I’m am going to apologize ahead of time for the disjointed nature of this post. It’s from a million different pieces and I put it together in between working on things at work. . . Also, I would love to hear from anyone reading this about their thoughts or good ideas to be green, so please leave me a comment if you have one!
So while I'm at work I listen to sermons and Bible readings and music. Lately I have been listening to a series by Rob Bell from Mars Hill Bible Church called God is Green. The last sermon was on practical ways we can make changes to our lives to begin living green. As always, this is a journey. . . But here's my notes from listening to the talk:
Energy
- an estimated 25% energy bill comes from phantom power which is any electronic that has a light on (TV) or a time clock (VCR) when the device is not active etc. The power it takes to keep a tiny light on even if you're not using the item is called Phantom Power (solution: power strip, turn off and on)
- if everyone used energy star appliances in their homes and offices it would be the energy equivalent to taking 3 million cars off the road
- if every house switched one incandescent bulb to a eco friendly bulb it would be the energy equivalent to taking 1 million cars off the road
- Using aluminum that has been recycled takes 95% less energy to produce a can (solution: recycle your cans!)
- 1 ton recycled paper saves 17 trees; making one single sheet of copy paper can use 13 oz of water (more than a soda can); the US pulp and paper industry is the second largest consumer of energy and uses more water to produce a ton of product than any other industry; production of 1 ton of copy paper uses enough energy used by an average household for 10 months (solution: recycle your paper!! use a program like http://www.printgreener.com/ to reduce waste of paper, use recycled paper, print double sided and use soy based inks)
-A single mature tree can release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support 2 human beings. Each person in the U.S. generates approximately 2.3 tons of CO2 each year. -If every American family planted just one tree, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere would be reduced by one billion lbs annually. This is almost 5% of the amount that human activity pumps into the atmosphere each year. - According to the USDA Forest Service, a tree generates $31,250 worth of oxygen, provides $62,000 worth of air pollution control, recycles $37,500 worth of water, and controls $31,250 worth of soil erosion, over a 50-year life span. (Plant a tree - grow it from an acorn, pull saplings and replant them, those are all free ways to plant trees!)
Food
- localharvest.com can tell you where to buy locally
- The Average meal travels 1200 miles from pastures to plate (that's a lot of CO2 produced to get you that food!) buy locally!
- Even my BEER is local (Live Oak people!)
- 1 acre of land produces 250 lbs of beef which isn't very much! It's a good idea for both health reasons and environmental reasons to reduce the amount of beef that you eat!
- another example of how wasteful meat can be: it takes 2500 gallons of water to produce 1 lb meat and only 25 gallons of water to produce 1 lb wheat
Transportation
- If everyone keep their tires properly inflated it would save 4 million gallons of gas a day
- drive less: bike, run, walk, scooter, whatever - not only is this good for the environment, it's good for your health!
- drive slower: you get an average of 5 mpg better fuel economy just by going slower
- be aware of new fuel sources and what you may be sacrificing to use them, for example: corn can be used to make ethanol gas = corn is a staple food for the poor (1 tank of corn ethanol to last a week in an SUV = enough calories to feed a person for a year), corn contributes to soil erosion and pollution (nitrogen runoff = dead zone in ocean); to make corn into ethanol requires coal burning so it doesn't actually save on emissions- gas = heat for homes, alternative heat: wood burning stove, wood pellet stove (from saw dust),
- Habitat for Humanity Re-Store: http://www.habitat.org/env/restores.aspx - If you have paints that you need to get rid of - they will take them and use them = much better than throwing the paint aware to pollute our landfills
- Recycling creates 6 times more jobs than caring for landfills = good for our economy!
Websites:
Resources for your offices: http://www.thegreenoffice.com/ or http://www.rateitgreen.com/
General Green information: http://www.treehugger.com/
Don't know what to do with something and don't want to throw it away? http://www.lime.com/
Earth Friendly Cleaning supplies: http://eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_solutions.htm
Earth friendly diapers (that are not cloth - you can flush them, throw them away or compost them!): http://www.gdiapers.com/
Theology of Ecology: by Matthew Sleeth: http://www.marshill.org/pdf/theologyOfEcology.pdf
Once recognized, this becomes a sanctity of life issue; what if followers of Jesus lead the way instead of being reactive; what if they were the ones who understood how deeply God cares for the earth, living simple lives with less consumption, and more in tune rhythms of nature?. . .
