The Great Commandment emphasizes our dual role in both protecting God’s creation (thereby loving the Lord God with all of our hearts, souls and minds) and protecting the planet for our seven billion fellow humans and for generations to come as we love our neighbors as ourselves.
On this United Methodist Women in Faith Sunday (23 October 2022), we will learn the spiritual value in recycling. Whether it’s at the recycling center or putting vegetable and fruit peelings into my compost bin at home, I know that we are giving something a new life, a second chance; that it won't end up on the garbage heap - at least not in this life and not in our hands.
I think it's a spiritual matter because it reflects something important about God. Suppose we think about God as the Great Recycler. I like that because God does recycle people. God gives us a new life, a second chance. Isn't that the message of Easter? God takes people whom we might toss aside as broken, worn out, or useless and gives them new life. When someone realizes that God loves them and of course they find God's love through one of us, they understand that God always gives them another chance at life. And God uses the rest of us to help that person find it. They can make something new in their life and even nurture new life in others. So, the cycling continues.
It can take a plastic bottle between 500 to 1000 years to biodegrade, so when you litter you are leaving it for generations to come. Recycling is part of an overall waste management strategy that should include buying and using only what we need, reducing consumption, reusing materials, recycling, composting and buying recycled products. This is our time to protect God’s creation by establishing a recycling program in our churches and encouraging each other to recycle at home and work.
No, we're not the best recyclers, but Fifth Ave. UMC, here’s our opportunity to make an intentional commitment to work on it.
God bless,
Pastor Clarissa