Appreciating the Land
Thursday, May 1, 2025
Author bell hooks (1952–2021) describes how many Black farmers in the South cultivated a spiritual relationship with the earth:
When we love the earth, we are able to love ourselves more fully. I believe this. The ancestors taught me it was so. As a child I loved playing in dirt, in that rich Kentucky soil, that was a source of life. Before I understood anything about the pain and exploitation of the southern system of sharecropping, I understood that grown-up black folks loved the land….
From the moment of their first meeting, Native American and African people shared with one another a respect for the life-giving forces of nature, of the earth. African settlers in Florida taught the Creek Nation run-aways, the “Seminoles,” methods for rice cultivation. Native peoples taught recently arrived black folks all about the many uses of corn…. Sharing the reverence for the earth, black and red people helped one another remember that, despite the white man’s ways, the land belonged to everyone. Listen to these words attributed to Chief Seattle in 1854:
How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land?… If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them?
Every part of this earth is sacred to my people. Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every clearing, and humming insect is holy in the memory and experience of my people.… We are part of the earth and it is part of us. The perfumed flowers are our sisters; the deer, the horse, the great eagle, these are our brothers. The rocky crests, the juices in the meadows, the body heat of the pony, and man—all belong to the same family. [1]
Franciscan Sister Thea Bowman (1937–1990) reflects on where she learned about our sacred responsibility for creation:
From the spiritual tradition of the black community, I learned that we are all God’s creatures.… I grew up with people who taught us how to respect and appreciate nature, to study nature’s secrets, to reverence the very soil beneath our feet. My people in the South were farmers and they learned patience. You can’t rush the seasons; you can’t call forth the rain.
They also learned not to waste! And that’s something we all need to pay more attention to today! It’s important not to take more than we need. Take your share and leave the rest for the others. If we live cooperatively the earth produces sufficiently to feed and shelter us all….
My people have been teaching us about Creation Spirituality for as long as I can remember. We just didn’t have a name for it. Respect and love for all of creation; stewardship of the earth and its resources; collaboration and cooperation; appreciation, gratitude, faith, hope and love for all of humankind—basic life-giving, life-sharing values and virtues. [2]
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Sarah Young
As you look into the day that stretches out before you, you see many choice-points along the way. The myriad possibilities these choices present can confuse you. Draw your mind back to the threshold of this day, where I stand beside you, lovingly preparing you for what is ahead.
You must make your choices one at a time, since each is contingent upon the decision that precedes it. Instead of trying to create a mental map of your path through this day, focus on My loving Presence with you. I will equip you as you go, so that you can handle whatever comes your way. Trust Me to supply what you need when you need it.
RECOMMENDED BIBLE VERSES:
Lamentations 3:22-26 NLT
22 The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
23 Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
24 I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”
25 The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.
26 So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD.
Additional insight regarding Lamentations 3:21-23: Jeremiad saw one ray of hope in all the sin and sorrow surrounding him: “The faithful love of the Lord never ends……Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin fresh every morning.” God willingly responds with help when we ask. Perhaps there is some sin in your life that you thought God would not forgive. God’s steadfast love and mercy are greater than any sin, and he promises forgiveness.
Additional insight regarding Lamentations 3:23: Jeremiah knew from personal experience about God’s faithfulness. God had promised that punishment would follow disobedience, and it did. But God also had promised future restoration and blessing, and Jeremiah knew that God would keep that promise also. Trusting in God’s faithfulness day by day makes us confident in his great promises for the future.
Psalm 34:8 NLT
8 Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!
Additional insight regarding Psalm 34:8: “Taste and see” does not mean, “Check out God’s credentials.” Instead, it is a warm invitation: “Try this; I know you’ll like it.” When we take that first step of obedience in following God, we will discover that he is good and kind. When we begin the Christian life, our knowledge of God is partial and incomplete. As we trust him daily, we experience how good he is!
