Renewed . . . Repurposed (Peter Black)

Were you raised in a home where resources were scarce and you were taught to not waste anything, but to recycle and reuse whenever possible and reasonable? I was, and today I could be rightly accused of going overboard (my Beloved hands down a firm “guilty” verdict!).

Here’s a recent example of my ingrained recycle and reuse mindset. I had several tangerine boxes gathering dust under my workshop bench. I’d reclaimed (or 'rescued') them from my wife’s “gotta get these out of the house” crosshairs.

I’d held on to them along with an assortment of other odds-an’-ends, in case they came in handy for mending or making something useful. After dismantling one I glued and clamped the sides together, to make thicker plywood.

That reclaimed and renovated boxwood, along with a piece of used pine board (left over from a dismantled pew) and a few inches of dowelling, was recreated. It became – with the aid of scroll- saw, buff-grinder and sandpaper among other things – a handsome model motorcycle. That new creation now sits on our sixth-grade grandson’s bedroom dresser.



This iStock pic is way fancier than our creation!

Another element in the process was his contribution to the project, as he practiced using the machines and developing his skills. A further benefit: the project kept him occupied for hours during snow days that brought him and his young sister to Grandma and Grandpa’s place.
 
And so, we reclaimed then recycled and reused, by using the wood to make stronger wood for the new creation. The same is basically true of the reclaimed pine wood. (It was only a small scrap piece. I’m sure some folk would have tossed it out or chopped it into smaller pieces for kindling.)

Now let’s introduce another aspect: we repurposed. Whereas the product we created was a small and modest representation of a motorcycle, the purpose in the process was to fill time and to engage and occupy an active schoolboy. Moreover, the exercise provided teachable moments and was an occasion for relationship-building. And, he also had something to play with or admire at the end of the day.

Quite often my post to this blog is a slightly modified edition of articles written for a weekly column called P-Pep! in a newspaper that serves several rural communities. This piece is based on one, although in this case there’s more modification than usual. Generally-speaking, minor reorientation and tweaking provide a different readership the opportunity to read the musings. I hope that the other reading audience will gain a helpful slant on life and faith.

Several weeks ago I sent off a manuscript to a writer colleague. It contains a collection of 52 P-Pep! articles, interspersed with brief statements that I call Words to Bless. He’ll review and critique them. While those reworked items clearly reflect the original, in some respects they’re quite different. Once the manuscript returns to me I’ll further modify them. I plan to include them in my current work in progress book project, to reach a wider audience than before. Reclaimed, recycled, reused and repurposed.

That is what God does with our lives when we come to with absolute sincerity. We may look fine on the outside, but may be wasted within. Some of us may appear obviously damaged and broken. Whatever our condition, when we abandon ourselves to the mercy and grace of God, He works the wonders of His grace from the inside out.

Reclaimed, recycled, reused and repurposed – new creations designed and destined to demonstrate God’s gracious handiwork through us:
“. . . if anyone is in Christ, he [or she] is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

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Peter A. Black is a freelance writer in Southwestern Ontario, and is author of “Parables from the Pond” – a children's / family book (mildly educational, inspirational in orientation, character reinforcing. 

Finalist – Word Alive Press. ISBN 1897373-21-X)

His inspirational column, P-Pep! appears weekly in The Guide-Advocate. His articles have appeared in 50 Plus Contact and testimony, and several newspapers in Ontario. Peter’s current book project comprises a collection of 52 column articles.

Raise Your Gaze

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