I wish I could claim I’m “green” but I’m not. I might say the occasional “no” to the plastic bag that the till operators automatically thrust the one chocolate bar that I’m purchasing into. I might switch off the light when I’m not in the room and place my coke bottle in the bin marked “plastics” when I’m passing in town, but I’m not what you would regard a “environmentally friendly.” It’s not that I don’t care. I do. I know that we are using up our worlds resources and that the ice caps are melting and affecting the world’s climate already. It’s more that, it’s impossible to do everything. With environmental issues, I often feel it’s all or nothing, I should be campaigning against motorways, writing constant letters to my M.P. about pollution and recycling my till receipts. I can’t do it all. My life is just too busy. It’s too much of a commitment, so I prefer to put the issue to the back of my mind.
For me, living gently on the earth has parallels with my journey as a Christian. I have made a commitment, but fail miserably every hour, of every day to love God and others, as I should. In our industrialised 21st Century overcrowded world, living in a way that does not damage the earth is near impossible. I am a “good girl” in that I walk and use public transport. (This is not a choice!!!) but if more people gave up driving it would help halt the greenhouse effect which is melting the worlds ice caps. However I don’t recycle. Why not? You need a car, to get all the boxes to the tip! There are too many people in the world, too much packaging and too much carbon dioxide already in our atmosphere. And our modern life style depends so much on fossil fuels that however much we try to reduce the energy we use and separate our rubbish into different bins, we will always be using up more than our fair share of the earth’s resources. So, in this too, I fail dismally every day. However much I try not to, I am contributing to the dismally every day. However much I try not, I am contributing to the destruction of God’s creation.
What can I do? Silly question really…I mean, do I give up following Jesus because I’m not the perfect Christian? No every time I fail to follow Him, to love others the way I know I should, I simply turn to Him asking forgiveness, accept His endless mercy and begin again! Should I give up trying to live in a way that cares for His creation because I forgot (yet again!!!) to take my “bag for life” to Tescos. No! I believe that Jesus accepts us as we are and is pleased with every attempt we make to protect His creation, but it is our duty as Christian’s to try!
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