The weather patterns have become increasingly erratic and extreme in recent years.
I expect the intensity and shift in seasonal patterns to continue. There has been much debate surrounding the issue of climate change.
The United Nations defines it as “long-term changes in temperatures and weather patterns, primarily driven by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels,” and also states: “The Earth’s average surface temperature is now approximately 1.2°C warmer than it was in the late 1800s, before the Industrial Revolution, and warmer than at any point in the last 100,000 years.
The last decade (2011-2020) was the warmest on record, and each of the last four decades has been warmer than the previous one since 1850.”
Many people believe that climate change is not a pressing issue, and they often pass the responsibility for addressing it to future generations.
However, this is a dangerous approach, as the consequences of climate change extend far beyond just warmer temperatures.
These consequences include “intense droughts, water scarcity, severe fires, rising sea levels, flooding, melting polar ice, catastrophic storms, and declining biodiversity.”
The Earth is an interconnected system, and changes in one area can influence changes in all others.
Scripture affirms this.
“There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven,” Luke 21:11.
God has granted us authority over the earth and we are tasked with the responsibility of caring for it: “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth,” Genesis 1: 26-31.
This dominion does not mean we are to mistreat the earth, but rather that we are to act as stewards and caretakers, serving and protecting it.
Just as the Earth is a comprehensive system, we are an integral part of this broader ecosystem, and our choices and actions have an influence not only on the planet but also on ourselves in some capacity. While we tend to solely focus on the issue of pollution, we contaminate the Earth in ways that go beyond greenhouse gases or waste.
There are ramifications for our conduct that extend beyond the physical realm, as we will also be held responsible on a spiritual level.
“And I brought you into a plentiful land to enjoy its fruits and its good things. But when you came in, you defiled my land and made my heritage an abomination,” Jeremiah 2:7.
“The earth lies defiled under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and its inhabitants suffer for their guilt; therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are scorched, and few men are left,” Isaiah 24:5-6.
The Bible encourages us to be attentive to the signs. “Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken…Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door,” Matthew 24.
As believers, it’s crucial that we care for what God has entrusted to us: the earth and one another.
It’s also vital that we recognize the signs and not view this as mere coincidence. It’s important that you stay vigilant and live a life that honors God and God’s creation.
(Dr. Froswa’ Booker Drew is the founder of the Reconciliation and Restoration Foundation and president of Soulstice Consultancy. Visit <drfroswabooker.com> or email <info@drfroswa.com>.)
