Yesterday was Earth Day, celebrating a wonderful movement that began back in 1970 when protest brought together 20 million Americans—10% of the U.S. population at the time—into the streets. In response the Environmental Protection Agency was created and a wave of laws, including the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act were were enacted. This movement is now a world wide movement and there is a growing cry to make every day Earth day, to recognize that care for our planet is part of God’s mandate to all of us to be responsible stewards of all creation.
Without the first Earth Day, global action against climate change would have taken much longer—or might never have happened at all. However, there is still much more to be done. Next week together with Forrest Inslee, I will interview Brian McLaren about his new book Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for A World Falling Apart. It is a very sober wake up call that challenges all Christians for grieve over the condition of our planet while maintaining the hope that creates the courage and resilience we and our communities need to find effective solutions. Brian encourages us to begin our fight with our contemplative lives. “In the stillness new insights, comfort and ways of being often arise” he explains.
I enjoy a similar experience as I pray in the garden. In my Meditation Monday: Best Ways to Pray in Nature, I share some of the ways I engage in prayer in the garden. It is an exhilarating, nourishing and invigorating experience that draws me closer to God and to God’s beautiful creation. I will share more about this at my upcoming Spirituality of Gardening seminar on May 11th. All of us need to discover the awe and wonder of interacting with God’s good creation that these kinds of practices make possible.
On Saturday Jeannie Kendall in her post St George’s Day gave us a fascinating look at the history of dragons both in the Bible and in history. As a lover of dragon stories, I thoroughly enjoyed this. In Freerange Friday: Rediscovering Joy Lilly Lewin shared about her time at the Abbey of Gethsemane and how she finds joy in the midst of silence. On Thursday Carol Dixon’s friend Margery Tate share a beautiful litany for Eastertide. I find that reading litanies like this nourishes my soul and my spirit. I hope you do too. I must confess that my favourite post for the week was Emily Duff’s Nesting Wonder in which she shared photos of the bird’s nest on her door wreath and a poem by Padraig O’Tauma. Very uplifting!
Tomorrow we will post the 6th episode of Liturgical Rebels, a fun filled and inspiring interview with Lilly Lewin about her role as a worship curator and artist. Make sure that you are up to date on your listening before this is published. My previous guests were worship curator Mark Pierson, poet Drew Jackson, visual artist Scott Erickson, and block print artist Kreg Yingst. The following episode will be with author and activist Shane Claiborne. I thoroughly enjoyed interviewing our passionate and fiery activist friend about his protests for Gaza and life as a new father.
Next week we will retire our mailchimp account so this will be the last Godspacelight newsletter that comes via mailchimp as we switch to Substack. Many I know will heave a sigh of relief as this means that you will not receive duplicate emails in the future. I hope you enjoy the new Substack format and the added richness it brings to what I share. Thank you for those who have signed up as paid subscribers. I really appreciate your support and encouragement for my work. Don’t forget though that this weekly email will be the only place you will be able to click directly to Godspace posts. However you can still visit the website or sign up through wordpress if you want to continue receiving notifications every time something is posted on Godspacelight.
Many blessings on you as you enjoy this Earth Day:
Christ of light and life and beauty,
We come into your sanctuary
This precious place we call Earth.
We give ourselves to worship you,
Its creator, its gardener, its nourisher.
You fill it with your glorious presence.
Every flower shimmers with your love,
Every forest quivers with your light,
Every wilderness pulsates with your beauty.
God reveal yourself to us in this place
And show us your face in all creation.
Photo by greg_rosenke on unsplash
Spirituality of Gardening – A virtual retreat
On May 11 from 9:30-12:30 pm PT (check my timezone) We will discuss connections between community, spirituality and gardening. Explore the wonderful ways that God and God’s story are revealed through the rhythms of planting, growing and harvesting as well as the beauty of nature. This webinar is for anyone who admires the beauty of God’s good creation, likes to walk in nature, sit by the ocean or just relax and listen to the birds in the trees. It is based on Christine Sine’s popular book, To Garden with God and each participant will receive a digital copy of this book.