Now be ye not stiffnecked, as your fathers were, but yield yourselves unto the LORD, and enter into his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified for ever. – 2 Chronicles 30:8
Having just moved from a state that did not have a recycling program for bottles and cans, I was in for a learning session! With my bag of recyclables by my side, I gleaned what information I could from some young attendants at the store where I had stopped to recycle some cans, and then proceeded to insert my cans in the slot. Nothing happened. I was informed that I was putting them into the “reject” slot! So I removed them and proceeded to put them into the correct opening. However, I still could not get my cans to go into the machine, which would either jam up or reject them as “not acceptable.” Only after repeated attempts were the cans finally accepted, and I still had to request assistance several times to clear jams. Even though the attendant was gracious in lending help, the whole process took about an hour. I very much felt like I needed to wash my hands once my task was completed, but at least my old cans would be useful again!
From a spiritual perspective, sometimes consecrating our lives to God can be like recycling. When we yield areas of our lives to God, He takes the parts of us that are useless to Him, breaks them down entirely, and then changes them into things He can utilize for the Gospel.
At times, however, consecrations can be difficult. We may notice that God brings up a particular issue over and over, asking us to submit to Him, yet for some reason we resist. Do not be mistaken; God will keep bringing these matters before us until they are taken care of. But we do not have to work it out alone—we can call Him for assistance any time of the day or night! We can take our struggles to Him in prayer and He will be patient to teach us.
Remember that God does not ask for things without a reason. Eventually, the areas that were so difficult to consecrate will be areas that God can use to bring glory to His Name. It is a miraculous recycling program!