Common Good

Common Good

Back to Climate Justice and Creation Care

Creation Declares God’s Glory

AdventClimate Justice and Creation CareWeek 3 · Day 5

Scripture References

Read First

Old Testament

Psalm 19:1-6

1 The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.

2 Day after day they pour out speech, and night after night they display knowledge.

3 There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard.

Read 3 more verses

4 Their voice has gone out through all the earth, their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,

5 which is as a bridegroom coming out of his room, like a strong man rejoicing to run his course.

6 His going out is from the end of the heavens, his circuit to its ends. There is nothing hidden from its heat.

New Testament

Luke 12:22-31

22 He said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, don’t be anxious for your life, what you will eat, nor yet for your body, what you will wear.

23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.

24 Consider the ravens: they don’t sow, they don’t reap, they have no warehouse or barn, and God feeds them. How much more valuable are you than birds!

Read 7 more verses

25 Which of you by being anxious can add a cubit to his height?

26 If then you aren’t able to do even the least things, why are you anxious about the rest?

27 Consider the lilies, how they grow. They don’t toil, neither do they spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

28 But if this is how God clothes the grass in the field, which today exists and tomorrow is cast into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith?

29 “Don’t seek what you will eat or what you will drink; neither be anxious.

30 For the nations of the world seek after all of these things, but your Father knows that you need these things.

31 But seek God’s Kingdom, and all these things will be added to you.

Thought for the Day

Psalm 19 begins without words: the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day pours forth speech to day. Night to night. There is a kind of faithful preaching woven into sunrise and starlight.

Jesus, in Luke, teaches his disciples not to be consumed by anxious seeking. Look at the ravens. Consider the lilies. The Father feeds; the Father clothes. The point is not to deny trouble, but to learn trust: to seek the kingdom, and to receive what is needed as gift.

Show 112 more words

Creation’s beauty can make us complacent, or it can make us grateful. It can also make us attentive. If the world is declaring God’s glory, then our task is not to drown it out with constant wanting. Want is a loud hymn; gratitude is quieter, but truer.

So pray for a quieter heart. Ask for the grace to rejoice without grasping. Pray for leaders and industries to act with restraint and honesty, so that the song of creation is not muffled by harm. And ask to become the kind of person who can look at the sky and remember: God is glorious, God is faithful, and the kingdom is worth seeking first.

Prayer Points

Respond
  • Lord, give us grateful hearts that receive creation as gift and resist constant craving.
  • Teach leaders and institutions restraint and truthfulness in decisions that affect land, air, and water.
  • Have mercy on communities harmed by pollution and environmental degradation; bring justice and repair.
Show 2 more prayer points
  • Free the Church from anxious consumption; form us in trust, simplicity, and joyful witness.
  • Teach me to seek your kingdom first, and to live lightly in glad dependence on you.
Continue Reading Journey