Earth brims with life. God obviously likes life and variety of life, since he put it everywhere. Upon this blue-green jewel he put us, too, and he chose to impart himself into us. Among species we’re the ones blessed to see and appreciate his nature. But with that spark of God—that freedom to see or not, to hear or not, to do good or not—comes power: the power to safeguard or destroy the garden around us.
Sometimes we act as God desires, with wisdom and love. Frequently, though, we’re selfish and short-sighted, and so the blessing of being made in God’s image—with the ability to witness and give thanks for the beauty and wisdom of his nature—is transmuted into the curse of being its destroyers.
With great power comes great responsibility. We pray for enlightenment and guidance. We pray that we look, listen, and love. We pray that we rise to our better angels and so protect the goodness of God’s nature—the animals, plants, and the miracle of their interconnectedness . . . which includes us.
— MRM