Musical Prelude and Service.

Genesis 2:4b–22 & Acts 17:22-28
Sitting on the back deck of our house we get to watch a variety of creatures going about their lives,
following the rhythms of the day and the seasons.
We watch squirrels running along our fence carrying nuts to some hidden storage site and then
running back to find more. We get to observe birds moving back and forth finding food and materials
for their nests. We can every-now-and-then watch rabbits enter the yard seeking food and shelter.
And of course, there are flies and bees and hornets that also come along checking for whatever it is
that attracts them.
There is this ecosystem at work in our yard. Our house was built in the midst of a space that these
animals had already occupied. Yes, there was a house there before ours was built, but the birds and
animals and insects were there already. There is a line of cedar trees in our front lawn that
essentially mark the edge of our property. Naturally the squirrels, rabbit and birds don’t recognize
property lines, but the cedar trees are a source of shelter and nourishment. The fence is now a
convenient means for squirrels to move from one place to another.
There is an abundance of life and activity going on all around us and it can be fascinating to observe.
What can be a challenge is to keep from forgetting that we are not separate from this life. As I go
about mowing the lawn, trimming along cedar trees and monitoring for any new hornet nests, Ellie
and I are part of this system, and our actions and inactions have a profound impact on all of this.
Today is the first Sunday in the Season of Creation. My resources have us starting this season a little
bit earlier than other churches will enter this season; but I am happy to get started now.
Today the focus is on Forests. We can view forests as a large stand of trees; but obviously forests
are far more than the trees that are found within. Yes, you need trees to make a forest, but they are
only a part of the forest. There is also the undergrowth, the rocks, the soil, the animals, the bird’s
and the host of insects, worms and other bugs that help nourish the overall ecology of a forest. And
each of those creatures large and small, are crucial to the ongoing health and activity of the forest.
The forest is a dynamic, living breathing thing with all its constituent parts working in harmony.
Remove one and the delicate balance of life is disrupted.
In the creation story we read this morning, God raises up trees and plants and creatures from the
soil. Humanity is also created from that same soil. We are part of the garden that holds the forest,
the rivers, the animals and birds. We are part of this creation. We are created to live in balance with
all the rest of creation. Sadly, we can lose sight of our place within this eco-system. Removing that
which is an inconvenience or exploit that which can offer us a profit. We seem to need constant
reminders that we are part of something much larger than ourselves.
Paul reminds us of God’s creative energy. That we are created by a God who didn’t begin with or end
with our creation. God’s creative energy is apparent all around us. God’s work of creation is evident
with every step we take. Paul utilizes the written work of a long dead Greek philosopher and poet
assumed to be Epimenides (6th century BCE), to claim that God is that in which we live move and
have our being. God’s creative presence and energy crafted all that we experience and take for
granted. All that we have and do comes from God.
There is a way of experiencing God and describing God, generally referred to as Panentheism that
states God is in and around all of creation. God is not separate from creation and only observes and
comments from afar. Neither is God only creation. God is not the world. But God enfolds the world
and is also present outside of creation.
Theologian Sallie McFague in her book, The Body of God posts the question that perhaps God
chooses to make the world God’s body. We have often played with ideas of God embodying a person,
but if that is possible, it is also possible to imagine God as embodying this world. This world and all it
contains. That idea can take us in interesting directions. If we harm the world, what does that say of
harming God?
We take time to picture and to experience a forest with all of its intricacies. The massive trees and
their breathing in and out offering us the oxygen that is so vital to our health. The water, the shade,
the nourishment for the host of creatures that make that forest home. Nourishing and renewing that
forest. And we, as part of creation, are part of that forest in which we live and move and have our
being.
Can we imagine that we can find and see God, not just at work in that forest, but as that forest?
Yes, God is also beyond that forest. God is not just that forest, but we can experience God as we
move in and through that part of creation.
So, if we see God in that forest, in the trees, in the squirrels and rabbits and the birds, the larger
animals patrolling the forest floor; how does that influence how we relate to that corner of creation?
When we see God in the people and the trees, the fields, the birds and the animals we encounter all
around us, we are moved to gratitude. We should be moved to a greater sense of empathy.
Jesus calls us to love God with all our hearts, our souls, our might. Jesus calls us to love our
neighbours as we love ourselves. God is present all around us and working in and through us.
I came across a YouTube video of Sallie McFague reading from her book Blessed Are the Consumers.
I won’t go into all of it. Look it up.
It’s posted by Homebrewed Christianity, but a few statements did stand out for me:
“We do not live in two worlds. We live in one. We live here and so does God.”
“We do not live here in earth away from God. We always whether in life or death,
we always live within God.”
And finally, “Heaven is here right now and to live in heaven we must constantly practise
the presence of God.”
God is more than a concept. We will often consider God as love.
God is love, but God is also freedom and justice. God is mercy and compassion.
And God is the force binding all of us and all of creation together.
But God is also inhabiting the trees, the lakes, the streams, the birds and squirrels and ourselves.
Forests live. They breath and they are dynamic and make life possible for us. May we be reminded of
God’s presence; God’s love and God’s care as we marvel at the wonder of God’s creation. Including
the silly squirrels. Amen
Rev. Warner Bloomfield

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789