What Does God Say About Caring for the Earth?
What do you think would be the coolest job? Racecar driver? Singer? Zookeeper? Adam, the first man who ever lived, had a pretty cool job. Listen to what Genesis 2:19 says about it:
“Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”
Wow! God let Adam name the animals. God also put Adam in charge of caring for a beautiful garden called Eden (Genesis 2:15).
Psalm 24:1 says, “The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” The earth belongs to God. All of the animals and people are also His. When God asked Adam to care for His creation, He was asking him to be a steward and take care of His property.
We are called to be stewards, or caretakers, of God’s creation too. For example, not everyone in the world has enough clean water to drink, but others waste water every day without even realizing it. Did you know that if you turn off the tap water while brushing your teeth, you can save about 7 gallons of water each day? Small changes can make a big difference.
- What is one thing you could do to care for the earth God created?
- How might you help others who don’t have the same resources you do?
You may not have a job right now (other than going to school), but all of us have been entrusted with taking care of the things on the earth, such as water, plants and animals, that belong to God. And that’s a pretty cool job.
