Revenue from Waste

Early in my career I was charged with cleaning up the waste water effluent from the paper mill. It was pretty heavy from cellulose (wood) fibers but we had trouble disposing of it because there were some heavy metals included: zinc, manganese, etc.  Aha! If we put the dewatered sludge in a tablet press, maybe we could sell the stuff as a vitamin supplement. Not only would have some of the same stuff as multivitamins but it would have fiber and be good for the digestion...well, that was at least the crazy thought at the time.

In a recent Fast Company article, a food processing company is doing something similar. Instead putting the peels, rinds, etc into a landfill, Baldor is reusing the 'waste' as gluten-free croutons, tea infusion aids and so on. They say carrot peelings can be reformulated and sold for thirty cents per pound; instead of spending money to truck the waste, they're selling it because it's now beneficial.

Waste plastic has been reformed into furniture. And there are a hundred other ideas out there.

Are you still throwing stuff away? What's the value and can you make money off of it?

[Editor's note: This post was meant for another blog. Sorry.]

God's Timing

A lot of Promise verses are misapplied, i.e. pulled out of context. Two of the many that are quoted:

• "For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD, "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29.13) Almost everyone doesn't realize that God spoke these words while the Israelites were in exile. He told them to hunker down, settle in and make the best of the bad situation. After 70 years, "I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes." (Jeremiah 29.14, the very next verse) So if you look at this, God's plans "for you" will take 70 years to happen, but still giving you a future and a hope. The plans "for good" aren't going to happen right away; yet, that's how people quote it--as if the promise is going to happen right away.
• But Moses told the people, "Don't be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today...The LORD Himself will fight for you. Just stay calm." (Exodus 14.13-14). The Israelites were camped on the shore of the sea hearing the thundering of chariots descend towards their location. The LORD does fight for the Israelites but His next words contradict Moses' "stand still". 'Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving! Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea..."' (Exodus 14.15-16). The LORD will perform a miracle but you may have to take some action, not just be a bystander expecting to be air-lifted over the sea to the other side. However, this rescue was immediate.

Another I read at a time of sleepless nights, being anxious (sinful in a way of not trusting the LORD), was the end of Nehemiah chapter 1. Distressed over the condition of Jerusalem at the end of the exile (see the first bullet above), Nehemiah prays to receive the king's favor "today" (Nehemiah 1.11). And then the next verse says "Early the following spring" which was 4-6 months after Nehemiah's prayer. It didn't happen right away. In the overarching story of Nehemiah, he does receive the favor of the king but it wasn't "today". And when the king noticed Nehemiah, Nehemiah was terrified. It wasn't the kind of immediate "favor" he was expecting.

So don't let anyone tell you God answers prayers immediately. There may be a delay albeit days, months, decades. But He does answer prayer.