Recently, I’ve been dealing with a water leak at a rental house that was not initially obvious, but after some higher than normal water bills, and some investigating, eventually got resolved. In the process, a lot of water was wasted that did not help anyone, but still had to be paid for, and that really benefits no one. Incidents like this one aside, in our normal day to day routines, we have a tendency to waste a lot of things from water, electricity, gas, etc, to wasting time waiting in line or waiting on others. As I get older, I become more aware of these things and make attempts to be more efficient in what I do and how I use things. I try to practice the motto ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ for minimizing waste as well, but ultimately we are all consumers to some degree so when we develop daily habits and routines that help support this, it is easier. I also realize that what I do is a drop in the bucket compared to public policies and financial incentives to be more efficient. In what ways do you try to be less wasteful in your daily life?
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. John 10:10
Not long after college, I got a new PlayStation video game and decided to just try it out for a few minutes. It turned out to be fairly addicting, as most games are, and 3+ hours later I realized I had wasted most of an evening getting nothing accomplished. Since that time, I occasionally dabble in games with friends, or on a phone, but for the most part try to avoid these time burglars. It doesn’t take much effort to spend a good chunk of a free day binge watching a new series, scrolling social media, scanning random videos, or getting wrapped up in a bunch of games on the TV. There is likely something that can draw any of us into hours staring at a screen and getting nothing productive done with our time. We don’t usually consider the opportunities lost on things that in the long run have no real benefit to ourselves or anyone else. When we consider what matters most in life, what are the things you spent time doing that were most meaningful up till now?
Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. James 4:14
Have you ever known or heard a story about someone, and thought what a promising life that seems to have been wasted, whether by their own choices or by what someone else did to them? It doesn’t matter if it was a young person who was killed by accident or in a war, an unborn child, or someone later in life who gave up or gave in to addictions and seemed to become a liability to themselves and others, none of us really want to see a life wasted, do we? Each one of us is created in the image of God and has so much potential, but there is so much sin and brokenness in the world that tries to take that away from us, that sometimes it feels like a losing battle. I recently had a home visit with a toddler growing up in a chaotic, toxic environment by the adults in his life and pondered, ‘does this kid even have a chance to succeed?’ Yes, he does have a chance, as we all do. If you read many biographies, or stories in scripture, you come to learn that growing up in difficult circumstances can build resilience in us and is not always a death sentence. God often uses the most unlikely people to carry out His will in this world, and we may even be living examples of that as well. So, let us not waste any of those skills, resources, and opportunities with which God has given us, so we can make a small difference in this world in which we find ourselves.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Hebrews 12:1
Yours in Christ,
Clark
