Counting On … – Page 25

Counting on … Lent 30

15th April 2025

“Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young— a place near your altar, LORD Almighty, my King and my God.” Psalm 84:3

Having a safe home, a place where we belong, can be a source of contentment. Successful ecosystems are those where each species has its own niche. If we live in a society where not everyone has a place to cal home, a place to belong, then we should be questioning how successful our society can claim to be. Nature deserves a safe home, and people deserve a safe home – and the two are not incompatible.

Counting on … Lent 29

14th April 2025

But ask the animals, and they will teach you; the birds of the air, and they will tell you; ask the plants of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing

and the breath of every human being. Job 12:7-9

There can be no greater wisdom than understanding the world in which we live, and there is much we can learn from our fellow brethren who live along side us. Sometimes it surprises us to see how contented – how lacking in worry – our companions are! I was reminded of this yesterday when watching a pair of otters frolicking in the sun at the London Wetland Centre.

Counting on … Lent 28

11th April 2025

“Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.” Proverb 6:6-8

Here perhaps is an invitation to consider the very many different ways in which communities can organise their affairs. Autocracies, monopolies and patriarchies are not the only options. Cooperative and democratic alternatives offer more to all participants in terms of equality and justice. Indeed the prophets tell us that God does envisage radical change.

“The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them”. Isaiah 11:6

Counting on … Lent 27

10th April 2025

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Revelation 22: 1-2

The RHS reminds us that plants – and frequently their leaves – are important for the medicinal properties. “Many familiar garden plants were first grown for their healing properties rather than their appearance, and many common herbs were valued as much for medicinal uses as they were in the kitchen.” (1)

Whilst the Lancet notes “Human health has been inextricably linked to the use of herbal medicines for millennia, making natural medicinal resources one of the oldest contributions of nature to human wellbeing. Human health has been inextricably linked to the use of herbal medicines for millennia, making natural medicinal resources one of the oldest contributions of nature to human wellbeing.1,2 However, increasing global change in the anthropocene is jeopardising the future of these contributions to societies…Bioactive compounds produced by plants and their endophytes are integral parts of ecosystems, participating in fundamental ecological processes and contributing essential health benefits to populations globally. The current lack of transdisciplinary frameworks for evaluating medicinal biodiversity as a central component of planetary health hinders the ability to sustainably manage that biodiversity and fully benefit from its potential contributions to human societies.”

(2)

The natural world is very much there for the promotion of health and wellbeing in so many different ways – and we humans need to be more caring and appreciative of all that it is there for our mutual benefit.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/education-learning/school-gardening/resources/wellbeing/the-healing-power-of-plants

(2) https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(22)00317-5/fulltext

Counting on … Lent 26

9th April 2025

“Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!” Luke 12:24

Anxiety and especially being anxious about things we can’t influence, feels increasingly common in our busy technological world. We often over-analyse, over-complicate our lives and become more and more stressed. Yet acknowledging that we are as much a part of nature as the birds – and as beloved by God – can give us a calmer, more balanced take on life. If we can let go of more of our worries and accept that God has created a natural world which can more than satisfy our needs, then we will find greater happiness.

“Research shows that people who are more connected with nature are usually happier in life and more likely to report feeling their lives are worthwhile. Nature can generate many positive emotions, such as calmness, joy, and creativity and can facilitate concentration. Nature connectedness is also associated with lower levels of poor mental health, particularly lower depression and anxiety.” (1)

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/our-work/research/nature-how-connecting-nature-benefits-our-mental-health

Counting on … Lent 25

8th April 2025

He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. Psalm 23:2-3a

Even though we know it is good for us, both mentally and physically, it is surprising how often we don’t make time to walk in the natural world, to sit by the water, to watch the wildlife, smell the clean air, listen to the wildlife, or to absorb the pheromones from the trees.

The Woodlands Trust is passionate about the health benefits of trees and works to ensure that everyone has access to the benefits of trees and nature. “Embracing nature’s embrace: woods and trees do more than just clean air. Growing scientific evidence is revealing that reconnecting us to nature bolsters our physical and mental wellbeing.”

