of by Christ's atonement, we have to trust that it's taken care of and to simply let it go.

You will receive more power in your life as you repent.  And just like we have to clean our apartments daily to keep them clean, we have to repent daily to keep ourselves free.  It's not a one-time event, or even a yearly thing like spring cleaning.  It is a daily process to do our best to live like Christ would have us live.  It is a powerful opportunity for us to feel an increase of light and joy in our lives.

As you repent your life will change.  You will be happier, and you will find the peace that you are searching for.  I know because this is what I have felt in my life.  My apartment is far from perfect, but I'm finding greater joy as I live in it.  Repentance makes that happen.  My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, makes that happen.  And I'm so very grateful that He has.