Seat beat Analogy: This all changed in less than a generation: It went from no one does it, to some people do it (even though the seatbelt is uncomfortable), to everyone does it, to finally the point where you feel naked when you don't wear it and it's illegal to not wear it: click it or ticket. Seatbelts were a life or death issue and deaths have been reduced in less than one generation. The way that we are treating the earth is causing death all over making this a life or death issue as well. I think we should change it in less than a generation . . . it can be done. . .
And hey, let's face it! Once our energy bills are down, we can give more money to people in need!
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 30, 2007
painful shift of thinking
"Whenever I am faced with any decision - should I buy this thing, or see this movie, or go to this place, I ask, "Will this bring me closer to God?" "
That's a quote from Matthew Sleeth. It is a hard thing to recognize.
So I've been wrestling with all of this over the weekend. It seems that much of the problems that I'm talking about boil down to materialism. This was a hard realization for me because I am materialistic. Maybe not blatantly so but I subtly find myself yearning after nicer things, more things, bigger things, more comfortable things. This attitude that I find so intertwined with who I am is somewhat a result of our consumerism culture and somewhat a result that I am a sinful human being. I will never find 'enough' in what I already have unless I look to Christ to fill that desire. And beyond that, more stuff typically equals to more harm to our earth.
"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle." Proverbs 23:4-5
Our 'things' are not ours to begin with, just like our money. It is not ours. God has provided us with everything that we have, from money, to the water we drink, to the air we breath, the food we eat, etc.
There is a painful shift of focus when you starting looking at your life through a 'green' lens. All of a sudden, the things that I have been striving after and the things that I'm proud of don't seem that boast-worthy anymore. And I look at the changes that we would have to make to live a more green lifestyle and some are easy. We can carpool, compost, recycle batteries, change lightbulbs, recycle (what you can recycle here in Austin: http://www.ecology-action.org/what.html) and raise awareness. Some of the things that we would have to do, I don't really WANT to be a part of. I like my washer and dryer, I like my dishwasher, my garbage disposal, I like my house, my car. . . and to really submit to a green lifestyle, my diet would have to change and my comfort as far as air conditioning and so many other things I am 'accustomed' and feel 'entitled' to. And it seems there is always more to do and that there is never enough that you can do, the problem is so large and that's a hard thing to stomach too.
I guess though, the conclusion that I've come to thus far, is that we can make a difference by starting with the things that are easy and as these small changes are made and my 'green' lens is focuses a little clearer, then maybe my heart will align with the changes that hit a bit closer to home, the changes that make me work a little harder. I am encouraged by this quote, again by Matthew Sleeth:
"We now live in a house the exact size of our old garage. We use less than one-third of the fossil fuels and one-quarter of the electricity we once used. We’ve gone from leaving two barrels of trash by the curb each week to leaving one bag every few weeks. We no longer own a clothes dryer, garbage disposal, dishwasher, or lawn mower. Our “yard” is planted with native wildflowers and a large vegetable garden. Half of our possessions have found new homes. We are a poster family for the downwardly mobile.
What my family and I have gained in exchange is a life richer in meaning than I could have imagined. Because of these changes, we have more time for God. Spiritual concerns have filled the void left by material ones. Owning fewer things has resulted in things no longer owning us. We have put God to the test, and we have found his Word to be true. He has poured blessings and opportunities upon us. When we stopped living a life dedicated to consumerism, our cup began to run over. "
I want that. I believe that changing our lives to be more green will ultimately bring us closer to Christ.
