Celebrate Earth Day.
Earth Day Network.
Earth Day Blow-Out.
Earth Day Campaign.
Earth Day Community.
It goes on and on, and on.
Yesterday Izzy told me it was Earth Day. I'm a little behind the times - apparently since the 1970's - so I had to ask, What is Earth Day?
She just stared. And stared. Not because she did not know, but because she could not believe - oh, mama.
So I googled it.
Some of the above titles popped up.
But . . .
God.
God?
No God.
Nowhere.
Not anywhere on any site.
No mention of the Creator. Celebrate His Earth, design millions of dollars of plans and organizations but do not mention the One who Created this Earth?
Please don't read between the lines, Earth Day, I know, is a good thing. Awareness is always a good thing.
But to make it better would be to start with the word God and go from there.
He started with Eden and will finish with Eden.
I do know this.
God is who shaped this Earth and God is who filled this Earth. God is who I came from and God is where I am going.
First this: God created the Heavens and Earth - all you see, all you don't see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God's Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss. Genesis, The Message Bible
And then He spoke and all was created. With just His words.
Eden was born.
And then sin, black and evil and destroying man and the glory of creation.
So this . . .
The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the exalted of the earth languish. The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left. Isaiah 24:4-6
The greenhouse effect, icebergs, global warming - this wisdom granted unto men because He knew we would need it, and because of this . . .
You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Psalm 8:8-6
We are protectors of this Earth that belongs to God.
But soon this . . .
Eden restored.
The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. Isaiah 11:6-9
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” Revelation 21: 1-5
Our minds can hardly comprehend this. But the promise is sure.
Man, with the wisdom granted by God, invented Earth Day. People dedicate their lives to this service and we join together to fix what is broken.
This is a poster in our neighborhood.
Precious Emily dedicated her ocean box for co-op to making others aware of the dangers of polluting our waters.
My final thought on Earth Day. Because of this . . .
"There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land. There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed. Because of this the land mourns, and all who live in it waste away; the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the fish of the sea are dying." (Hosea 4:1-3)
our creation lies in wait, mourning with labor pains the birth of a new Earth. And regardless of all of our efforts one fact stands alone. The one thing that man can only hope to do will one day be accomplished by our Lord.
Regardless of the doom and gloom, we can look with great hope for our future. God, with His Son Jesus, will restore Eden - an even greater Eden.
That's why I don't think there's any comparison between the present hard times and the coming of good times. The created world itself can hardly wait for what's coming next. Everything in creation is being more or less held back. God reins it in until both creation and all the creatures are ready and can be released at the same moment into the glorious times ahead. Meanwhile, the joyful anticipation deepens. Romans 8, The Message Bible
You can share in this new Earth. With the promise of salvation He gives the promise of this Heaven.
So, He will restore - but will He do it with you or without you?
