CROSSROADS CHURCH

 

GO GREEN!!!

Genesis 1:26 - Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let

them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all

the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

This Sunday afternoon I went out with my family and some youth

from church and we walked along Cedar Avenue to do some

roadside clean-up. It was a blessing to have such a beautiful day to

take in the fresh air and spend time with family and friends. It was

not such a blessing to see how much garbage persons throw out

their windows. In my brief survey of over 200 cans I would deduce

that Lakeville drinks more lite beer than regular beer and more

Mountain Dew than Coke. McDonald s is by far the most popular

restaurant and Cub beat out CVS for pharmacy bags. When God

created the world, he created humanity in God s image. He created

us to be stewards over what he created. It was given to us as a gift

to take care of. Some persons see the environment or the world as

something to use rather than something to tend and manage. As

Christians, we don t celebrate Earth Day because of some pagan

belief that Mother Earth is alive. We celebrate it as a reminder to

care for the precious gift that God has given us.

Here are some other ideas for going green I hear my daughters talk

about:

1. Clean with Green - Try to use products

made by companies like Seventh Generation - or

just wash windows with vinegar and newspaper,

scrub the tub with baking soda and water.

2. Unplug Unplug all the electronic stuff you

have in the house when not in use.

3. 3 R s - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle The

basic three still help a great deal. Use less and

when you do use something try to use it again.

4. Teach kids/youth about nature and farming Many of us are

out of touch with basic concepts such as where our food comes

from. Take your kids to a working farm or the farm at the Children s

Museum in St. Paul

5. Buy a smaller vehicle or a hybrid We can all spend less at the

pump and save fossil fuels at the same time.

6. Leave a small energy footprint Basically, think about what

you need to use for power vs. what you want to use. Do you need

to play guitar hero 16 hours a day? Do you always need a radio or

T.V. on for background noise?

7. Garden naturally Think about growing a few things in pots or the back yard.

8. Bring Your Own Shopping Bags Another no-brainer. As a volunteer who picked up hundreds of Cub

shopping bags during road side clean-up on Cedar Avenue I am a big advocate on no more plastic.

9. Hop on your bike (or electric moped) Use people power. I love my regular bicycle and my daughter s

electric assisted bicycle you see around church sometime. It goes 25 miles per hour and costs pennies to

recharge the battery.

10. Eat Less Meat - I'm not a vegetarian but I'm cutting back on my meat consumption and eating more organic

produce thanks to my kids. After all, I grew up raising Angus Beef on the farm. Yet I know that most of the

deforestation in the world is caused by fields cleared for livestock grazing. Cows' methane is a huge contributor

to global warming, and the amount of resources it takes to feed one cow could grow many times more grains

and vegetables. Cutting down our consumption can make a huge impact.

We are also going green at CROSSROADS by helping start a new non-profit called THE GREEN BEAN Organic Coffee and Worship. If you would like more information about this new group that plans to open a

coffee house soon contact Bekah Marzahn or Shaunna Heule They plan on starting worship services Sunday

nights beginning in June.

Have a great week!

In Christ,

Pastor Paul