A couple quick statistics and easy changes that you can implement and I'm done for today:
If every household changed its five most used bulbs to compact fluorescent light bulbs, the country could take twenty-one coal-fired power plants off-line tomorrow. This would keep one trillion pounds of poisonous gases and soot out of the air we breathe and would have the same beneficial impact as taking eight million cars off the road. A decrease of soot and greenhouse gases in the air translates into people who will be spared disease and death. Some sixty-four thousand American deaths occur annually as a result of soot in the air.
That's a quote from Matthew Sleeth. It is a hard thing to recognize.
So I've been wrestling with all of this over the weekend. It seems that much of the problems that I'm talking about boil down to materialism. This was a hard realization for me because I am materialistic. Maybe not blatantly so but I subtly find myself yearning after nicer things, more things, bigger things, more comfortable things. This attitude that I find so intertwined with who I am is somewhat a result of our consumerism culture and somewhat a result that I am a sinful human being. I will never find 'enough' in what I already have unless I look to Christ to fill that desire. And beyond that, more stuff typically equals to more harm to our earth.
"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle." Proverbs 23:4-5
Our 'things' are not ours to begin with, just like our money. It is not ours. God has provided us with everything that we have, from money, to the water we drink, to the air we breath, the food we eat, etc.
There is a painful shift of focus when you starting looking at your life through a 'green' lens. All of a sudden, the things that I have been striving after and the things that I'm proud of don't seem that boast-worthy anymore. And I look at the changes that we would have to make to live a more green lifestyle and some are easy. We can carpool, compost, recycle batteries, change lightbulbs, recycle (what you can recycle here in Austin: http://www.ecology-action.org/what.html) and raise awareness. Some of the things that we would have to do, I don't really WANT to be a part of. I like my washer and dryer, I like my dishwasher, my garbage disposal, I like my house, my car. . . and to really submit to a green lifestyle, my diet would have to change and my comfort as far as air conditioning and so many other things I am 'accustomed' and feel 'entitled' to. And it seems there is always more to do and that there is never enough that you can do, the problem is so large and that's a hard thing to stomach too.
I guess though, the conclusion that I've come to thus far, is that we can make a difference by starting with the things that are easy and as these small changes are made and my 'green' lens is focuses a little clearer, then maybe my heart will align with the changes that hit a bit closer to home, the changes that make me work a little harder. I am encouraged by this quote, again by Matthew Sleeth:
"We now live in a house the exact size of our old garage. We use less than one-third of the fossil fuels and one-quarter of the electricity we once used. We’ve gone from leaving two barrels of trash by the curb each week to leaving one bag every few weeks. We no longer own a clothes dryer, garbage disposal, dishwasher, or lawn mower. Our “yard” is planted with native wildflowers and a large vegetable garden. Half of our possessions have found new homes. We are a poster family for the downwardly mobile.
What my family and I have gained in exchange is a life richer in meaning than I could have imagined. Because of these changes, we have more time for God. Spiritual concerns have filled the void left by material ones. Owning fewer things has resulted in things no longer owning us. We have put God to the test, and we have found his Word to be true. He has poured blessings and opportunities upon us. When we stopped living a life dedicated to consumerism, our cup began to run over. "
I want that. I believe that changing our lives to be more green will ultimately bring us closer to Christ.
A couple quick statistics and easy changes that you can implement and I'm done for today:
If every household changed its five most used bulbs to compact fluorescent light bulbs, the country could take twenty-one coal-fired power plants off-line tomorrow. This would keep one trillion pounds of poisonous gases and soot out of the air we breathe and would have the same beneficial impact as taking eight million cars off the road. A decrease of soot and greenhouse gases in the air translates into people who will be spared disease and death. Some sixty-four thousand American deaths occur annually as a result of soot in the air.
Each year, billions of used batteries are disposed into solid waste facilities in the United States. This constitutes 88% of the mercury and 54% of the cadmium deposited into our landfills. Since the use of batteries is necessary in our daily operations, the system that is used to manage these batteries should promote source reduction and recycling. These are the essential keys to preventing pollution and reducing your liabilities and costs. Either use rechargeable batteries and recycle those once their lifespan is up or recycle your used batteries: http://www.earth911.org/master.asp?s=ls&serviceid=126 tells you where you can recycle batteries near you. http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/sws/batteries.htm here in Austin. . .
