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Spending Time in God's Creation

Kings Canyon National Park in California

As young people concerned about climate justice and caring for our neighbors, staying engaged with this work requires spiritual discipline and rest. I’m sure at one time or another you may have felt fatigued, burnt out, or maybe even hopeless. I know I have, especially after eight years of full time work in the creation care movement. While we may feel the need for rest or a break from this work, it can feel counterproductive to step back in a culture that rewards the grind. Fighting this inner tension in myself, I ceased work for May and June as I set out on a sabbatical with YECA’s partners at the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN). 

Over the past two months, I visited over 28 beautiful sites including tribal parks, national parks, and other public lands featuring monuments, forests, and recreation areas as part of a road trip through the western U.S. While I learned a great deal about the importance of funding and protecting our public lands, a lesson that sticks out to me the most is the importance of rest in the great outdoors-especially for young activists dedicating their time and energy to caring for God’s creation for our neighbors' good.

Arches National Park in Utah

Much of our time is spent on defending God’s creation from the threats of climate change and air pollution and ensuring that communities have what they need to lead healthy, abundant lives. God’s magnificent creation provides all we need to thrive, like food and water, and it is also an incredible place of respite and renewal. Over the past two months I was reminded on a daily basis that simply being in God’s creation is a spiritual practice and a way to find strength and resilience. My hope and prayer for all of my fellow activists at YECA is that you will be able to find moments to meet God in creation this summer.

While I had the incredible opportunity to visit some of the most iconic places in our country, you need not travel far to find renewal and peace in nature. I found myself homesick, even on top of the Olympic Mountains, thinking about the familiar mountains, rivers, and lakes back home in New England. It is more clear to me than ever that every part of our country has beautiful, peaceful places to seek rest and take a breath from daily challenges. It is also abundantly clear that rest is not only necessary to sustain this justice-seeking work, but actually makes us better equipped to live out our calling to love God and love our neighbor. Two months is a long time to not work, but I find myself with a fresh store of energy and perseverance for this work- something that was lacking prior to May and had been for a while.

"Over the past two months I was reminded on a daily basis that simply being in God’s creation is a spiritual practice and a way to find strength and resilience. My hope and prayer for all of my fellow activists at YECA is that you will be able to find moments to meet God in creation this summer."

This summer, if you’re feeling tired or hopeless (or even if you’re not), I encourage you to go outside to find God in creation and feel the peace that being outside can provide. Resist the urge to work endlessly and instead know that rest is a gift, much like creation, and enjoying what we seek to protect is actually a deeply meaningful act of love and care for yourself and our movement.

Yosemite National Park in California

Olympic National Park and Mount Rainier National Park in Washington

Joshua Tree National Park in California and Arches National Park in Utah

Sequoia National Park in California

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