God of Rest, God of Breath

I love walking outside during the summer in Minnesota. My wife, Lori and I frequently go for walks on trails in the woods. We recently took a walk around Rice Lake. The green plants and trees were so vibrantly green as we walked around the lake. It was a beautiful space to be in and just breathe.
It made me think of Genesis 1:31, “God saw everything that God had made and indeed, it was very good.” What a wonderful gift to be thankful for — to be in a beautiful place on a beautiful day, walking with someone you love.
As people though, we don’t seem to get to stay in a place like that for long. My newsfeed carries the nagging daily reminders of the troubles we humans collectively find ourselves in. The book of Revelation seems a more appropriate picture painted of the earth being burned up, polluted, and destroyed. But hope pops up in unexpected places!
I remember reading about the positive effect that the pandemic has had on the environment in terms of pollution. Because of the slowdown in travel and production, pollution and greenhouse gases had been cut way back. But now, the ramping up of the world economy is again threatening to erase those environmental gains.
Does the health of the environment and the viability of the economy need to be in direct conflict? I think that many people are hoping for a technological fix maybe around the way we use energy to be the way that we can solve this dilemma. But I think that the Scriptures show a more deep-seated solution to the problem of human beings overusing, overdriving, over working the resources of this planet. The hint is found in the next few verses that come in Genesis 2:3, “and God rested.”
God rests. Not only that, but when God provides a framework for the life of God’s people, God builds in rest as a part of their weekly cycle of life. Sabbath rest. In Deuteronomy 5, with the giving of the 10 Commandments, rest is built right in. Rest is given so that those that work can be renewed and breathe. Rest is a matter of justice for the servant and the work animal and the land.
Can we apply this gift in the case of our environment? God the Creator has entrusted the care of the creation to us. If we are to take the way of healing and renewal that God is modeling for us, then it comes with both action and rest. Perhaps the people and nations of this world can hear this voice of the Scripture calling us to rest, to find renewal and just breathe.