26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
27 So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Reflection
We are each God’s individual loving creations. God has planned each of us to be unique beings in God’s own likeness. There is a completeness in this circle of life that is represented through this scripture.
How is it that our God loves us so much as to give us each life? We belong to a God who has made us all whole beings and with a way to recreate and sustain life together. Within the circle of life, we know a God who loves us so much and so completely, as to let us be whoever we choose.
Furthermore, God has given us this earth but also made us its caretakers. Our earth is a wondrous place. Within its vastness, from the highest mountains to the bluest seas and most dense forests, there is a biodiversity that humans can never fully explain, imagine, or completely explore. However, maybe some people believe that God’s gift of the earth means that we can do whatever we wish with it –after all, this is a gift, and thus we can do with it what we like. Perhaps some look around and feel so privileged.
Others think that within the earth’s enormity there are plenty of resources and space, and that our resources will only run out long after we are gone. Yet, by God’s words, we are to “Tend my garden” (Gen.2:15). Some believe that this is God’s first commandment.
But a true gardener would never squander what’s been planted. Instead, the gardener would provide loving care, carefully cultivating and pruning what’s been sown. We are God’s greatest creations, but also the most vulnerable to being irresponsible with the rest of life on earth. Fortunately we were also created to be God’s loving children. As believers, we want to live into what pleases God. We want to be God’s loving stewards of all that God has created for us. This is the greatest gift that we can offer back to Our Creator.
by Barbara Carlson
For Pondering & Prayer
How does God’s creation amaze and astound you? What are the special ways that you show your stewardship of the life around you?
Prayer:
Creator God, thank you for loving me enough to give me the gift of life and the world around me. Help me to continue to see all the ways that I need to be a good and faithful steward for all of creation. Amen.
Comments are closed.