Hi Friends,
We are interconnected. Not only with God. Not only within our own bodies, soul and spirit. And not only with one another. But we are interconnected with our planet and everything else on it too. The same Creator who made you and me, also framed this world, this galaxy and the unending cosmos too. Because God developed and shaped this beautiful earth, He loves it and cares about it. Listen to this verse:
“A land that the Lord your God cares for. The eyes of the Lord your God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year.” Dt 11:12 ESV
Our choices affect our health, and the health of this planet. I want to take this month to talk about our environment. We are going to start from the largest “home,” our earth, down to the smallest one, our bodies. The world around us is affected by us, and we in turn, are affected by it. This is not a call to become activists for our planet…but then again, maybe it is for you. God knows what part you, individually, are to play in this life, and helping cleanup this planet, or telling others about the better choices they can make to keep our earth alive, very well may be what God is tugging at your heart to do. I leave that up to Him and you. But what I believe is my part to play is to point our hearts towards a life of gratitude to our Amazing, Faithful, Forgiving God, and learning to be good stewards of all the gifts He has granted us, from the world to our bodies, is certainly at the center of my job. Sadly, most of us, including myself, are spoiled children who do not even realize the incredible gifts we have been freely given. In the beginning, God created this world for us to live in, to care for, and to enjoy. Have we forgotten our mandate? Are we treating this world like it is ours to use and abuse? Do we even understand that it is a gift from God?
It is all a gift. Do we see our planet that way? Do we care about it the way God does? Read that verse above again. God loves us, and because He does, He cares for this temporary “home” He has given us. And yes, sadly, He knew we would fall, and take this planet down with us, because of the selfish choices we would make. But this does not mean we have to surrender to this fate. Just like God has regenerated us from death to Life by becoming born again, as we work with Him, we too can bring life back to this dying world. My Friends, I know there are so many things we can do better, with His help. I am not trying to make us feel guilty…but if that works, maybe it’s not a bad thing. If we use this guilt to turn to God, and let Him guide us as to what we can do to preserve this incredible gift, making decisions for a cleaner environment, then this guilt is a good thing. Sadly, our earth is not a subject we hear about too often in the “church,” but we should. As with everything else in life, from our bodies to our finances to our surroundings, it all has been created by God and given to us to steward. What does that mean? Simply that none of it belongs to us, we, and it all, belong to God. Yet our loving God desires for us to enjoy it all. But how can we fully enjoy something we are not caring for? How can we truly show God our gratitude for it all if we are not being responsible with all these gifts? I know life is…well life, and there is only so much we can do to make our environment healthier than it is right now, but as I have been saying, the better choice we make, will be a better choice we make. The more we choose life, the more we should make choices that will inspire and bring life to everything from our own bodies to this incredible world we live in.
We can make better choices. We have to stop forsaking our future, and that of our children, for the immediate conveniences of life. For example, if we choose to use reusable glass containers to store our food, that will be that much less plastic floating out there in the ocean. (If you are not sure what I am talking about, please take the time to watch this video called “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch,” link below.) Here’s the truth, plastics are killing the planet, the wildlife and also you and me. We will discuss this in another article. Are plastics handy to have? Yes, and for some things they are required. I can remember praising God for all the plastic tubing that kept Rebecca alive in the hospital so very many, times. But it is not required for all things. Glass is not only 100% recyclable, but it can be recycled endlessly. Substituting glass containers for plastic ones as much as we can, is one of the many new choices we have implemented in our home. Again, one less unhealthy choice is one less unhealthy choice.
Can one person change the world? My goodness if you are allowing the enemy to put that question in your mind, then you have not been hearing anything I have been saying about The One Person. Jesus is still changing the world and here’s the bonus, He wants to use you and me to do the same thing. What an honor and privilege to be able to learn how to be the best stewards we can possibly be…and to show God our unending gratitude for all His gifts. This is a huge part of the Abundant Life, and every time I choose to show our Lord how thankful I am, I sense this amazing life deeper than before. Do you want that too? Then won’t you join me?
Until we meet again, keep lifting your eyes to God, He’s closer than you think.
<>< Peace, Diane
Link:
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
