Nothing Wasted

I recently had an experience that I wanted to share with you. After doing some housework, I went to wash my hands before leaving to pick up my children from school. Hardly any water came out. There was enough for me to wash my hands, but there was not much.

Thames Water has been doing some work on pipes nearby for a number of months. Sometimes they let us know about scheduled times the water would be cut off. But this was not one of those.

I left the house and as soon as I approached the road with the issue I could hear the water. I could hear fast powerful water rushing, gushing, and powering down the road. And then I could see it. It was a lot of water. And it just seemed like such a waste.

I saw someone from Thames Water further down the road. As I approached him I noticed how calm and relaxed he was. He seemed so happy. He was eating his sandwich out of his van and it seemed like the water was not bothering him at all, like everything was in control.

I asked him whether the water would be back on soon. He said the problem had actually been fixed, which I thought was a weird thing to say when I could see and hear so much water that I considered to be waste, gushing down the road past us. He explained that it had been fixed but the water needed to flow to get the air out of the pipe.

My understanding is that if you keep the air in the pipes then it can cause future damage, especially as the weather changes. When you do certain repairs you have to let the water run after you have repaired an issue to get the air out and then you can safely restore the flow of water.

This did not mean much to me at the time. I picked up my children from school and when I came home the water was restored. All was well.

Nothing Wasted: An Essential Part of the Repair Process

For me, time spent washing up is an opportunity for reflection or prayer. A few days later, while washing up this incident the Holy Spirit brought this incident back to me. The thing that stood out was the fact that what I considered waste was actually an essential part of the repair process. You can't skip it. If you skip it then you are actually storing up future problems.

Sometimes in life, we have experiences we consider to be a waste. This could be wasted time, wasted years, wasted efforts, or wasted opportunities. But what if everything we perceive to be waste was actually an essential part of the repair process?

What if everything we perceive to be waste was actually an essential part of the repair process?

What if it was necessary to avoid future issues down the line? What if what we learn from those experiences prepares us to be effective and not damaging to ourselves and others in the future?

It really struck me that things that I may consider waste may actually be preparation and may save me from calamity in the future. This could be because of what I have learnt, people I have connected to, or the way I have had to cling to God or go deeper into the Word. It could be because I have known God better, known myself better or known other people better. It may be that this season revealed that people I may have relied on in the future are not reliable.

There are so many things we could learn!

Nothing Wasted: Give it to God

If some aspect of your life or something you have been through comes to mind, I encourage you to give it to God. You may need to give it to God with tears. You may need to give it to God with repentance. You may need to give it to God with deep reflection by asking the Holy Spirit to tell you what you think about it and how He sees it.

I want to remind you of my favourite verse. I have many favourite verses, but one of my top favourite verses is Romans 8:28

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (ESV)

If God is your Saviour and you know Him as Lord, you are called and you have a purpose in Him. All things, even those you consider to be wasted moments, wasted time, wasted effort - God has a plan for that. It will work out in your favour even if you cannot see how. It is going to work out for your good, because He loves you.

Just like that man from Thames Water, who was completely unbothered by what I could see and hear because he knew better. He knew what was really happening. He knew it was already fixed. He knew it was part of the plan. He knew everything was fully under control even though it looked completely out of control.

Maybe you are in a completely out-of-control season that seems like an absolute mess at the moment. I want to also let you know that God is in control. God is not worried. There's a song that says: God's not worried, so why should I worry. Give it to God.

Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:7 ESV)

Let Him take care of it for you. He is in control. He has a plan. He has a purpose. And He can be trusted, whether or not we understand it.

The Bible says:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV)

I love that verse. Trust in God, even when it doesn't make sense. Even with things you wanted to make of. With things that have happened in the past that cause you to think, "This makes no sense", trust God. At some point, something that you have learnt from that situation or some aspect of your character that would not have been refined otherwise will save you. Then you can allow the gift of God within you to flow to your community. Just as when Thames Water put the water back on the water flowed through the taps to the community again as a life-giving source.

There is something about the things that we go through that will lead to life in others - even if it is only your testimony. Your testimony is not a small thing.

The Blessing of Your Story post is the first post I ever wrote on this site. It talks about the fact that your story has so much significance. Your story and your voice have so much significance to God. They matter. Everything you have been through matters and can be used for His glory. Nothing is wasted. Absolutely nothing is wasted.

Let's praise God that nothing is wasted. Not one thing. It will all work out for your good. Be encouraged!

Blessings!

Boma

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