According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to make that many plastic bags. Reuse as many times as possible, then recycle these bags (currently, only 1-3% of these bags end up getting recycled), or even better, don't use bags at all! http://www.reusablebags.com/ for more information.
I think we should seek to live simply beautiful lives, simple being the key word. Seeking after the fleeting things of this world will never be fulfilling, but seeking after the things of God will provide the ultimate enjoyment.
"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." 1 Timothy 6:17
Friday, July 27, 2007
cars and stats
“The Earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it; the world, and all that lives upon it.” Psalm 24:1
Tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks account for almost a third of the air pollution in the US. So not all of us can afford hybrid cars, (although I do sometimes feel myself longing after the 60 mpg of the Prius as well as the ridiculous low emissions. . . ) so what can we do to make our current car more environmentally friendly (check out these websites for more: http://www.dailyfueleconomytip.com/ and http://www.gas-mileage-tips.com/)?
- Well, first of all, keep your tires properly inflated. According to AAA, driving with under inflated tires can reduce your vehicle’s gas mileage and fuel efficiency by up to 2% which, for a $3.00 gallon of gas, causes you to lose $.06 per gallon. This is especially important when it gets cold. . .
- Care for your car, proper maintenance will keep your car running properly and increase the life of your car. A poorly tuned car will pollute significantly more than one that is well maintained.
- Drive less! Walk, bike, carpool, combine activities into one trip, take public transportation. Not only is this good for the environment, it's good for your health and who knows who you will meet or what you will see being out of your car and more capable of interaction with neighbors.
- Don't own two cars, use http://www.austincarshare.org/
- Convert your diesel vehicle into a biofuel vehicle. It's fairly inexpensive for the long term benefits your receive: free or cheaper gas, higher gas milege, no more stinky car emissions (mmm fried chicken); check out http://www.vegpoweredsystems.com/ and http://www.drivingethanol.org/
So Rob Bell, from http://www.marshill.org/ is doing a series on 'God is Green' and here are some scary stats of the destruction that humans are causing:
- We, as Americans, only recycle a tenth of our garbage (you can begin to make this change, http://www.trirecycling.com/ is a recycling service that will give you containers and pick up at commercial locations for a small fee; if you don't work *students* begin to pay attention in your house to things that can be recycled, Austin offers curbside pick up!).
- 1.5 acres of rainforest are destroyed every second
- 70% of rivers in China are polluted (unfit for human contact)
-4.6 million people died last year from air pollution diseases (shouldn't the fact that people are dying be enough to spur us to action??)
- 50,000 species go extinct a year (plants, insects, animals)
- Americans produce 63,000 dump trucks full of trash a day (if you lined the trucks up they would go halfway to the moon); recycling could help
- During the holidays we dump 5 million tons of trash and 4 million tons of it is shopping bags and wrapping paper *there have go to be better ways to 'wrap' our presents!!!
- 14 billion pounds of waste went in the ocean last year
"And God said, "Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it..." Genesis 1:28
If God called us to replenish the earth, what are we doing? Our sense of entitlement, selfishness, ignorance has taken over. WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS DESTRUCTION. This includes the people of the church especially since we know the charge that God has given us to care for our world. Let's own up to this responsibility and head up the movement to live simpler, greener and more sustainable lives!
Tailpipe emissions from cars and trucks account for almost a third of the air pollution in the US. So not all of us can afford hybrid cars, (although I do sometimes feel myself longing after the 60 mpg of the Prius as well as the ridiculous low emissions. . . ) so what can we do to make our current car more environmentally friendly (check out these websites for more: http://www.dailyfueleconomytip.com/ and http://www.gas-mileage-tips.com/)?
- Well, first of all, keep your tires properly inflated. According to AAA, driving with under inflated tires can reduce your vehicle’s gas mileage and fuel efficiency by up to 2% which, for a $3.00 gallon of gas, causes you to lose $.06 per gallon. This is especially important when it gets cold. . .
