Every summer, our family used to stay for a week’s vacation in the town of Ayr, which is on the west coast of Scotland. We would spend each day on the sandy beach with crowds of other families who traveled down from Glasgow during the July Fair holidays. Sometimes, however, it was too cold to go to the beach, so we walked to a park at the far end of the town called Belleisle. It was a long walk but when we reached the park, we went to our favorite place – a little zoo that had lots of different rabbits, guinea pigs, and ducks from all over the world.
We fed the animals with tufts of grass and plant leaves that we found near the cages. The rabbits and guinea pigs rapidly ate what we offered and looked for some more, so my siblings and I scoured the edges of the path to find more green grass and leaves. We always came away from the park delighted because we had stood so close to the animals and enjoyed having them pull the food from our small hands as we fed them.
Nearly six decades later, when I think about those halcyon days, it makes me wonder if this is why God created so many different kinds of animals on our planet. Instead of killing them for sport perhaps we’re meant to look after the animal kingdom and live alongside it, to delight in God’s works of creation and live peaceably with nature. We seem to be so intent on destroying things these days that I fear we’re actually dooming ourselves to extinction. So many species are lost in the animal kingdom each year because of human expansion and destruction.
If I remember the scriptures properly, God gives Adam and Eve the gift of dominion over other creatures, but not domination. In other words, we’re meant to be good stewards and work with nature rather than being greedy conquerors who ruin and destroy life on this unique planet. I hope and pray that it’s not too late for us to repent of our harmful ways and make the Earth a peaceable kingdom once more, as our Creator intended.
Point to ponder: How do I appreciate and support life on Earth?
Prayer: Loving Creator, this world should astound us, and the beauty of Your works should delight us. Forgive us for taking life on Earth for granted and being so destructive as a species. Open our eyes to the uniqueness of our planet and help us to become good stewards of this beautiful world. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.
John Stuart is a Scottish Presbyterian pastor now living in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Today’s
image is one of John’s crayon drawings called “Fall Break.”
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