Uniquely Equipped

By Carol Devine
Photo of Brooks Bernt

Written by Brooks Berndt Minister for Environmental Justice at United Church of Christ

I am of the opinion that the most important conversation to have in the United States right now is not another conversation about how nothing will ever change when it comes to climate change, school shootings, white supremacy, and fill-in-the-blank-issue-of-life-and-death-significance. The most important conversation right now is the opposite of this. It is about how do we collectively move out of the sense of powerlessness and helplessness endemic to our society.

If I focus solely on the causes of any particular societal ill, I can easily spin around and around in the nothing-will-ever-change rut of intellectualized apathy. With the climate crisis, I can cogitate endlessly on the immense powers wielded by governments and corporations. The problem with focusing only on the causes is that one loses sight of power that the rest of us have. For me, the scripture that helps me redirect my thought process is found in Ephesians 4. Here the emphasis is on building up the Body of Christ. As part of a “whole body” we are “joined and knit together,” while each of us is uniquely “equipped” for “the work of ministry.”

Within the Body of Christ, we each have a calling and a role that enables our individual and collective empowerment. Blessed Tomorrow  and ecoAmerica have resources with the knowledge needed to equip ourselves for our calling as we grow a movement capable of making a vital difference today.

group of people in a circle with hands reaching toward center

Subscribe

Stay connected and get updates from Blessed Tomorrow.

Subscribe

You May Also Like

October 2, 2023

In a historic moment, today 31 US denominations and faith organizations have joined together to launch One Home One Future, a multi-faith campaign to strengthen...

Read More

September 13, 2023

  Gloria D. Lozada De Jesús y Neddy Astudillo, Red Presbiteriana para el Cuidado de la Creación El clima está en transición y a veces...

Read More

August 21, 2023

  Black churches have long been a place of inspiration and refuge and many folks have traditionally relied on these religious communities to stay alive...

Read More
logo-transparent

 

Blessed Tomorrow is a program of ecoAmerica

 

© ecoAmerica 2006 – 2022 The contents of this website may be shared and used under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International License.