TREASURES DON'T BELONG IN THE TRASH

Used to be a knotty pine dresser from the 90's

One of my favorite hobbies is finding old seemingly worn out items from garage sales and thrift stores and giving them a brand new identity and purpose. I’ve even taken things from other people’s trash (with permission) and with a little bit of work have been able to transform them into valuable treasures. If you were to visit our home, you would find that I've painted and altered most of the wood furniture that we've owned for many years. I get a kick out of the times when movers have been apprehensive about moving our “expensive” looking furniture and have taken extra precautions not to cause any scratches or nicks. They're surprised when I tell them the armoire or dresser they're concerned about is actually an outdated relic that's been repurposed and any ding or dent will only add priceless character to them. 


Repurposing has especially become a favorite pastime of mine since we’ve moved to our acreage last year.  I’ve been enjoying the discovery of some hidden treasures on our property that I’ve been able to renew and reuse.  We found an interesting old wooden gate in our woods that I’ve decorated with greenery and a “Home Sweet Home” sign that now greets visitors driving up the lane to our home. 



Everything on our porch has been repurposed and will be enjoyed by our family for years to come.

When we moved in, we had nothing to put on our huge wrap around front porch. I didn't want to spend money on buying anything so I took on the personal challenge of attempting to furnish our deck with free repurposed items.  I prayed and God worked!  We found two very dirty Adirondack chairs hiding out in our little cabin in the woods that most people would’ve probably thrown away. All that those chairs needed was a deep cleaning and now look as good as new for us to enjoy.  There was an old rotting bench that the previous owners of our home did not want, so they just left it here. I painted it black and a dingy accent table from our cabin perked right up after a good cleaning and nice coat of glossy white paint. 



 My favorite discovery in our woods was a large wooden table. Judging by the cut marks and blood stains, someone must have  used it to gut animals on after hunting. I pressure washed the table for an hour and then applied ebony colored stain to it. We now have a nice picnic table for our family to enjoy in the summertime.

We've renewed and painted my grandmas old rocker and Richards grandmas antique ladder which have both served valuable purpose on our front porch.  I also found a free rug that matched our colors and another accent table we spray painted black to set between our two "new" white chairs.  I recently came across an interesting quote that explained my sentiment exactly.  It said “In the old days people didn’t just throw things out that were broken, they actually took the time to fix them.”  Although I don't enjoy collecting clutter that I do not find useful, I cannot deny a new life and purpose for an old item that I see has great potential.


I began questioning myself about the reason behind my slight obsession for repurposing. I must admit that I do like having things around my home that have some sentimental value.  Maybe I feel as if I’m rescuing and giving those things a second chance that otherwise might be thrown in the garbage. I do believe my passion for repurposing is mostly driven by the fact that I too have been graciously given another opportunity by my Creator to be useful in this life. 

Several years ago God took a broken, used up person who seemed to have no eternal purpose and sanded off my rough edges, cleaned up all the dirt and gave me a fresh coat of shiny new paint.  My fervor and enthusiasm stems from how I’ve witnessed God radically change my own heart and life when I seemed to have no hope.  My Savior has breathed new life into me and set me free to serve Him and others in a more passionate way. I’m so driven to transform old, dirty, grungy looking things because of how I witnessed the extreme transformation that God did on my heart.  2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, ALL things have become new."

Our all sovereign God has the almighty power to accomplish the MOST stunning and spectacular makeover on anyone.  It does NOT matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from or what you have done, our Creator specializes on changing the inner heart of even the most wretched sinner. Our Savior is the God of second chances. He is in the business of making old things new again and giving us a fresh start.  Our makeover begins when we come to God in meekness and ask for forgiveness for all of the wrongs we have committed against Him.  He is faithful to forgive, cleanse us and make us brand new.  Lamentations 3:22-23 give us an amazing promise of hope for those of us who are plagued with feeling used up. "Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not.  They are NEW every morning; Great is Your faithfulness." 

We are precious treasures to God and He never ever throws us in the trash. Our Enemy tells us the lie that we are too dirty, filthy and used up to ever be of any use again. We cannot continue to believe those lies from Satan who only seeks our destruction.  The God of second chances is lovingly and patiently waiting for our repentance so He can repurpose us for His glory. I KNOW He can transform anyone because He changed even me!  I love the verse in Luke 1:38 that tells us, “Without God Nothing will be impossible.”

 

Have you felt lately that you have needed a spiritual makeover?  Do you believe that you are useless because of past failures in your life?  Our God can take the most seemingly torn and tattered, broken sin cursed life and make an absolutely stunning masterpiece out of it. Trust me, I know personally what God can accomplish.  Please don't wait another minute to make things right with the Lord.  Life is a vapor and we never know when we will draw our last breath here on earth.  Come quickly to Him, listen to His prompting.  I promise that you will come out sparkling clean, shining like gold and once again become the useful treasure that God desires to use for His glory.