This morning’s sermon is inspired by one of life’s most overlooked spiritual teachers:
The empty toilet paper roll.
Every one of us reaches that moment. The paper is gone. The cardboard core has served its purpose. We don’t argue with it. We don’t put it on a shelf because of the good times we shared. We don’t carry it around all day.
We simply throw it away.
Yet somehow we cling to things far less useful.
Old resentments.
The need to be right.
Regrets we can’t change.
Fear of what others think.
Anger toward someone who has long since moved on.
The habit of comparing ourselves to everyone else.
That conversation we keep replaying in our minds as if the ending will somehow change.
We hold on to these things long after they’ve stopped serving any purpose.
So here’s today’s challenge.
The next time you’re sitting upon your porcelain throne and notice that empty cardboard core waiting to be tossed…
Don’t rush.
Sit just a little longer.
Ask yourself:
“What is at the core of my unhappiness today that no longer serves me?”
Maybe it’s a grudge.
Maybe it’s guilt.
Maybe it’s the expectation that life should have unfolded differently.
Maybe it’s simply the need to control things that were never yours to control.
Whatever comes to mind…
Throw it away with the cardboard core.
Not because it never mattered.
But because it has finished serving its purpose, and carrying it any longer only weighs you down.
And for those of you blessed with a bidet…
Well… just let the warm water relax you while you contemplate your answer.
I have no additional spiritual guidance for you at the moment.
May your rolls be full, your burdens be light, and may you discover that sometimes the path to peace begins with letting go of what belongs in the trash.
Amen. 🚽🙏