Although there's a massive game of rugby ahead this weekend, with the Rugby World Cup semi-final against Australia at Eden Park, there's really only one story that dominates the news in NZ - that of the Rena disaster off the shores of the Bay of Plenty.
We don't really know all the circumstances that led to a 47000 tonne contatiner ship with a full load of cargo ending up grounded on the Astrolabe reef on the coastline by Tauranga, but suffice to say, we know that it is a disaster of potentially enormous proportions with unimaginable consequences.
Over the years, Christians have not really been known for the environmental care and enthusiasm. However, right from the outset in the Bible, from the first book of Genesis and its first chapters, God leaves humans with the responsibility of looking after His creation.
Here's how Genesis 1:27-28 puts it:
"So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
So, how we respond when accidents or disasters happen?
1 - Recognise it's part of the widespread devastation and corruption that sin has caused.
2 - Realise that this doesn't negate our responsibility or duties.
3 - React accordingly & do whatever is within our powers/abilities to prevent God's creation from being harmed or damaged any further.
4 - Resist the temptation to build heaven on earth, being aware that only when God restores and finishes His new creation will things be made perfect again.
Of course, all the above applies to any part of God's creation, whether in a disaster situation or elsewhere. We must look after it, as best as we can, but be realistic and not fatalistic, knowing that until God reveals His new creation, that we will continue to face these challenges, disasters and opportunities
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