- Care for your car, proper maintenance will keep your car running properly and increase the life of your car. A poorly tuned car will pollute significantly more than one that is well maintained.
- Drive less! Walk, bike, carpool, combine activities into one trip, take public transportation. Not only is this good for the environment, it's good for your health and who knows who you will meet or what you will see being out of your car and more capable of interaction with neighbors.
- Don't own two cars, use http://www.austincarshare.org/
- Convert your diesel vehicle into a biofuel vehicle. It's fairly inexpensive for the long term benefits your receive: free or cheaper gas, higher gas milege, no more stinky car emissions (mmm fried chicken); check out http://www.vegpoweredsystems.com/ and http://www.drivingethanol.org/
So Rob Bell, from http://www.marshill.org/ is doing a series on 'God is Green' and here are some scary stats of the destruction that humans are causing:
- We, as Americans, only recycle a tenth of our garbage (you can begin to make this change, http://www.trirecycling.com/ is a recycling service that will give you containers and pick up at commercial locations for a small fee; if you don't work *students* begin to pay attention in your house to things that can be recycled, Austin offers curbside pick up!).
- 1.5 acres of rainforest are destroyed every second
- 70% of rivers in China are polluted (unfit for human contact)
-4.6 million people died last year from air pollution diseases (shouldn't the fact that people are dying be enough to spur us to action??)
- 50,000 species go extinct a year (plants, insects, animals)
- Americans produce 63,000 dump trucks full of trash a day (if you lined the trucks up they would go halfway to the moon); recycling could help
- During the holidays we dump 5 million tons of trash and 4 million tons of it is shopping bags and wrapping paper *there have go to be better ways to 'wrap' our presents!!!
- 14 billion pounds of waste went in the ocean last year
"And God said, "Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it..." Genesis 1:28
If God called us to replenish the earth, what are we doing? Our sense of entitlement, selfishness, ignorance has taken over. WE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS DESTRUCTION. This includes the people of the church especially since we know the charge that God has given us to care for our world. Let's own up to this responsibility and head up the movement to live simpler, greener and more sustainable lives!
Thursday, July 26, 2007
a pile of trash?
God cares about his creation. If we are the pursue the heart of God, then we should care about the same things he cares about. "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" Matthew 6:26
And that says to me that God cares about us and our health. In 2005 (a Roger Gottlieb study), umbilical cord blood of ten randomly chosen newborn in the US were tested for toxic chemicals. Can you guess what they found? A total of 287 toxic chemicals, the average being about 200 per baby. 3/4 of the chemicals were known carcinogens (cancer causing) and the rest were threats to the nervous, endocrine and immune systems. As babies the environment that we are charged to take care of has already compromised our ability to live a clean, healthy life. Scary, right? Shouldn't we be trying to reduce the amount of chemicals that can attack our bodies since God considers us all valuable? Back to walking/biking more and driving less? That could be a start. Maybe we should consider owning more efficient cars, or not even owning one at all. Check out the carshare program: http://www.austincarshare.org/ with research at: http://www.utexas.edu/research/ctr/about/news_items/carshare.html It might be possible for you to not even spend money on a car, insurance, registrations, inspections. . . how great would that be to simplify our lives in that way! Less errands to run, less carbon dioxide emitted into the air, less money to spend! Yes!
Here's another quote: "God did not design the air to make us short of breath. It was meant to sustain us. The Harvard School of Health looked at the impact of one power plant in Massachusetts and found that it caused 1,200 ER visits, 3,000 asthma attacks, and 110 deaths annually. Nationally, the soot from power plants will precipitate more than six hundred thousand asthma attacks."
Now I'm not saying that we go to the power plants and demand them to shut down. I just feel that we can take small steps in our own lives not only to begin to reduce our personal impact on the environment (seriously http://www.myfootprint.org/, go there) and inspire other people around us to do the same.
So Jason and I carpooled again today. Yay. And we have been discussing starting a compost pile in our back yard. Not only does this provide you with FREE fertilizer for your yard, it reduces the amount of trash that is sent to landfills and diverting trash from landfills = good for our environment. http://www.compostguide.com/ to check out more information. Maybe once we get our compost started, I'll post a picture or something.
