Dr Matthew Sleeth
The Death of a Sparrow
As I was preparing for the Asbury Seminary faculty retreat last month, I heard a loud thump against my study window. I opened the sash and looked out; seeing nothing amiss, I continued working. Two hours later, my wife Nancy came home. She told me there was a dead sparrow along the walkway, and asked if I could take care of it. It was as if God had dummy-slapped me on the side of my head: as I was writing … Continue reading
The Gift of Water
With so many of our brothers and sisters around the world suffering from the effects of either droughts or floods, I cannot help but think about water–an indispensable building block of life. Our very bodies consist mostly of water. Without water, life on this planet would not exist. God was extravagant with water–he covered nearly two-thirds of the planet with it. Some people have described the earth as a “water planet.” But there’s a problem: 97 percent of the water … Continue reading
Five Years in the Making
Greetings, my brothers and sisters. May the peace and joy of Christ be with you! I have never had bigger or more joyous news to share with you. Never has the gracious hand of the Lord been more clearly seen in our ministry. We are beginning two new programs which are the fruit of five years of work and seed planting. These programs will change the manner and the scale on which we operate. Before I begin telling you about … Continue reading
The Specks in Our Own Eyes
The Bible provides answers to the problems of every age. If the world is dying, God has something to say about it. He has something he wants us to do. Our proper course of action is woven into the very fabric of scripture. What we are supposed to do is not so simple that it can be spray-painted on a placard. Our moral responsibility to God, the earth, our neighbors, and the future cannot be discharged by simply voting for … Continue reading
Make Earth Day a Church Day
Last year Blessed Earth celebrated the 40th anniversary of Earth Day by hosting a simulcast event at Pastor Joel Hunter’s modern mega church in Orlando, Florida. More than 2,200 groups from every state and forty-five countries participated. This year we will mark the day at the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.–”the nation’s church” and the sixth largest cathedral in the world. Since President Teddy Roosevelt attended the laying of the cornerstone in 1907, the Cathedral has been a force in … Continue reading
A Sense of Place
Nancy and I are in a new home. I lived for eighteen years in one place and have moved eighteen times since then, the last move occurring just three weeks ago. Once our community was defined by the common ground we tilled and the crops we planted. I grew up in that kind of place, four miles from the nearest town. When Russian dogs began hurling over the corn fields at night in silent space ships (remember Sputnik?), everything changed. … Continue reading
A “Treehugger’s Theology?”
A number of years ago, I was told I had the “theology of a treehugger.” This was not said in a kind tone. So, I read through the Bible, to see what God had to say about trees. It turns out that, except for humans, trees are the most frequently mentioned living thing in the Bible. In the first chapters of Genesis, we see a relationship that will continue throughout the pages of history: God, humans, and trees. In Genesis, … Continue reading
God’s Rx for Health
All of life on earth is precious—a gift from God. With this gift comes responsibility. Like any gift, it is to be cared for and appreciated. As a physician, my job was to take care of people. In the emergency room, I saw a lot of what could go wrong with the human body. It was not my job to judge the patient—only to treat the disease. If a finger was dangling off, I sewed it back on. If children … Continue reading
Generation 2:15
“The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” (Genesis 2:15) In Genesis 2:15, God gave us our first job assignment: to tend and protect the Garden. One reason God wants us to take care of the planet is because we can’t live without it. Our very survival depends upon the health of the planet. Taking care of the planet is also a form of giving. Jesus … Continue reading
Ask the Animals
“But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.” (Job 12:7-10, NIV) God is in the life business. It’s … Continue reading
God’s Rhythm
Who Could Ask For Anything More? As an emergency room physician, I often worked twenty-four hour shifts. ER docs are not alone—today nearly one-fifth of the world population works in shifts. Our regular pattern of waking and sleeping—called circadian rhythms—are fundamental to mental and physical wellbeing. The resulting lack of regular sleep and rest is not conducive to a healthy home life, or a healthy body. Hypertension, peptic ulcer disease, cardiovascular mortality, higher incidences of work-related accidents and car accidents, … Continue reading
Milky Way/Bars
A friend of Emma’s recently told me that he rarely looks to see if the stars are visible at night. “I just don’t think about it,” he said. “My dad said he and his friends could find all the constellations and would play late into the night under the stars, but I didn’t grow up that way.” This young man is not alone. When I spoke at a college in Texas, I asked how many of the students in the … Continue reading
He Calls Them By Name
“He counts the stars and calls them all by name. How great is our Lord! His power is absolute! His understanding is beyond comprehension!” (Psalm 147:4-5, NLT) God created a universe of wonder for us to enjoy. He gave us the sun and the moon for warmth and light and stars to help us find our way. On the one hand, these heavenly bodies are reassuring, giving order to our days, our seasons, and our yearly calendar. On the other … Continue reading
Like Trees in Good Soil
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5, NIV) One of the few parables that Jesus overtly explains is the story of the four soils. As we sow seeds, some fall on the path and are eaten by birds; these are the truths that we hear and the devil takes away. The seeds that fall on … Continue reading
The Great Oil Kill
This past Sunday, many thousands of gallons of oil spewed into the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico and began its journey up the food chain. At the same time, 400,000 people sat in the midday sun and cheered as 33 race cars sped in a circle at 200 miles an hour toward the place they began 500 miles before. While dolphins gasped their last breath, the race fans cheered. It was Memorial Day weekend in America, but it was not … Continue reading
The Water Planet
“And God said, ‘Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.’ So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse from the water above it. And it was so.” (Genesis 1:6-7, NIV) Water is an indispensable building block of life. Our very bodies consist mostly of water. Without water, life on this planet would not exist. God was extravagant with water—he covered nearly two-thirds of the planet with it. Some people have … Continue reading
Blush
I was meeting with a group of graduate students from around the world. In a relaxed moment, the students started talking about what they found most striking about American culture. They brought up the size of our grocery stores, our religious and ethnic tolerance, and our friendliness. One woman explained that she was from a small farming village on the Korean peninsula. When she came to school in the U.S., it was her first time out of her rural setting. … Continue reading
And It Was Good
“In the beginning, God created the heaven and earth, and the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” (Genesis 1:1-3, NIV) This was the beginning of the beginning—the moment when God chose to create a universe for His own glory. God speaks the first sentence of a love story … Continue reading
Children of the Light
My first scientific encounter with light occurred in kindergarten. I can’t recall my teacher’s name, but I remember the experiment we conducted. Our class filled two clay pots with dirt. We planted bean seeds in both pots and watered them. We then placed one pot in a closet and shut the door and put the other outside in a courtyard, in the sunshine.After a number of days, both plants sent up shoots—and for a short while they resembled each other. … Continue reading
Making Earth Day a Church Day
LONGWOOD, FLA. — Tens of thousands of Christians joined together last night, on the eve of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, for a worldwide gathering supporting creation care. Their message: Caring for creation is biblical and honors the Creator. Sponsored by Blessed Earth, the event was simulcast live via the Web from Northland, A Church Distributed in Longwood, Fla., with people from 1,000 churches and organizations from 40 countries participating. Dr. Joel C. Hunter, Northland’s senior pastor, said that … Continue reading
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