Witness

Up until this evening, I totally forgot that today is the official calendar day marking “Earth Day”. I don’t want to be obnoxious or make fun of anyone, but pretty much my whole life I thought it was silly. The Earth is beautiful and awesome, and taking care of it is a good idea, obviously. But it’s really easy to look at this “day” thing as dangerously close to being idolatrous — the whole “Mother Nature” nonsense doesn’t look good on humanity. But, I read a passage from Joshua that made me look at the whole thing a little differently.

This is the passage I read:

And Joshua said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us, for it has heard all the words of the Lord which He spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to you, lest you deny your God.” (Joshua 24:27)

That’s really cool to read in the first place. Joshua obviously isn’t really saying the rock has ears, or treating the rock as though it is truly “alive”. But he is telling Israel that their promise, their binding themselves to their part of the covenant, is serious. Obedience is now expected, and even the rocks themselves will call them to account. That is what nature does — it points to Who created it, as a witness for humanity. Or, if push comes to shove, against humanity. That stone would exist for as long as they did, their every choice echoing off it for generations. The world God crafted for us serves as a witness that all our actions, good and bad, are recorded for eternity.

I totally think it is wise and right to be good stewards of the world God created for us. But it isn’t “alive”. It doesn’t need a day. It isn’t a victim, and it isn’t in charge of us. Our Earth is designed to adapt to challenges and solve problems in brilliant harmony and mystery. One could even say it’s receiving a unique Sabbath rest due to all of this strangeness. The Earth is not a being to be celebrated, because it exists to glorify God. Every action of every living creature does the same.

I don’t mean to make fun of anyone, but this “Earth Day”, I think it’s a better idea to aim our praise and our desire for reform and change at the Creator — because the stones stand as a witness, hearing every word. I’d like them to be a witness that reminds me to honor God’s work and His overwhelmingly happy expectations for right living.