So speaking of diverting trash from the landfill: Each year, 100 million trees are used to produce junk mail; 250,000 homes could be heated with one day's supply of junk mail; and Americans receive almost 4 million tons of junk mail every year. Are you tired of junk mail? I sure am. Check this out:
http://www.junkbusters.com/junkmail.html
It will help you figure out how to get rid of the junk mail that is being sent to you. Good stuff. If we take care of the earth we live on, it's one more thing we can be focusing on to align our hearts with God's. He cares for every animal and plant, he created it all, and it was very good. Let's consider it very good along with Him.
"Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?" Job 38:41
And that says to me that God cares about us and our health. In 2005 (a Roger Gottlieb study), umbilical cord blood of ten randomly chosen newborn in the US were tested for toxic chemicals. Can you guess what they found? A total of 287 toxic chemicals, the average being about 200 per baby. 3/4 of the chemicals were known carcinogens (cancer causing) and the rest were threats to the nervous, endocrine and immune systems. As babies the environment that we are charged to take care of has already compromised our ability to live a clean, healthy life. Scary, right? Shouldn't we be trying to reduce the amount of chemicals that can attack our bodies since God considers us all valuable? Back to walking/biking more and driving less? That could be a start. Maybe we should consider owning more efficient cars, or not even owning one at all. Check out the carshare program: http://www.austincarshare.org/ with research at: http://www.utexas.edu/research/ctr/about/news_items/carshare.html It might be possible for you to not even spend money on a car, insurance, registrations, inspections. . . how great would that be to simplify our lives in that way! Less errands to run, less carbon dioxide emitted into the air, less money to spend! Yes!
Here's another quote: "God did not design the air to make us short of breath. It was meant to sustain us. The Harvard School of Health looked at the impact of one power plant in Massachusetts and found that it caused 1,200 ER visits, 3,000 asthma attacks, and 110 deaths annually. Nationally, the soot from power plants will precipitate more than six hundred thousand asthma attacks."
Now I'm not saying that we go to the power plants and demand them to shut down. I just feel that we can take small steps in our own lives not only to begin to reduce our personal impact on the environment (seriously http://www.myfootprint.org/, go there) and inspire other people around us to do the same.
So Jason and I carpooled again today. Yay. And we have been discussing starting a compost pile in our back yard. Not only does this provide you with FREE fertilizer for your yard, it reduces the amount of trash that is sent to landfills and diverting trash from landfills = good for our environment. http://www.compostguide.com/ to check out more information. Maybe once we get our compost started, I'll post a picture or something.
So speaking of diverting trash from the landfill: Each year, 100 million trees are used to produce junk mail; 250,000 homes could be heated with one day's supply of junk mail; and Americans receive almost 4 million tons of junk mail every year. Are you tired of junk mail? I sure am. Check this out:
http://www.junkbusters.com/junkmail.html
It will help you figure out how to get rid of the junk mail that is being sent to you. Good stuff. If we take care of the earth we live on, it's one more thing we can be focusing on to align our hearts with God's. He cares for every animal and plant, he created it all, and it was very good. Let's consider it very good along with Him.
"Who provides food for the raven when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food?" Job 38:41
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
work commute and home cooked meals
"And God saw everything thing he had made, and behold, it was very good." Genesis 1:31
So Kristin inspired me to share with others what I've been learning and challenged with in my pursuit of what it means to be a follower of Christ and a steward of our world.
I have been so convicted recently about this, a lot of it comes from my job being very environmentally conscious and realizing that I have never heard the church preach on being a steward of our environment. So I thought I would begin sharing what I learn and my quest in this matter.
There is also a bit of a motivation to begin to overturn the sterotype that Christians have no concern with the environment (although God created our world to be 'good' and we have not been the best to seek to maintain it's goodness). Let's challenge the world's sterotype. Let's change the sterotype. In Austin, I think that this would impact so many people to see a church begin to take steps to take responsibilty of what God has given us. To move beyond the selfishness of serving ourselves and begin to serve the environment and our future. Let's be relevant to our culture and make changes that will benefit generations far beyond our own. I like this quote: "The earth was designed to sustain every generation’s needs, not to be plundered in an attempt to meet one generation’s wants." It inspires me to change.
