One morning Jeff got up early and headed to class. We had only been married a few short weeks, and I was already discontent with the once romanticized state of (relative) poverty that is accustomed to newlywed life.

I despised that I would walk into our bedroom at night, and my socks would slip and slide on the hardwood floors. There was no way we would ever be able to afford a rug. Or a dresser. Or a nightstand. We had a 15 year old mattress, and a lamp leftover from my college dorm. It sat on the floor next to the bed. And that was it. That was our bedroom. Our master suite. The place for us to retreat and rest and rejuvenate. It was a dilapidated mattress, instead of contouring to the curves of your spine, it managed to protrude springs just ever so perfectly to ensure the right amount of discomfort.

I was just getting ready to head out to my first class of the day when I heard a loud thumping all the way up the stairs. I couldn't decide if Jeff was falling up or down the stairs. I swung open the back door to ask if he was okay, and I saw it. Jeff had an old, beat up sewing table, sans the sewing machine.

He was grinning from ear to ear as he told me it was sitting out in the alley by the dumpster.

That was the moment. The moment that I realized the back alley was like a treasure chest, and I just had to keep digging!

The benefits of repurposing, restoring, recycling, reusing, all stem from the idea of reducing waste. As Christians, we have to be cautious of the way our spending affects God's creation. God made this earth, and it was made good. Everything that we purchase from the food in the refrigerator to the furniture in the living room is somehow wrapped up in our faith.

None of this is easy. Being a consumer is our most challenging mission. And caring for God's creation, being a responsible steward doesn't come cheaply. As Christians, our consumption should reflect God's image to the world. Do you honor God with the way you consume?