By Jason Smith

As our team walked across the dirt path, mounds of trash stood high on either side of us. A putrid smell filled the warm air. Birds circled overhead. This place was like nothing I had ever seen before.

Up ahead of us, I saw a few kids running around in an open area, playing soccer with what looked like a ball made of cardboard and plastic. I smiled at one of the boys who stopped and stared at us. As we hiked on, I saw a little child standing at the entrance of what looked to be a makeshift house about the size of a garden shed. She stood behind a scrap of wood acting as a baby gate. Her face and shirt were stained. She looked at me with those big brown eyes which are etched into my memory. My wife, Whitney, and I exchanged looks, reading each other’s mind.

This is no place for a little girl.

We were at the Guatemala City Dump, the largest landfill in Central America. Thousands of people come here to forage for discarded valuables they might sell for a paltry amount. But the most astonishing thing of all was that most of them called this place “home.”

“God Is Taking Care of Us”

A gray-haired woman invited us into her home, which was basically a lean-to made of sheet metal and wooden boards. Inside, I saw a little black stove with flies buzzing around what food was there, a couple of recovered shelves, and several filled garbage bags. In the corner of this little hut sat a black dog with a chain around its neck and a fire in its eyes. The dog stood up when we entered and locked its eyes on me. When it began to snarl under its breath, I quickly averted my gaze, praying that the chain kept me well beyond the reach of the canine’s teeth.

We listened as the woman shared her story of how her husband and her ended up at the dump when they had no other option. I don’t remember everything she said, but one statement stuck with me: “God is taking care of us.” I didn’t hear her utter a word of complaint about her life situation.

Despite the stench that filled the air and the bleak sights all round us, there was something remarkable about this place. The people here took care of each other and welcomed visitors like us who came from such a different world. I saw firsthand that love, commitment, faith, and family endured in this community, despite the squalor conditions.

How strange it is that we humans can so easily forget what matters most.

Hearing this dear woman’s story was convicting. It’s easy for me to forget the countless ways God has taken care of me. I have a roof over my head. I have food in my refrigerator. I don’t have to wear the same clothes every day. Throughout the world, there are many people – including many persecuted Christians – who don’t have the very things I can take for granted.

As the Son of God, Jesus knew how fickle our hearts can be. He taught His followers:

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” (Matthew 6:25, ESV)

Useless Worry

Jesus said that anxiety rules our hearts when we forget what matters most. Sadly, we naturally tend to fixate on things that won’t last and won’t matter in eternity.

We live in a consumer-driven society. As Americans, we tend to think about what we don’t have, rather than considering all that God has already given us. But, as Jesus points out, this never leads anywhere good.

“And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (v. 27)

Have you ever thought about how useless it is to worry? No one ever accomplished anything profitable by fretting about the unknowns. Like furiously spinning your tires while stuck in deep mud, worrying is a pointless exercise. And rather than letting us rationalize our anxiety, Jesus gently calls us out for what worry is at the root: a failure to depend on God for everything. He points to nature as an object lesson for us (vv. 26-30). Our heavenly Father feeds the birds of the sky and clothes the grass with beautiful lilies. So, why would you worry about whether He will provide for you, His dearly loved child?

“Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.” (vv. 31-32)

In other words, do you really think that the One who sees all doesn’t see you and your need? When Jesus says “the Gentiles seek after all these things” He’s referring to the non-Jewish pagans who don’t know God. In other words, to fret about having enough each month is to live like an atheist who denies that a loving God is running the world.

Seeking the Kingdom

Those who have been born again through the all-sufficient grace of God should recognize that such anxious thoughts don’t belong in their heart. To be a child of God is to depend on your heavenly Father for everything in life. Cherish this promise from Jesus:

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (v. 33)

Seeking God’s kingdom is pursuing life under His kingly rule, not under the rule of something else. Think of it this way: You are a child of the One with infinite riches. His kingdom is beyond any earthly kingdom doomed to eventually perish.

If you’re like me, then you are frequently tempted to depend on so many other things besides God. Maybe you’re putting your hope in a paycheck, your family, your career, or your own abilities. Such things will only leave us anxious about what comes next. Instead, ask the Lord to cultivate a heart of dependence, where you fully rely on Him for everything in life.

What are you tempted to rely on that is preventing you from saying with that elderly woman, “God is taking care of me”?

Are you living in daily dependence on God, where you can pray “Give us this day our daily bread” and mean it?

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_{*Photo Source: https://www.aroundtheworldinktdays.com/living-in-trash-the-guatemala-city-garbage-dump/}