Forest floors are beginning to fascinate me. I vaguely remember learning about the ecosystem of the forest in school and being so…well…not interested.
Now, I am searching for the ferns and vegetation resting under the towering trees. I want to know about the ecosystem. Most importantly though, they are simply a magnificent sight to behold especially as they climb their way up the mountains - so dark and mysterious with their little pools of lights scattered throughout. I am always dreaming of finding me a nice rock or a thick tree root to sit on and rest or write or read in the forest.
It’s a beautiful thought…until I think about bears, snakes, and bugs. The forest is not only a place of extreme beauty but a place that forces me to see and trust that God will provide.
I just read a National Geographic article about the Forest Gardens created by Native Americans. This was a concept I heard about recently. Native American’s cultivated forests to produce food and medicine for their tribe. These gardens attracted animals, which not only allowed for new seeds to enter and spread around the garden but also gave the Natives a hunting ground.
When you read about it, you can’t help but be amazed by how efficient the system is. We know about the forest gardens efficiency because the gardens are still growing and thriving without human involvement.
For too long, western thought on conservation believed that we must not touch nature or bother it in order for it to thrive. In the article, there is a quote by Tony Marks-Block, an anthropologist at California State University, East Bay, which states, “…it’s really critical to have people as part of the ecology. Excluding people from the land is not actually restoring the land” (Popkin).
I read that and automatically thought of Genesis 1:28-30:
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.
We are to have dominion over the earth. We are to steward the land well. Sin, of course, has caused the land to die while simultaneously causing our hands to destroy it. Sin leads our dominion to be a viscous, tyrannical cycle, but God’s grace cuts through this dark world and gives us hope.
God’s grace allows the dead soil to produce life. God’s grace allows for His blessing in Genesis 1 to continue to be a blessing and command for Christians throughout time. God’s grace allows for the earth to be restored. It’s by God’s grace that we are able to live.
So, Tony Marks-Block’s quote makes sense. We are not to separate ourselves from the land. God has given it to us and commanded us to have dominion over it. We are too rule it well. And how do we rule over it well?
Look back at Genesis 1:29: “And God said, “Behold, I have given….” We rule well by constantly looking to God to provide. We rule well by not relying on our rule and work but by completely depending on God’s rule and work.
Living off the land forces you to see that every plant grown is God saying, “Behold, I have given.” If you don’t live off the land (as I do not either), then looking at the awesome beauty of nature directs your attention to God’s words - “Behold, I have given.” It is obvious as you look at the money in your bank account, the food in your fridge, and the neighbors and family around you that God’s provision is stamped into everything that you say belongs to you - “Behold, I have given.”
Let us give thanks for God’s giving every day.
We have a gracious Lord who does nothing but give wonderful things to His children. Even when we sit on the dark forest floor terrified of bears, snakes, and bugs, God is providing for us and all the animals in the forest. When we feel as though we have fallen into a dark pit and that there is no way out, God not only provides a way out through us following Him but He also provides us sustenance for our journey (1 Kings 19:5-8).
Our God is good.
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Thank you for being here. May your tea be as warm as the sweet heat of June - unless you want to cool down then put some ice in it.
This is a great read to gather more information about Forest Gardens. I do not have the knowledge to cover it well, so please read it for more information.
Popkin, Gabriel. “‘Forest Gardens’ Show How Native Land Stewardship Can Outdo Nature.” National Geographic, 23 Apr. 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/forest-gardens-show-how-native-land-stewardship-can-outdo-nature. Accessed 11 June 2024.
The Lord takes and He gives. Blessed be tge name of the Lord!