Thought for Today
Genesis 8:22 As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease."
Proverbs 6:27 Can fire be carried in the bosom without burning one's clothes? 28 Or can one walk on hot coals without scorching the feet?
Luke 12:55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, 'There will be scorching heat'; and it happens.
James 1:11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes.
I stepped outside this morning . . . it’s still hot. I often brag about growing up in Texas and being used to the heat and humidity of the Texas Gulf Coast. That was then, this is now. Evidently, living in New England for 10 years has ‘softened’ me. Or, maybe hot is just hot!
Our indoor/outdoor thermometer registered 103°F yesterday afternoon on our front porch when the afternoon sun was shining directly on the outdoor sensor. The ‘official’ high temperature yesterday (localweather.com) was only 93°F! I’m not going to quibble over 10°F; and, I’m not going to quibble over geography. Hot is hot!
As part of Creation, God set in place a system and promised, “seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease." But, does that mean we have no responsibilities relating to that system? After all, earlier in the Creation story in Genesis we read, “2:15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.” The majority of us today are not involved directly in agriculture. Does that alleviate us of any responsibility for ‘keeping’ the garden?
Irrespective of one’s position on global warming, hot is hot. So, as Christians, what is our position, our responsibility as we see violent weather increasing and average temperatures increasing? Leaving aside any considerations of possible causes, what are we as Christians to do about it?
The first question Christians must confront is whether or not anything can be done. In the short run, in immediate response to this heat wave and any others, we have a responsibility to assist all those who cannot cope without help. Just as so many Christians are part of the effort to combat food and housing insecurity, we can also offer our resources of time and money to aid and assist in helping others cope with extreme heat. We can ensure our local municipalities and our elected officials dedicate resources to protect those who cannot cope without help.
There is still much debate on steps needed to try to slow down the acceleration of temperature increases. We see articles and hear discussions about improving air quality and eliminating greenhouse gases. Regrettably, inevitably much of the discussion devolves into political ranker which even affects the science.
I believe that anything we can do to improve air quality, to lessen the pollution of our air and water,falls under the rubric of God’s purpose in creating humanity, ““2:15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.”
As an engineer, I believe anything and everything we can do to improve the efficiency of our utilization of power is of value. Again, regrettably, inevitably much of the discussion devolves into political ranker which even affects science. And, just to complicate the whole thing, often the solution to one element of the problem exacerbates another element of the problem. Far too often, political considerations drive a focus on a single issue and a single solution without consideration of its affect on other aspects of the larger issue.
I’ve been (rightly?) accused of limiting the number of verses upon which I concentrate. I don’t want to count or even think about how often I quote John 3:16 or Luke 10:27. I have been given tangible evidence of how often I quote Micah 6:8 in a sweatshirt with that passage reference on it.
I wonder what might happen if we began each and every discussion of any of the problems facing our society and our world by taking a minute to read and think about those verses. Imagine a world where problems are confronted with justice, kindness, humility, love for God and each other. Imagine politics which began from the starting point of righteousness. Can you hear in your mind Louis Armstrong singing, What a Wonderful World That Would Be?
Stay safe, stay cool, trust God,
Pastor Ray