Do you know much about recycling? Take the recycle quiz to see!
Recycled paper is creatively used for art, jewelry and even furniture! Did you guess what else it’s used for?
Recycled paper is usable for plates, garden mulch and insulation. Used as mulch, it’s environmentally kind, retains moisture and suppresses weeds! As cellulose insulation, it is energy-efficient and fire retardant! 1
All four items can be recycled, yes, even our used toothbrushes! However, crayons, CD’s and toothbrushes can be recycled only at specialty centers.
Don’t throw ceramics and plastic straws in the recycle bin! The size of the straws makes them difficult to sort. What about ceramics? Due to their high melting point, they can’t be processed with regular glass.
WE AREN’T THE ONLY ONES WHO RECYCLE.
GOD RECYCLES!
God was green before it was a popular concept.
What do we usually recycle? Aren’t they things that are torn, empty, broken or bent? What about our torn relationships, empty promises, broken trust and bent truths resulting from our mistakes, bad experiences and traumas? Don’t we wish that we could throw those things into the landfill and forget them?
Just as paper is recycled and reformed for another purpose, God recycles our mistakes, bad experiences and traumas using them for something good.
And we know that all things work together for good
to those who love God,
to those who are called according to His purpose.
Romans 8:28
Because God loves us so much, when we have faith in Jesus, He will use EVERYTHING for good. Not just good things, but even our mistakes, bad experiences and traumas.
God doesn’t waste anything.
God has a plan.
Are you familiar with Rahab in Joshua chapters 2 & 6? She made a mistake, prostitution, and experienced a traumatizing event that changed her life for the good.
Rahab lived in Jericho where Joshua sent two spies to access the land. When the king of Jericho heard about the spies, he sent men to capture them from Rahab’s lodgings. But God was working in Rahab’s heart. She hid the spies and sent the kings men on a wild goose chase.
Talk about a traumatic event! Imagine the fear she felt knowing that if they were caught, she would be killed along with them. So, what happened to Rahab and Jericho?
Now the city shall be doomed by the Lord to destruction,
it and all who are in it.
Only Rahab the harlot shall live,
she and all who are with her in the house,
because she hid the messengers that we sent,
Joshua 6:17
God recycled this traumatic event using it for the good of Rahab and her family. He even envisioned a way to recycle her mistake of prostitution for good.
VISION!
Who would have envisioned that recycled paper could become furniture? Who would have envisioned a prostitute could be in Jesus’ genealogy? But Rahab is.
Why do the scriptures mention Rahab’s profession as a prostitute? That information could have been swept under a rug. In fact, her story could have been excluded from the scriptures altogether.
However, God chose to recycle it for good. He uses it as a testimony of His merciful forgiveness, redemptive power and love towards us no matter what we have done. God envisioned Rahab as the person He designed her to be rather than a prostitute. Marrying an Israelite, her son Boaz became the grandfather to King David placing her in the genealogy of Jesus, (Matthew 1:5-16). That is God’s recycling!
God doesn’t view us by our mistakes either. Like Rahab, He envisions us through His eyes of love as the person He knows we can become. When He recycles, He redeems and refines to make us new.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation;
old things have passed away;
behold, all things have become new,
2 Corinthians 5:17
PROMISES! PROMISES!
A 2025 study reported that 77% of Americans say they recycle. However, only 32% of our materials are actually recycled. 2 What’s up with that? Maybe our intentions are greater than our practices.
People may not always do as they say, but God does. We can have faith that God will recycle because He is true to His promises.
Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is the faithful God
who for a thousand generations keeps his promises
and constantly loves those who love him and who obey his commands,
Deuteronomy 7:9 TLB
DO YOU WANT TO RECYCLE?
Although recycling bins are not always available, recycling is worth the effort. It protects the environment and saves us money. Were you aware that it cost US taxpayers $13.3 billion to cleanup plastic liter in 2025? 2
God is always available to recycle, anywhere, 24/7. We can deposit our mistakes, bad experiences and traumas into His hands.
And the cost for God to cleanse our hearts and recycle our experiences for good? Zero! Jesus already paid the price when He was crucified, died and rose from the dead. By faith we can recycle with Him.
REFLECTION
Is there a mistake, bad experience or trauma you want to recycle?
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, as I write Romans 8:28, I deposit my (name any mistakes, bad experiences or traumas) into Your hands. Show me how you are recycling them for good as you promised. In Jesus name, Amen.
IN FAITH LET JESUS RECYCLE
Comment!
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*For information on making Jesus Christ your Savior, email me or visit, http://www.peacewithgod.net/
1 www.rescript.in
2 www.wastedive.com
Photo child, Michelle Venter
Photo furniture, lartcycling
Photo liter clean-up, OCG
