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Read Genesis 3:8-19
We had a perfect relationship with God but we broke it by disobeying God (“… when the women saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing for the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom she took some an ate it.”).
Like dominoes, Read more →
When Heaven and Nature Sing: Exploring God’s Goals for His People and His World by Ed Brown is your for free! Get it now through December 31st.
Click here to download it free!
Eden Vigil will not be at Urbana this year, but that means you need to check out their website: edenvigil.org
Lowell Bliss, Director and author of Environmental Missions: Planting Chruches and Trees, explains how environmental challenges are actually an opportunity for Christian evangelism and discipleship around the world.
Environmental Missions from Lowell Bliss on Vimeo.
Intrigued by the idea of environmental missions? Check out the opportunities available on our Missions Opportunities page.
Why Creation Care Counts as Missions
In October of 2008, Manila, Philippines was hit by two massive typhoons. According to some reports, 80% of the city experienced flooding, much of it severe. Homes were inundated to the top of the second floor that had never been flooded before. Over 1500 people lost their lives.
On the heels of these storms, an environmental seminar, “Hear the Call to Care for Creation” was held that had been planned almost a year earlier. From homes still damaged by flood waters, more than 70 people spent two days together seeking to understand what God might be saying through what was generally understood to be an environmental disaster.
“This is God’s timing,” said Alice Pineda, director of the sponsoring organization. “We are experiencing the results of sins against the environment, [and] it is time for the Philippine church to address this problem more intentionally and concretely.”
Here’s some suggestions of how you and your friends can engage in creation care during your time in St. Louis.
- Visit the St. Louis Citygarden for a walk with friends or quiet time with God. It’s only a few blocks from the America’s Center!
- Bring a thermos and reusable water bottle. Plus, some coffee shops give a discount if you bring your own mug.
- Attend a creation care-minded seminar to learn more about God’s world and why it matters to missions.
- Walk instead of taking a cab. It’s good for you, and free!
- Make an effort to reduce, reuse, and recycle. For instance, don’t take flyers or handouts you don’t plan on using.
Overwhelmed by your seminar choices?
Don’t miss this creation care-focused seminar at Urbana 15, led by our friend Ben Lowe: Making Sense of Climate Change: Questions, Solutions, and the Church’s Role.
You can find all of these books at InterVarsity Press.
Doing Good Without Giving Up by Ben Lowe, 2014
Global Warming and the Risen Lord by Jim Ball, 2010
Green Revolution by Ben Lowe, 2009
Keeping God’s Earth by Noah J. Toly and Daniel I. Block, 2010
Making Peace With the Land by Fred Bahnson and Norman Wirzba, 2012
Our Father’s World by Ed Brown, 2006
Redeeming Creation by Fred H. Van Dyke, David C. Mahan, Joseph K. Sheldon and Raymond H. Brand, 1996
Walking Gently on the Earth by Lisa Graham McMinn and Megan Anna Neff, 2010