CREATION’S CORNER #32 – HOW IS YOUR ECOLOGICAL HEALTH?

What is the size of your footprint? I’m not talking about the size of the shoes you wear, but rather the size of the footprint that you leave as you walk the paths of Creation. Humanity is shaping the surface of Earth and modifying the chemistry of the oceans and atmosphere. Are there limits to our activity with thresholds that we dare not cross? If so, determining those limits exceeds my capacity and probably yours also. What then is our personal responsibility?

As a Christ follower, I rest on a few Biblical passages to guide me. We have previously considered these but let me refresh your memory. Genesis 2:15 challenges us to serve and to preserve God’s very good Creation. 2nd Corinthians tells us that we have been reconciled through Christ and given the ministry of Reconciliation. Romans chapter 8 declares that Creation is waiting for you and for me to do our part – it is waiting for the sons of God to be revealed, that it can be brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God since it currently is in bondage to decay and groaning as in the pains of childbirth! In this now but not yet time, we can participate with Christ in this process as we eagerly wait for his second coming which will usher in the New Heaven and New Earth.

So where should we begin as we enter the beginning of summer? How can we lighten our ecological footprint as we savor Creation’s blessings and live as responsible Christ followers today, tomorrow, and beyond. Perhaps we should start by examining our ecological footprint. How does our personal footprint compare to those in other countries? How does it compare with that of your neighbor who is not a Christ follower? Should that make a difference? What indeed does it mean to be a Christ follower?

How does one objectify the term “ecological footprint”? Would you like to measure yours? I recommend that you check out the following link” https://greenly.earth/en-us/blog/ecology-news/your-ecological-footprint-how-to-calculate-it-and-why-it-matters. And while you are at it, you might want to consider a subset of your ecological footprint, your carbon footprint. https://justenergy.com/blog/how-to-calculate-your-carbon-footprint/.

My task this week will be to “take the test” and to learn the size of my ecological and carbon footprints. Will you join me? Can we together make a difference? Will the trees in the forest “clap their hands” because of our living obedience to our Lord? It is a beautiful summer day today on Whidbey Island and I want to make a difference!

Thanks for listening.

— Joe Sheldon

Direct comments to Joe Sheldon at [email protected]

If you would like to receive additional information on Creation care, notices of special events, Creation walks I lead, etc. please contact me at the above address and I will add you to my e-mail list. Your comments are welcome.