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/health-and-wellbeing/

Counting on … Lent 24

7th April 2025

“Even the stork in the sky knows her appointed seasons, and the dove, the swift and the thrush observe the time of their migration. But my people do not know the requirements of the LORD.”

Jeremiah 8:7

The birds – indeed all creatures – know intuitively how to live in a harmonious way with the seasons. Because they are in tune with nature, they are also in tune with God. However we humans – just as in Jeremiah’s day – are often not in tune with God; we fail to understand that God wants us to live in tune with nature, with its seasons, its limitations and its joys.

Sadly many people are completely unaware of the changing seasons, because they enclose themselves in an artificial world where you can eat strawberries and avocados all year round, where you rely on heating and air con for a constant T-shirt-wearing temperature, where you seal yourself away from adverse weather in a door to door car service, and where the light from screens not the sun tells you the time of day.

Yet there can be so many opportunities for us to explore the seasons in local parks, nature reserves, in our gardens, via the local farmers’ market, down by a river or by the sea.

Counting on … Lent 23

4th April 2025

O children of Zion, be glad and rejoice in the Lord your God; for he has given the early rain for your vindication, he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the later rain, as before. The threshing-floors shall be full of grain, the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. Joel 2:23-24

Rain in due season – and likewise warm and cold weather in their respective seasons – are key to good harvests, whether that is for the crops we humans grow or for the food upon which wild life depends. One of the consequences of human made climate change, is the disruption of weather patterns. Even in the UK we have lost valuable crops because they have shrivelled due to drought, been drowned by floods, or never thrived due to lack of warmth.

The unpredictable weather also impacts insect life and breeding patterns of wildlife. Birds nest too early and find an insufficient supply of insects to feed their young. Insects come out of hibernation too soon and are killed by late frosts. Articles ice melts too early and polar bears cannot catch enough prey to feed their cubs.

We should be concerned about addressing the climate crisis because without rain in its due season we all suffer.

Counting on … Lent 22

3rd April 2025

For God draws up the drops of water; distilling rain from the mist, which the skies pour down and drop upon mortals abundantly. Job 36:27-28

Humanity is dependant on rain for the successful growth of crops, yet humans also wilfully destroy the habitats that are essential for the maintenance of the water cycle. Deforestation in particular, rather than creating fertile land for growing crops, creates deserts. Maintaining tree cover is critical to maintaining good levels of rain.

“…forests are a crucial component of the water cycle and have the all important function of preventing desertification. Cutting down trees can disrupt the cycle by decreasing precipitation and affecting river flow and water volume. In the case of the Amazon rainforest, research shows that at least 80% of its trees would be needed in order to keep the hydrological cycle going. With nearly 17% of the forest lost already, the Amazon is currently at its tipping point. Statistics show that deforestation in the tropics reduces precipitation over the Amazon by around 10%, or 138 millimeter, every year. In the South Asian Monsoon region, the reduction in rainfall is even higher, with around 18% less rain recorded in India in a single year.”

How Does Deforestation Affect the Environment?

Counting on … Lent 21

2nd April 2025

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:10-11

The Earth provides a bountiful supply of food that can satisfy everyone. Ensuring a sufficiency for all underlies God’s wisdom, God’s purpose. Ensuring that everyone can access this sufficiency however requires that we humans act responsibly. The following sound advice comes from the German Advisory Council on the Environment.

“…sufficiency is a long-established concept in the environmental sciences. It is distinct from efficiency (less input per output) and consist (more environmentally friendly input). In contrast, sufficiency aims at the absolute reduction of outputs, ie a conscious collective self-limitation of ecologically critical goods and services. Secondly, sufficiency with the meaning of “enough” (lat. sufficere) can be linked to questions of justice: sufficiency aims to ensure that all people have sufficient access to natural resources. For people living in poverty, “enough” can therefore also mean “more”. Sufficiency requires “less” for resource-intensive groups. These are the middle and upper classes, especially (but not only) in rich countries. A life of dignity for all within planetary boundaries is therefore also the guiding principle of German and international sustainability strategies.”

https://www.umweltrat.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/EN/04_Statements/2020_2024/2024_06_Sufficiency_as_a_Strategy_of_the_Enough.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=2