Pastor's Message
2010 Pastor’s Summer Message
“O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor. You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! (Psalm 8:1a, 4-9)
“O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” (Psalm 104:24)
“O Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the works thy hands have made, I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder, thy power through-out the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to thee: how great thou art---“ 1
Ah, glorious summer! Have you made any plans yet for summer? Summer is almost here and with it comes a variety of choices to make. We have things to do, places to visit, vacations, and all kinds of summer fun to look forward to. But what would life be like for you if you had no choices in life? What would life be like for you if you lived someplace in the world where your life was surrounded by perpetual war and violence? Or closer to home, in this country, what would life be like if you lived somewhere on the Gulf coast of Louisiana?
Life for many of those residents, both human and non-human, will never be the same again. Their way of life has been destroyed. Eleven of those human residents, who worked on the oil-rig, will never have the choice to see this summer. Thousands of the non-human residents will never see this summer either. I realize that this message may be a real “downer” at a time when everyone just wants to enjoy themselves but this is a reality that didn’t have to happen. It was a human-made catastrophe and was preventable. It has been one month since the explosion of the Gulf oil-rig caused this horrific environmental disaster and, at this writing, no one seems to be able to come up with a way to stop this environmental Armageddon.
I wish that I was smart enough to have the solutions. Unfortunately, I am not. But apparently the people who initiate these problems are not smart enough to prevent these things from happening or have the solutions either. It is irresponsible to enter into projects of this magnitude, with their potential for such catastrophic disaster, without having adequate safeguards in place or to have a workable safety plan in the event of the unthinkable. What I do know is that there are far too many disasters throughout the world that are caused by human greed, our lust for more, and our disregard for that which God has created and called good. We do not put God first in all things.
When you sing that beautiful hymn in church or you read those heartfelt Psalms do you think about how you can put those tributes to God into action for God? We must find a way to love, respect, and care for all that God has made before it is too late, not only for us but also for our children, grandchildren and future generations. This is not our world—it is God’s. It is merely ours, on loan, for the time that we live here. It is our responsibility and command from God to take care of each other and all of God’s creation. When God asks you how you cared for this precious creation, human and non-human, that God placed in your care—how will you answer? God’s peace and blessings, Pastor Barb
1. The words to “How Great Thou Art,” originally were from a poem entitled "O Store Gud," written in 1886 by a Swedish preacher Carl Boberg. These words were written after Boberg came from a visit to a beautiful country estate on the southeast coast of Sweden. "He got caught in a midday thunderstorm with awe-inspiring moments of flashing violence, followed by a clear brilliant sun. Soon afterwards he heard the calm, sweet songs of the birds in nearby trees."