Earth Day

The other day a student in my Youth Group asked me if I believed in "Global Warming".  My answer was maybe not what he would expect.  I think he assumed I would say yes, because everyone believes in "Global Warming".  I mean I'm pretty sure that everything bad that happens from now until the end of the world is caused by it, so shouldn't I believe in it?  Well, maybe I'm an idiot or maybe I'm blind to the reality of things, but in regards to the subject, I informed him that I wasn't really sure.  You see the jury is still out in my opinion.  Now my opinion doesn't matter a whole lot, but for the scientific community the jury is out as well.  Regardless of what Al Gore would have us all believe the entire scientific world isn't sold on the issue and neither am I. 

So how do I feel about the environment?  Well I feel strongly about it.  I feel that as Christians we should be not just good stewards, but great stewards of God's creation.  God's creation reveals his glory and when we jack it up we are tarnishing that glory.  So for me environmental stewardship is about my faith.  It's about my relationship with God and the creation that he has provided.  As a family we have taken this call strongly over the last year and we are doing some of what we can to be better stewards of God's creation.  We recycle almost as much as we throw out.  Samantha noticed today that we have been throwing away a whole lot less trash lately.  We compost most of our green waste.  Yes, in a subdivision this is possible.  Let me know if you want the instructions on making your very own ghetto compost bin.  We buy local as much as possible.  By local I mean the guy down the street who grows a ton of Vegetables in his Garden.  By local, I mean my very own Garden in my back yard.  I would challenge all of you who read this to plant a garden.  It is truly a fulfilling experience.  Let me know if you need any advice.  I don't know much, but what I do know is working.  Finally it's about choices in the grocery store.  Milk, eggs, meat, and produce are simple things that we all buy that can make a difference.  Just purchase the good stuff, the organic, the local, the hormone free.  If you can afford it Grass Fed beef.  In all those other isles read the labels.  If at all possible say no things containing corn syrup.  Let's just say it is a bad thing for you and the environment.  These are simple things, but profound things when millions do them. 

The next stage for me is our Youth Room.  We throw away way to many things that can be recycled and so I'm working with some students to figure out a clean and easy way to make it work.  It's not as simple as putting out a can that says recycle only.  I wish it was.  That container ends up being a toxic nightmare created by mindless teens who don't read signs or who are to lazy to actually empty their soda before tossing it in. 

Finally in all of this I don't want to be about the environment because it's cool or trendy or because Al Gore made me feel guilty about it. I don't want to be an Eco snob who looks down on those people who aren't doing what they can. Eco snobs always seem to miss the environmental distaste in their own eye while pointing out speck of in their neighbors eye.  I certainly don't want to be about it to make money.  (I love the new walmart commercials.  Walmart and Green shouldn't be used in the same sentence) I want to be about the environment, because being about the environment is being about God.  It's about His creation.  So here's to earth day and here's to caring for God's creation.

Last Minute Add:  I just read my wifes blog for today and it sounds a lot like mine.  I promise we didn't copy each other.  We just think the same.   

Comments

[Dave Castro]

I just burned a couple of tires in honor of your post.

[Tom]

Ha Ha. In thanks to your tire burning I have burned a foam ice chest and I changed my anti freeze and oil in a state wildlife refuge. :)

[ed]

i read an article not too long ago about walmart and green. essentially, they brought in this guy that runs a consulting firm to help them make a shift towards more ecologically responsible commerce. the kicker is that the guy is the former head of the sierra club.

do they have freecycling in your area? we have it in the fresno/clovis area, and it's pretty cool. basically, if you want to get rid of something you post to the list-serve, someone emails you, and it goes away. you can also get used stuff off there. pretty cool. not trade, not sell, just give.