Waste not...
Have you ever been accused of gluttony? As in, "you are glutton for punishment!" I heard that a lot when people found out I was raising seven children. What's that mean? If you're glutton for something, that means you keep going back for more...and more...and more. Think of the Old Country Buffet. It's a haven for gluttonous eaters.
The restaurant industry is counting on the fact that America is being trained for gluttony. "Would you like to super-size your meal today?" Have you considered the size of a small drink lately? I wish my clothes used the same measure...then I could wear a size SMALL. :) (Why is it that women's clothing is the one thing that seems to keep getting smaller and smaller?)
When you go to a restaurant and order a meal, typically it's big enough to feed a family of 4. I'm sure there are some countries where that one meal is more food than they see in an entire month...maybe longer. And we may or may not finish it..."Would you like a box for that?" Sure. My mother always said, "There are starving children in Africa! We cannot waste our food." Wouldn't it be great if we could slap a stamp on the 'to-go' box and ship it straight to those hungry babies?? Instead, we get guilted into eating way more than we need; and we wonder why Americans are so 'healthy'!
Sadly, it's not just food that we can be glutton for. If you ever shop at one of the wholesale clubs, you'll see what I mean. Who really needs 82 rolls of toilet paper all at once? Where on earth would you put all that anyway?? My shampoo bottle is just smaller than a tanker truck. And most homes are so large that four people can live in the same house and rarely cross paths.
And let's be real honest here...would you admit that you have swept up a penny with the dirt in the kitchen and tossed it in the trash because you didn't want to touch it? Or a quarter rolled away from you on the floor at the mall and you didn't want to look foolish chasing it so you let it go? Me too.
Are we being good stewards of the blessings that God has given us? (Slap! Ouch...)
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that even some of the 'less fortunate' in our community are rich compared to other countries or to what our great-great-grandparents had. Maybe most of them.
We are so desensitized to frugality. The huge bottle of shampoo makes me feel like I can waste it - not on purpose, but I pump out four or five pumps when it really only takes two. Or I'll toss it in the trash before it's completely empty because it's easier to buy a new shampoo and conditioner at the same time. Or I end up pouring out half-empty bottles of water (which cost more than gasoline!) We think nothing about wasting what we have.
It's shameful really. Think of the difference we could make for the Kingdom of God if we treated every dollar like it was our last...conserved every drop of moisturizer like we might never get another bottle...enjoyed every can of soda to the last drop.
This is something we can learn from the older generations, because they didn't have enough to waste. Haven't you heard the stories of whole families sharing the same bath water? My mother tells the story of my uncle who embarrassed my grandparents when grandpa's boss came to dinner. My uncle took his napkin and wiped his mouth and offered it to the boss, telling him they were too poor for everyone to have a napkin so they had to share. (I wonder if grandpa got a raise after that?)
I'm not proposing that we all start sharing bath water, but maybe consolidating trips to town...or recycling empty envelopes that show up with the bills (which I don't need because I pay the bills online.) Maybe refilling a bottle of water or two and dropping an extra three bucks in a jar to donate to a worthy cause.
I'm just feeling very convicted about how wasteful our society has become. We are teaching a future generation our bad habits. Even Jesus was concerned about waste, and he could always make more of whatever he wanted... in John 6:12, after feeding 5,000 men plus women and children by miraculously passing the bottomless bread basket, he told his disciples to gather up the leftovers. "Let nothing be wasted."
How can we live more conscientious of what we waste? Gather the leftovers. Share what you have. Let nothing be wasted.
Be blessed!
The restaurant industry is counting on the fact that America is being trained for gluttony. "Would you like to super-size your meal today?" Have you considered the size of a small drink lately? I wish my clothes used the same measure...then I could wear a size SMALL. :) (Why is it that women's clothing is the one thing that seems to keep getting smaller and smaller?)
When you go to a restaurant and order a meal, typically it's big enough to feed a family of 4. I'm sure there are some countries where that one meal is more food than they see in an entire month...maybe longer. And we may or may not finish it..."Would you like a box for that?" Sure. My mother always said, "There are starving children in Africa! We cannot waste our food." Wouldn't it be great if we could slap a stamp on the 'to-go' box and ship it straight to those hungry babies?? Instead, we get guilted into eating way more than we need; and we wonder why Americans are so 'healthy'!
Sadly, it's not just food that we can be glutton for. If you ever shop at one of the wholesale clubs, you'll see what I mean. Who really needs 82 rolls of toilet paper all at once? Where on earth would you put all that anyway?? My shampoo bottle is just smaller than a tanker truck. And most homes are so large that four people can live in the same house and rarely cross paths.And let's be real honest here...would you admit that you have swept up a penny with the dirt in the kitchen and tossed it in the trash because you didn't want to touch it? Or a quarter rolled away from you on the floor at the mall and you didn't want to look foolish chasing it so you let it go? Me too.
Are we being good stewards of the blessings that God has given us? (Slap! Ouch...)
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that even some of the 'less fortunate' in our community are rich compared to other countries or to what our great-great-grandparents had. Maybe most of them.
We are so desensitized to frugality. The huge bottle of shampoo makes me feel like I can waste it - not on purpose, but I pump out four or five pumps when it really only takes two. Or I'll toss it in the trash before it's completely empty because it's easier to buy a new shampoo and conditioner at the same time. Or I end up pouring out half-empty bottles of water (which cost more than gasoline!) We think nothing about wasting what we have.
It's shameful really. Think of the difference we could make for the Kingdom of God if we treated every dollar like it was our last...conserved every drop of moisturizer like we might never get another bottle...enjoyed every can of soda to the last drop.
This is something we can learn from the older generations, because they didn't have enough to waste. Haven't you heard the stories of whole families sharing the same bath water? My mother tells the story of my uncle who embarrassed my grandparents when grandpa's boss came to dinner. My uncle took his napkin and wiped his mouth and offered it to the boss, telling him they were too poor for everyone to have a napkin so they had to share. (I wonder if grandpa got a raise after that?)
I'm not proposing that we all start sharing bath water, but maybe consolidating trips to town...or recycling empty envelopes that show up with the bills (which I don't need because I pay the bills online.) Maybe refilling a bottle of water or two and dropping an extra three bucks in a jar to donate to a worthy cause.
I'm just feeling very convicted about how wasteful our society has become. We are teaching a future generation our bad habits. Even Jesus was concerned about waste, and he could always make more of whatever he wanted... in John 6:12, after feeding 5,000 men plus women and children by miraculously passing the bottomless bread basket, he told his disciples to gather up the leftovers. "Let nothing be wasted."
How can we live more conscientious of what we waste? Gather the leftovers. Share what you have. Let nothing be wasted.
Be blessed!
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