The deserts are stark
The cacti is a sword of death until it blooms with radiant color
The waters of the virgin dew and ancient windows into the deep
As the shadows of sunrise beckon the call, 'Arise' 'Arise'
LIGHT of CREATION
How great is our CREATOR for his divine palette has formed the entire earth
in light of love. It took trials and tests to build HIS mountains, still he persevered to make each particle of the earth full of beauty
Even in the desert there is wonder
Even in the prairies life abounds
Even in the bogs of the swamps life is found
God is GREAT in HIS Creation, PRAISE the EARTH for it is God's loving reflection
We have erred in our treatment of the land, selfishly forsaking its bounty through greed
We purge the holy light of creation with toxic waste
ARISE LORD please have mercy on our soils and help us to feed the hungry with your creation
For the earth is your gift and when we honor the earth we honor your HOLY LOVING NAME and POWER as master builder, master architect, master of light and truth, color and wonder
PRAISE be to GOD of the heavens, CHRIST our KING and the HOLY SPIRIT who speaks to us in every whisper of the wind. Praise BE
Numbers 35:33-34
You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it. You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I dwell, for I the Lord dwell in the midst of the people of Israel.”
I wrote this 'psalm' as a prayer to glorify God's creation. April 22 is EARTH DAY - so many Christians have turned their back on God's glorious creation and our role as stewards of the earth. We mistake the command of stewardship as a free pass to be master's of the earth - God expects us to respect his creation and use it to benefit humanity and all of life on the planet - for the sake of goodness for humanity (food and clothing), animals and also for GOD's glory for IT IS GOD who created and formed the earth. I heard a Catholic priest say that the earth is the domain of Satan - while evil is rampant in our world - we must NEVER FORGET that GOD is in CHARGE of CREATION and the earth is from God - it is a GIFT from GOD and a grace that reveals HIS character and love.
I love nature it is what connects me to my spirit and helps me find peace in a broken world - in nature I see both order and at times chaos - but most importantly I see God's loving hand in all of creation - it also reminds me of God's nature. God provides, but his timing is different than ours and in nature we can see the manifest plans of his plans from a macro picture.
When you look at all the cataclysmic events that formed Yellowstone National Park - volcanoes, earthquakes, ice ages and more - you realize that sometimes it takes growing pains and difficulty to create a way forward - sometimes the greatest beauty comes from the ashes.
I think of Zion Canyon and the Grand Canyon - the patience and diligence of creation as erosion and uplift created some of the most stunning 'architecture' on earth. I find in natural sciences - proof for God because the earth is too orderly to be spontaneous and too colorful to be without a divine architect.
It is our duty to honor God's creation - I will post another blog on ways to help stay eco-friendly - as Christians you don't have to enter the political infighting to want to protect God's glorious creation - instead it is your duty as a follower of Christ to help protect the Father's creation - when our land is nurtured we reap crops that can feed the world - we experience great wonder in the beauty of nature and the resilience of life.
This Earth Day pray to God for peace on the earth and that the earth is healed, droughts are fed with the perfect amount of water and floods are lifted - while it is our duty as stewards of the earth to fix these pollution issues - greed and politics get in the way - we must work to heal the issue in our own lives through recycling and conservation - but we also NEED GOD to help heal the earth - we need to work with God and humanity heal our planet. If God can carve out of HIMSELF all of creation don't we owe it to God to actively work to preserve our land and care about all of HIS creation?
Think of the ark and how God saved every living animal - God cares for ALL of CREATION and we are called to protect it and use it for GOOD (NOT greed) in HIS loving care.
Genesis 1:1-31
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. ..
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