So today, Jason and I carpooled to work. Now, this is not something revolutionary. Not by any means. But not driving for 2 days that you were planning to drive reduces 1590 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. OK. So that puts it into a bit of perspective. How easy is it for Jason to drop me off on his way to work and pick me up on his way back. It saves us money on gas, lets us spend more times together in the morning, talking and praying. To me, that's an all around good deal. Why haven't we done this before? Granted, it won't work everyday, but maybe 3-4 days a week we can ride together, reduce our carbon footprint (check this out: http://www.myfootprint.org/, it's humbling; it said if everyone lived like me, we would need 4 earths, oh God, please change me) and begin to live a life that is concerned with our environment. Imagine how much could be reduced if more people began to do this. Not only environmentally benefited, but taking cars off the road, and we all know that Austin's traffic sucks. Let's make the traffic better by carpooling!
Another thing I have been challenged by yesterday: if we were to eat one home grown meal a week, we could save 800 millions barrels of oil (on average our food travels 1200 miles from pasture to plate). Austin Farmer's Market anyone? We have lost touch with the real cost of things. Did you know your food caused that much environmental damage? What about that tomato in February? Where did that come from, and at who's expense do we eat at tomato at? What else are we unaware of because we are out of touch?
Let's give God glory and pleasure by taking care of His creation. I think that we can do this, and I think it starts with little steps and awareness. I desperately want to do this for Him.
"Thou are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for though hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created." Relevation 4:11
So Kristin inspired me to share with others what I've been learning and challenged with in my pursuit of what it means to be a follower of Christ and a steward of our world.
I have been so convicted recently about this, a lot of it comes from my job being very environmentally conscious and realizing that I have never heard the church preach on being a steward of our environment. So I thought I would begin sharing what I learn and my quest in this matter.
There is also a bit of a motivation to begin to overturn the sterotype that Christians have no concern with the environment (although God created our world to be 'good' and we have not been the best to seek to maintain it's goodness). Let's challenge the world's sterotype. Let's change the sterotype. In Austin, I think that this would impact so many people to see a church begin to take steps to take responsibilty of what God has given us. To move beyond the selfishness of serving ourselves and begin to serve the environment and our future. Let's be relevant to our culture and make changes that will benefit generations far beyond our own. I like this quote: "The earth was designed to sustain every generation’s needs, not to be plundered in an attempt to meet one generation’s wants." It inspires me to change.
So today, Jason and I carpooled to work. Now, this is not something revolutionary. Not by any means. But not driving for 2 days that you were planning to drive reduces 1590 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. OK. So that puts it into a bit of perspective. How easy is it for Jason to drop me off on his way to work and pick me up on his way back. It saves us money on gas, lets us spend more times together in the morning, talking and praying. To me, that's an all around good deal. Why haven't we done this before? Granted, it won't work everyday, but maybe 3-4 days a week we can ride together, reduce our carbon footprint (check this out: http://www.myfootprint.org/, it's humbling; it said if everyone lived like me, we would need 4 earths, oh God, please change me) and begin to live a life that is concerned with our environment. Imagine how much could be reduced if more people began to do this. Not only environmentally benefited, but taking cars off the road, and we all know that Austin's traffic sucks. Let's make the traffic better by carpooling!
Another thing I have been challenged by yesterday: if we were to eat one home grown meal a week, we could save 800 millions barrels of oil (on average our food travels 1200 miles from pasture to plate). Austin Farmer's Market anyone? We have lost touch with the real cost of things. Did you know your food caused that much environmental damage? What about that tomato in February? Where did that come from, and at who's expense do we eat at tomato at? What else are we unaware of because we are out of touch?
Let's give God glory and pleasure by taking care of His creation. I think that we can do this, and I think it starts with little steps and awareness. I desperately want to do this for Him.
"Thou are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for though hast created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created." Relevation 4:11
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)