Today's Soul Food —March 31 - April 1
 

March 31

"God called the dry land Earth...And God saw that it was good" Genesis 1:10.

In chapter one, The Earth's Vital Signs, (State of the World 1988, W.W. Norton & Company) Lester R. Brown and Christopher Flavin give a frightening overview of what we have all done to pillage God's good earth. Forests worldwide are dying off to air pollutants; there is a dramatic depletion of ozone over Antarctica every September and the hole becomes wider each year, translating into possible lowered crop output and a rise in skin cancer and eye problems; loss of vital topsoil for many reasons; and on and on. It's a alarming assessment of a problem none of us can ignore anymore.

We are our brother's keeper in so many ways. One of these ways to to take seriously our personal stewardship of whatever land we are fortunate to possess, for the land is not ours but God's. When the land goes, so goes the quality of life. To sin against the earth is to sin against God and each other. If we observe it in the different lights of the day the sunrise and sunset perhaps we can renew our commitment to preserve this spacious and gracious gift from God.

"That the sky is brighter than the earth means little unless the earth itself is appreciated and enjoyed. Its beauty loved gives the right to aspire to the radiance of the sunrise and the stars." Helen Keller, My Religion, 1927. These words of love for God's earth come from a sensitive soul who could neither see nor hear. Franklin Roosevelt was also very concerned about the soil and, in a letter to the governors dated February 26, 1937, he urged uniform soil conservation laws. He also said, "European countries...treat timber as a crop. We treat timber resources as if they were a mine." We could amend that to: "[We] treat [all] resources as if they were mine." It is imperative that we develop a different mind and mineset about our God-given resources.


Pat Nordman ©


April 1

"...Man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires" James 1:20; "Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret it leads only to evil" Psalm 37:8.

We expect to conquer the mountains in life and we are brought down by bee stings. And we get very angry about it, too. After all, if God keeps putting minor things like contrary people and events in our way, how can we prove ourselves in the major events?

The key phrase here is "does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." In an excellent article on anger, Hendrie Weisinger points out that we have an anger problem if

1) we get angry six or seven times a day;
2) we stay angry for long periods of time;
3) we become aggressive when we are angry;
4) if anger is disturbing our personal relationships.

She also suggests that we make a checklist for anger control:

1) five things that make us angry, from angriest to least angriest, and then mentally rehearse how we will handle it the next time;
2) write down our own counterpunch remark for each distorted perspective we harbor;
3) practice a relaxation technique to develop a conditioned calm response when needed;
4) practice temporarily removing ourselves from angerprovoking situations;
5) practice "I feel" emotional statements; start a "feeling journal";
6) use visual aids. Actually see our reactions, and when we start to lose control, regain our composure and regroup;
7) Make a list of the six most important people in our life and then ask ourselves, "How do I direct my anger with this person?" This will help us to develop a strategy for directing our anger; and
8) think of something funny that we can do during these situations so they can become at least a little bit amusing. (From The Orlando Sentinel).