Bible Verse: And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:28
Scripture Reading: Genesis 1:27-31
This week, we are exploring our responsibility as men as stewards of God’s creation.
Allow me some leeway to make a daring statement:
Man has not cared well for the environment since sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden.
Even early man hunted animals to extinction. For centuries, farming was damaging but limited to certain areas, and then the gears and pulleys of the Industrial Revolution took it all to the next level of destruction.
We powered our machines by burning coal and dumping debris in the sky or the waters. The vast majority of scientists believe our lifestyles are warming the planet. The latest dictionary has coined the term “ecocide”— the destruction of the natural environment by deliberate or negligent human action.
We can all agree that we are failing at being God’s stewards of His environment that He created.
According to many medical professionals, climate change is a prominent health threat to humanity. Every year, environmental factors take the lives of around 13 million people.
The poorest are affected the worst, which is ironic because they are the least responsible for the climate crisis. As stated in Deuteronomy 15:11, “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore, I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.”
Therefore, stewarding the environment and caring for people experiencing poverty is inextricable.
The good news is that it is not all doom and gloom. As men, we can do our part to become better stewards of the environment and help others do the same.
As a first step this week, we will examine several themes, including exactly what environmental stewardship means, why Christians struggle to be good stewards of Creation, how we can be better stewards, and why it is so important.
Prayer: Lord, we are all guilty of not being good stewards of Your world. We ask for Your forgiveness and for courage to take bold steps to care for Your Creation. Amen.
Reflection: What can we do as Christian men to become better stewards of the environment?
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