Being A Good Steward Through Humility

As a child, I remember a poignant anti-littering campaign with “the Crying Indian.”  These commercials (staring an actor named Iron Eyes Cody) did to me exactly what they were intended to do – to have a visceral reaction to someone else’s pain toward careless consumption and waste.  I remember getting angry at my father for throwing an apple core out of the car window – only to be (rightly) told it would decompose and actually help the earth. 

This was my early ecological education (or lack thereof), tied mostly to emotional conviction to “do the right thing.”  Unfortunately, no one really explained to me the realities of the cycle of garbage.  We even had a compost pit in our backyard that was put on the garden, but I didn’t know that was eco-friendly.  I do remember driving by the garbage dumps off of I-95 near Newark and holding my breath because it smelled so bad, but didn’t think about the amount of garbage that 4.5 billion people (in 1980) make or where it went.  Then there was news of “garbage barges” dumping off the cost of New Jersey and items washing up on shore (including medical waste), and my interest was piqued again, but mostly to discourage use of Styrofoam.  I don’t ever remember someone talking about being a good steward of the earth, even at church.  

What does it mean to be a good steward of the earth?  There is the saying, “We don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children,” which calls us to remember that our actions do not only effect ourselves, but can have long lasting consequences, both positively and negatively.  Yet, as faithful Christians, it is not pithy sayings or manipulative commercials that call us to action.  We know that God charged humans with being good stewards over creation in Genesis 1.  It is our God-given duty to care for creation, one that sets humans apart from other creatures, for whom we depend upon for our being.  While we are set apart, we cannot connote that to being set above, and arrogantly presume we can do anything we want.

St. Paul writes in the letter to the Church in Philippi, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.” (2:5-8) I do believe that being a good steward starts with humility, of recognizing that we are part of a greater whole, and then doing what we can to help sustain a system that sustains all parts of creation.  With humility, we can make choices about how we live that can benefit creation rather than abuse it.

It is difficult to live life without producing any garbage, but we can advocate for biodegradable packaging or products made from recycled materials.  If you have the ability to compost (I’m envious!), do so!  It is a great reuse of resources.  Consider how your electricity is produced and how much you consume (I still hear my mother telling me to turn off the light!).  Same with gasoline.  Yes, we make these considerations and choices to make our environment cleaner for the next generation, but also to be good stewards with the humility of Christ.

In Christ,

Rev. Valerie+

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