Justice for God’s Planet and God’s People from Creation Justice Ministries, During Lent, the Adult Discipleship Team will be providing a suggestion each week to help us find ways to deepen our Eco-Spirituality.
- Week One: Consider your Carbon Footprint! We are looking at how we as individuals and families can reduce our carbon footprint at home.
Grab a copy of your home energy bill, and calculate your carbon footprint at Carbon Footprint Calculator | Climate Change | US EPA This is an interactive calculator to estimate your household’s carbon footprint. This tool will estimate carbon pollution emissions from your daily activities and show how to reduce your emissions and save money through simple steps. (www3.epa.gov) - Week Two: Reduce Junk Mail! In Lent, we slow down and examine our internal spiritual lives as well as the way we live out our Christian faith in the world. Our faith teaches us that humans were created with the responsibility to be stewards of the earth. We also know our individual and collective U.S. lifestyles have led to serious harm to God’s good creation. This week let’s focus on all of the junk mail we receive. The average adult receives 41 pounds of junk mail annually. This requires 53 million trees and 56 gallons of water to produce. Visit www.dmachoice.org to help stop unwanted junk mail. Call companies to unsubscribe from mailings and catalogs you no longer care to receive. Resolve to do it today!
- Week Three: March 22 is World Water Day! Water is a precious life-saving gift from God. Visit waterfootprint.org to learn more about water footprint. Say a prayer of gratitude every time you sip water today. Visit Creation Justice Ministries (CJM), the eco ministry arm of the National Council of Churches, dedicated to combining the truth of Christ with ecological reality. Visit www.creationjustice.org for more suggestions.
- Week Four: Improve your car efficiency. We are all suffering from Sticker Shock at the gas pump! But, there are ways to help ourselves and our environment. When was the last time you checked your car tire pressure? Schedule a tune-up to set your car tire pressure to the recommended level for optimal gas mileage. Practice driving mindfully. Higher speeds (55 mph+) reduce fuel economy. Do you bundle your errands? Are there some errands you can complete while walking?
- Week Five: Look at your water footprint. Water is prominent in our lives. We can live more days without food than we can without water. Yet, for many people water is a very scarce resource. As you take a sip of water today, think – “What can I do to conserve water?” 1. Choose a reusable water bottle and commit to using it instead of purchasing individual, disposable water bottles. 2. Turn the water off while you brush your teeth. 3. Visit waterfootprint.org to learn more about water footprint.