Dear Friends,

Last weekend a song popped into my mind that I have not listened to for many years.  I could not recall what the song was called, but in my struggle to find the words to the tune running around my mind, Keryn said to me, “that is Boney M’s We Kill The World.”  Sure enough, I did a YouTube search and watched the music video.  Memories came streaming back and I listened carefully to the words, perhaps properly for the first time.  It was composed in 1981 and in some ways was ahead of its time.  It is a powerful song lamenting the human abuse of nature.  In fact, when I showed the video to my children (the lyrics version) they were brought to tears – vividly reminded of how the human race destroys the beauty of God’s creation. 

Then, halfway through the song, the mood changes - from a lament to a call to save the world.  The music turns and the plea is… “Don’t kill the world, don’t let her down…”  And the song ends with, “A present from God, On behalf of all creatures, Made by the Lord, Care for the earth.”

Tuesday, the 5^th of June marked International World Environment Day and our Department of Environmental Affairs reiterated its call to reduce our use of plastic, especially single use plastic which pollutes our landfills and oceans with devastating effects.  This is why so many are still shocked and dismayed at how some in the world (leaders and ordinary citizens) refuse to acknowledge the damage being done to the earth by humanity. 

In fact, there are even some Christians who don’t really worry too much about the environment claiming that creation is not really on God’s agenda, as it were, because he is only concerned about the saving of souls.  That is a nonsense!  At the very beginning of the bible we are told that one of the 4 tasks of the human race is to look after the earth on God’s behalf.  That means, as followers of Jesus we are all environmentalists .  In the story of creation and the garden of Eden we are told – “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and TAKE CARE OF IT” Genesis 2:15. 

We are supposed to take care of ‘the garden’.  But, as the Boney M song reminds us, we mostly only see the abuse of ‘the garden’.  Wastage of water, litter, the poisoning of rivers, destruction of forests, extinction of animal species, air pollution etc.  We may be the crowning glory of God’s creation but that does not give us the right to abuse it and waste its resources which are given for our benefit. 

As believers we must be mindful of our footprint on the planet.  Please take seriously God’s instruction to us to take care of ‘the garden’.

With my love, Chris