This Summer Can Be A Perfect Time To Discover Our Local Places
After months of lockdown, many of us probably long to spend time in nature. Summer is a perfect season to enjoy the outdoors - whether it’s sitting in the park on a sunny day, walking along your favourite trail, or even enjoying the flowers and trees in a garden. Where I live on the West Coast of Canada, the mountains, temperate forests, streams and rivers all remind me of God’s goodness and majesty, which inspires my gratitude and desire to protect God’s creation.
God’s Spirit is present throughout the Bible’s creation narrative. He creates His world with order and purpose. He created the world, blesses it, and has declared it good. The description of the Earth and creation as “good” appears at least six times in Genesis 1 and 2. Creation has inherent worth from God beyond its benefits for human beings. The Biblical image after the six day-periods of creation and the seventh day-period of Sabbath is the image of an ancient royal court, where God is the Creator and the King, who has established and completed a perfect Kingdom that flourishes.
The delicate balance of the earth’s ecosystems and how they function to support life is a witness to God’s creative and intelligent power. Here’s a few examples:
The earth can sequester up to 9.5 Gigatons of carbon dioxide and equivalent greenhouse gases with its oceanic, atmospheric, and land-based ecosystems, which supports a stable and livable climate.
The Gulf Stream, a warm ocean current that brings water up the Atlantic Ocean, enables a milder climate that supports agriculture and human communities. If you live in the Eastern US, England, France, or Spain, the milder winters and warmer summers you enjoy can be credited to the Gulf Stream!
Wetlands and marshes naturally filter drinking water, and provide habitat for plants, animals, and birds. New York State’s Water Department concluded that protecting watersheds was more cost-effective in the long-term than constructing and maintaining expensive water treatment systems [1].
Tropical rainforests and their biodiversity are valuable to the entire world - over 7000 of today’s medicines are derived from plants, some which can be only found in the Amazon rainforest. [2]
Observing and learning about natural ecosystems helps us understand God’s care and love for His people and creation, and inspires us to worship Him. As God’s followers, our journey and lives occur within a web of relationships, like the relationships that exist within an ecosystem.
God has uniquely created our local ecosystems to sustain and support life - how can we discover those blessings? Wendell Berry, a Christian farmer and writer, invites us to learn about the specific places where we live, by developing knowledge of our local 5 mile radius and its ecological features. For example, I started bringing a pamphlet on local birds on my walks so I can identify the ones I’ve seen in my area.
International travel may be complicated or not possible this summer. This could be a perfect opportunity to learn more about our local ecosystems and places, and to praise God, who cares about us, the people in our lives, and the specific places where we live.
Be Inspired: Slowly read Psalm 104, which praises God’s majesty as expressed by creation.
Go Deeper: Learn more about God’s goodness in your local place. You can research the following questions:
a. What ecological zone do you live in?
b. What features make it unique or distinctive?
c. What are the local bird, animal, and plant species? Which ones are edible - and what do they taste like?
d. Where does your drinking water come from?
e. How long is the growing season?
Sources:
New York City Water Supply: https://www.dec.ny.gov/lands/25599.html)
World Bank. Why the Amazon’s Biodiversity is critical for the Globe - Interview with Thomas Lovejoy https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2019/05/22/why-the-amazons-biodiversity-is-critical-for-the-globe
