Nebraska Synod ELCA

By Gretchen Ahrens, Director for Youth and Justice Ministries

For the beauty of the earth
For the beauty of the skies
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our joyful hymn of praise

For the beauty of the hour
Of the day and the night
Hill and vale and tree and flower
Sun and moon and stars of light
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our joyful hymn of praise

For the Beauty of the Earth, written by John Rutter

I’m drawn to this hymn as we celebrate Earth Day this week. I’ve always loved the first two verses of this hymn. On Sundays when we sing it in worship and all our voices swell together on the refrain raising our joyful hymn of praise, I hear farmers giving thanks for the fields, hikers remembering the joy of their last summit on a trail, city gardeners smiling over the last bit of dirt left under their fingernails and young kids who have danced in the rain for the first time. Together, we give thanks for the beauty of the earth. Together we share our joy in God’s creation. And, together, we rejoice in our common love of the gift God has given us, the creation we delight in.

However, I am also reminded that our “joyful hymn of praise” doesn’t have to stop when the hymn is over and the organ stops playing. The hymn of praise continues in our actions and advocacy for these gifts of creation. We are called not just to sing on Sunday, but to act on Monday. We are called to live out the hymn of praise in our simple acts of day-to-day care for creation and by lifting our voices for climate justice daily.

I’ve participated in an ELCA Care for Creation coaching class for the past nine months. With colleagues, I’ve learned ways to share the story of creation care and how we can live it out. I’ve also practiced coaching clients with creation care questions and challenges. In celebration of Earth Day, we (the Nebraska Synod) are excited to share these resources with you.

First: Creation Care Coaching is available for YOU and your congregation!
Suppose you or your congregation is thinking about how you might engage in creation care or creation justice work, or would like to explore how you might expand what you are currently doing. In that case, we are offering five free sessions of individual or group coaching. Reach out to gretchen@nebraskasynod.org or call me at 404-583-4591 to explore what this might look like.

Second, Here are some of my favorite resources from our class that can help you live out creation care.

Lutherans Restoring Creation: This website is a treasure trove of resources from individual devotions and worship liturgies to buildings, grounds, and general education. This is my go-to site when I am looking for creation care resources.

Creation Justice: This website centers around “care for God’s planet and people” and is an excellent resource for those seeking involvement in creation advocacy.

Blessed Tomorrow: Blessed Tomorrow is “a coalition of diverse religious partners (including the ELCA) working to advance climate solutions in faithful service to God.” This website includes some simple starting points for churches, workplaces, and communities to engage in creation care.

Finally, I leave you with this prayer.

Dear God,
You are the fount of all blessings,
source of all life,
and giver of all grace:

We thank You for the gift of life:
for air, food, and water;
for the love of family and friends;
for all the things without which
we couldn’t continue to live.

We thank You for the mystery of creation:
for the beauty that the eye can see,
for the marvels that the ear can hear,
for all the amazing mysteries that fill
the universe with wonder.

Help us to grow in knowledge and
appreciation of Your Creation,
To be good stewards of what You have given us,
And to always remember that every good gift
comes only from You.

We thank You for this day and for our life.
We thank You that You are our God, our Creator,
and our Savior.

For these, and all blessings,
we give You thanks, eternal, loving God,
through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Prayer credited to the C.S. Lewis Institute. C.S. Lewis Institute, in the legacy of C.S. Lewis, works to develop wholehearted disciples of Jesus Christ who will articulate, defend, share, and live their faith in personal and public life. Founded in 1976 by Dr. James Houston and James R. Hiskey, the Institute provides leading teachers who address important issues of the day from the perspective of Biblical orthodoxy, while also providing discipleship for individuals in small groups.