Discussion Guide: You Have a Part to Play – Creation Care

PRAYER

As we gather, let’s focus on building relationships and learning how to walk together in what God has called us to be and do. Let’s begin with prayer.

Does anyone have prayer requests or testimonies of how God has been moving in your life that we can celebrate together?

YOU HAVE A PART TO PLAY TOPICS

Fame Culture :: Homelessness :: Creation Care :: Politics :: Modern Day Slavery :: Our Common Humanity

THIS WEEK

In this week’s message on Creation Care, we explored how our living—intentional or careless—affects the world’s people, places, and things. Our care for all creation can foster a thriving ecosystem or contribute to its decline.

Consider the guiding question of Sunday’s message:

What if people took the call of God to be stewards of all creation seriously?

Let’s open our hearts to God’s love as we discuss creation care and the part we are called to play.

Reflect on your own life: In what ways have you taken or not taken seriously the call to care for creation as God intended?

OPENING THOUGHT

Ask one person to read this quote from Jane Goodall aloud:

“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do and don’t do to care for all creation makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.”

What resonates with you in this quote, and why?

How does humanity’s perception of God’s creation influence our world today?

Do you find your perception of God’s creation aligning with or diverging from the views of the majority? In what ways?

In complete transparency and without any shame, guilt, or condemnation, do your daily choices and habits align with God’s heart for stewarding creation? If not, what do you see as the gap between God’s heart and your intentions versus your actual lifestyle?

SCRIPTURE

Read Psalms 24 aloud and reflect on how it highlights our role in addressing creation care as difference makers:

"1 The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof,

    the world and those who dwell therein,

2 for he has founded it upon the seas

    and established it upon the rivers.
3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?

    And who shall stand in his holy place?

4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,

    who does not lift up his soul to what is false

    and does not swear deceitfully.

5 He will receive blessing from the Lord

    and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,

    who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah
7 Lift up your heads, O gates!

    And be lifted up, O ancient doors,

    that the King of glory may come in.

8 Who is this King of glory?

    The Lord, strong and mighty,

    the Lord, mighty in battle!

9 Lift up your heads, O gates!

    And lift them up, O ancient doors,

    that the King of glory may come in.

10 Who is this King of glory?

    The Lord of hosts,

    he is the King of glory! Selah" 
—Psalm 24

How does Psalm 24 speak to embodying God’s heart for sustainability, justice, and compassion?

Upon reading verse 4, why is the world sometimes so beautiful yet so broken?

In light of verse 3, how might your actions show a tendency to prioritize your interests over God, the well-being of others, and creation?

Why do people often pursue fleeting pleasures in creation rather than seeking the Creator, the one true King of glory mentioned in Psalm 24?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

As we explore creation care and our role as difference makers, let’s reflect on the following questions to help us understand how we can actively steward creation and positively impact the world.

From the very beginning of Genesis 1, we learn that God designed the world to function in perfect unity, peace, and flourishing. God created places and things and made man and woman in His own image as the crowning glory of His work.

“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 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.”” —Genesis 1:27-28

God invites them into a relationship with Him through the cultural mandate—His call for humanity to build and cultivate all creation.

How has God called you to contribute to His cultural mandate of building and cultivating creation?

Which areas—environment, finances, time, or relationships—do you struggle to steward as God intended, and why?

In which areas—economic, social, religious, or political systems—do you find it challenging to steward as God intended, and what do you think contributes to that struggle?

“‘For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. ‘” —Colossians 1:19-20

What does Jesus come to reconcile, and what does reconciliation mean in this context?

How is our reconciliation with God connected to the restoration of creation to its original design?

CLOSING THOUGHT

As Christians, we are called to appreciate the beauty of creation and actively engage in its care. We aim our heart’s intent to do our best to reflect how things were in the beginning and embody God’s love and purpose in every aspect of our lives for His glory.

This call to stewardship influences our relationships, communities, and environment, transforming our actions into tangible expressions of faith and acts of worship, even amidst the brokenness caused by sin.

Let us commit to being stewards of His creation, envisioning how things could be, and anticipating the day when all things are made new.

How can you invite God into every area of your life each day to fulfill His cultural mandate for creation care, ensuring that His Kingdom comes and His will is done on Earth as it is in Heaven?