Ever since we were tossed from the garden we have been rebelling and destroying creation more and more with each day. And we are almost completely numb to this fact.
Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” Genesis V1:26
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. V1:29
Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. V2:7
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. V2:15
We were charged by God to maintain his work, the garden.
I’ve worked on a farm… It is a lot of work. It requires hours of preparing the soil, planting, weeding, pruning, watering, protecting, and harvesting. And this is just to grow vegetables and fruits. You also have to take care of the animals and keep them healthy, watered and fed, give them shelter, keep them safe, and much more.
On a farm there aren’t days off, there is always work to be done, but oh how rewarding this work is.
So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken.
Genesis 3:23
But we were thrown from the garden. We were exiled, but our job didn’t change. We were still meant to work the ground we were taken from.
The way our society is currently setup we could never all return to being homesteaders, so we have outsourced the responsibility to institutions and Goliath sized industries.
Let’s check in on how they have been doing:
- Outdoor air pollution is responsible for 5 million deaths each year.
- “Air pollution – the combination of outdoor and indoor particulate matter, and ozone – is a risk factor for many of the leading causes of death including heart disease, stroke, lower respiratory infections, lung cancer, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).” [a]
- Water quality… 2 million tons of sewage drains into the World’s water every single day.
- Every year, more people die from unsafe water than from all forms of violence, including war. [b]
- Gérard Payen, former member of the United Nations Secretary General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, says that around 800 million people share their sources of water with animals (known as “unimproved” sources), water that is unsafe and dangerous for their health, 2.5 billion people lack decent toilet facilities, and 3 to 4 billion people’s human rights related to access to drinking water are not being respected. [c]
- Destruction of forests… We’re losing 18.7 million acres of forests annually, equivalent to 27 soccer fields every minute. [d]
- Treatment of our animals. We treat our pets as if they are part of our family, sometimes better, but the animals raised for our food is another, sadder, story. Our eggs come from from hens that don’t have enough space to spread their wings. Baby cows are taken from their mothers almost immediately and put into crates so small they can barely move. Mother pigs are locked in crates the exact size of their bodies, unable to turn around. And over 90% of our dairy cows are confined completely indoors, never getting to see the sunshine or get fresh air.
- “Of the approximately 11 billion animals killed annually in the United States, 86% are birds—98% of land animals in agriculture—and the overwhelming majority are “broiler” chickens raised for meat, approximately 1 million killed each hour. Additionally, approximately 340 million laying hens are raised in the egg industry (280 million birds who produce table eggs and 60 million kept for breeding), and more than 270 million turkeys are slaughtered for meat… Market weight is reached after 6-7 weeks for broiler chickens, approximately 99 days for turkey hens, and 136 days for tom turkeys.” [e]
Uh oh! This does not sound good…
The folks we have tasked with taking responsibility of our caretaking have been doing a very poor job. If I had hired someone directly to take care of my garden and they treated it this way they would surely be fired! It is very easy to ignore all of this and go about the day. Most of this is purposely hidden away from our view. If we had to walk past a factory pumping sewage into the river or a factory farm full of thousands of chickens each day there is no way we would stand for it.
Ever since we were tossed from the garden we have been rebelling and destroying creation more and more with each day. And we are almost completely numb to this fact.
I think that God looks down from above and that all of Heaven weeps that we are asleep in the light and at the state of His creation. But, despite our best efforts to the contrary, our home is still breathtakingly beautiful. If you hold an afternoon picnic by a river you will be blessed by the wonders of creation. You can enjoy the ripples and currents on the surface of the water and the shimmering of the sunshine, the songs of birds and the fluttering of butterflies, the smell of the jasmine, and the oak leaves swaying in the breeze. If you sit long enough you can completely forget everything, all worries and concerns, and all passing of time. You can feel the Spirit inside you flourish and if you pay close enough attention you can hear what He whispers into your heart. God speaks to us when we are immersed in nature and completely present to Him.
What is he asking from you? Will you listen?
[a] https://ourworldindata.org/air-pollution
[b] https://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/quality.shtml
[c] https://www.solidarites.org/en/wash/drinking-water-and-sanitation-for-all-by-2030-a-dream-or-a-reality/
[d] https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation
[e] https://www.humanesociety.org/all-our-fights/protect-farm-animals