Our 4yr old german shepard all of a sudden now poops in the house in the same spot after my husband leaves for work at 4am and when I get up at 6:30am. My husband takes him out and lets him do his business and has for the last 4yrs so why all of a sudden?

A four year old dog is too young to be losing control, although many dogs do when old. But it could be something as simple as a different time clock in his bowels as he is aging a little, or he is more intolerant of cold if you are in a cold climate right now. Or your husband is rushing him more! It could be that something scared him one day when your husband took him out, he went in that spot, and now it has a scent. It could be something more neurotic, such as a reaction to your husband being away for too long for comfort a while ago.

What I would do is take him out yourself (I assume he pees when your husband takes him out), and see if you can get him to poop. If you want to keep sleeping until 6:30, confine the dog in the bathroom with a gate or other barrier. And if you can get him to go outside, of course praise him a LOT. Another option would be to take him out later at night, and then you take him out at 6:15. My dog as she ages goes out later and later in the morning.