7 Reasons Christians Should Actively Care about the Environment

Genesis 1:28 recounts God’s instruction to man in the Garden of Eden, “Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”

God did not just place Adam and Eve in the Garden to live there but to care for their home as well. It was clear that Eden and Earth as a whole were a gift of a place to reside, and it would be stewarding the gift well to care for the Earth, to work the land, and to treat the home with care.

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Even the vegetation of the Earth sings praises to God; truly, all of creation is called to worship and adore Him.

Isaiah 55:12 shares, “The mountains and the hills will break into songs of joy in your presence, and all the trees will clap their hands,” and Psalm 96:12 exclaims, “Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it.

Then all the trees of the woods will rejoice before the LORD.” If the trees of the woods were called to worship, and we are as well. Next time you walk in the forest, consider how the trees worship Him and, alongside them, praise His Holy Name.

Also, consider the importance of caring for the environment in the way of forest conservation so that these trees may continue to thrive for them to clap their hands in adoration of Him!

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Caring for the environment also impacts us at a food level, for our food comes from the Earth. Be it from an animal or a plant, ultimately the sourcing of our food comes from the land.

As Christians, we should care about this because caring for the land well will affect our own sustainability when it comes to food to nourish our own bodies.

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In caring for the environment of Earth, we partake in enjoying the beauty of this amazing planet. God could have very easily created a planet that would simply sustain life, but instead He chose to do that and to create one that was full of His very own Artistry.

From canyons to mountains to landscapes to beaches and beyond the Earth is something so full of wonder.

When we strive to care for these gifts well, we not only have the opportunity to enjoy them now, but we leave a legacy so that these natural views may endure for generations to come. What a gift it is that God has given us such a planet of poetry!

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Although not every animal requires our intervention to care for it, we do play a role in the lives of many animals that exist in our world. One of the first tasks given to the first man, Adam, was to name the animals.

We know that God is strategic and intentional in all that He does and orchestrates, so asking Adam to do this was not just to create busy work for Adam.

Not only did it provide Adam the opportunity to realize just how many animals God had created, but it also gave him an appreciation and understanding of what he as man was called to rule over in the call of Genesis 1:28.

Saint Francis of Assisi reminds us as well that we honor God in honoring animals, “These creatures minister to our needs every day; without them we could not live; and through them the human race greatly offends the Creator. We fail every day to appreciate so great a blessing by not praising as we should the Creator and Dispenser of all these things.”

We ought to care for animals and how they are treated in our environment as well as a duty to God.

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In the Parable of the Minas in Luke 19, we learn how God gives us gifts, talents, or minas to steward in our lives. To each of us He has given us the opportunity to live on the Earth, and with that comes a responsibility of stewardship.

We must ask ourselves the question if we are honoring Him well with what we have been given? Are we respecting the land we live on? Are we being wasteful with items?

Ask the Lord to help convict you of areas where you could improve on this so that you may be entrusted with more if He sees fit.

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Earth is our home before we reach our eternal home with God in heaven. We should care about the environment because it is where we are given to live during our lives, there is no Planet B!

This does not mean that we ought to make an idol out of caring for the Earth, that we should not become deeply consumed with the environment in every way, but it does mean that we should consider how our actions impact the environment, the planet, the vegetation, and the animals that we share this home with.

In caring for our home here on Earth, we honor ourselves and we honor the gift God has given us graciously through creating Earth.

It is a gift to live on this planet, and we have not only an opportunity but a responsibility to care for the environment of this Earth.

This can be done in small ways, like disposing of garbage correctly, not littering, or not wasting resources, or in bigger ways, like helping to recycle or cultivate the soil well.

When we take notice of the world around us and not just the daily comings and goings of our own lives, we realize that there are so many things we can do to help the planet and one another.

We can also work to help so that those who come after us can share in the joy of natural wonders and beauty as well. Ask the Lord to bring to mind and heart how you can care about the environment and take action to help as well!

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