Green Samaritans

I decided to wait and sleep on my blog yesterday, and I think it was a good thing. Today was an overwhelming flow of thoughts, so much that I had to list them as they hit me during the day. 
Lately my heart has been in the environment. I feel God calling me to examine my lifestyle and how it can reflect a healthier lifestyle that protects creation. It just so happens that the series I have been listening to through Mars Hill Church was called God is Green. The series has really made me pay closer attention to our society’s view of the environment. When I see someone litter or even just speed past me on their gas guzzling SUV I realize now that it is an environmental issue. But like most eco-issues their is a deeper problem. Most people believe the Earth is at their disposal. Regardless of what you believe (or rather understand, because it is facts) about global warming not caring about our world shows a disregard for our spiritual purpose. Say the ozone didn’t have a hole, or that greenhouse gases were simply obsolete. I still believe that recycling would need to be just as important because God commands us to care for the Earth numerous times even from the beginning in Jerusalem. The hebrew word from which we get “rule” refers also to that of a steward or servant. So God creates the Earth and humans in his own image, and He declares it to be good. The imagery of the garden as the place of purity appears to be a symbol of how the earth was created to be in the beginning before sin entered the world. And it is good. I am convinced that because God’s entire biblical narrative tells how we as humans are to further His kingdom, that the symbol of the garden is answer to our environmental questions. We ought to journey toward peace between people and the environmental as first described in the garden. 
Our society relies on the last overabundance like the fastest car or the biggest house. Everyone is trying to achieve success. The ultimate goal should be to further God’s kingdom and in my opinion it is a lot less trouble than scrambling to the top of the wealth ladder. In fact, when asked how to inherit eternal life Jesus plainly responds with love the Lord with all your heart, and love your neighbor as our self. What if the next story Jesus uses to define a neighbor covers a broader scope than just people, but actually loving our entire environment in a resourceful manner like the samaritan? I might be speculating but Jesus could be speaking about a overall lifestyle revolving around always looking for opportunities to serve. The samaritan, using the necessary supplies like bandages and money for he innkeeper provided for another man’s needs in order to  serve God. This relates to how I want to live. I want to possess only the materials I need to serve my Lord. If that means cutting back on my possessions like how the samaritan used his own money to provide, then I want to reconsider my choices in why I have the things I have. Everything I own should be at the disposal of my Lord. Do I really that extra t shirt when I have twenty others that already do the job of clothing myself? Then I think about the real issue. My wanting new clothes reveals a lack of confidence in myself that I need fabrics of new colors and design to keep satisfaction in my own mind and among my peers. It goes back to the overabundance. Most of the supplies I think I cannot do without I can do without. 
Occasionally when I hear the church examine the environmental issues apathy rings true. We just don’t have time to worry about these topics. It is not just about trees and oceans. It stems back to our clutter filled lifestyles rampaging in the fast lane with CO2 gases emitting behind us. Maybe environmental indifference is only a side effect of the real issue of losing the heart of the good samaritan. 
“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed” ---Ghandi


Sorry if that was a stream of conscience.. and I only got like a fourth of my list so more to come.