I subscribe (online) to a Chritstian magazine whose subject matter is computing and technology. It has been around for quite a while and is full of great resources for anyone and especially churches and ministries.

What seems strange is that their online distribution and email newsletters are quite lo-tech—it’s like so early 2000’s.

I get an email newsletter with intros to a variety of articles with a “read more” link which, when clicked, take me to a blank page on the web and begins downloading a PDF for me to read. And these aren’t even on-screen-friendly PDFs horizontally formatted with links either. Each one of these averaged about 500K. You can also download the entire magazine for a wopping 1.6MB. The PDFs were made from files that I presume would have been sent to a printer. And, if you happen to find the link to their website—where you would expect to see a full online version—watch out as it is riddled with dead links.

I wouln’t be so critical of this expcept that this is supposed a magazine who is pushing churches and ministries to use the latest technologies, but they are not up to speed themselves.

I think as Christian organizations we love to talk about how relevant we are, or how hi-tech we are, or how cool we are. When we have to say it we usually aren’t.

Today is Blog Action Day.

It is surprising that the planners of this event did not see fit to name it something more descriptive, like “Environmental Blog Action Day,” since that is the nature of it. By writing this post, I am officially participating in it.

I don’t often gravitate to the label of an environmentalist—mainly because of a lot of liberal baggage that goes with it—yet I do have a concern for the environment. Most of us do to some degree even if it is entrirely selfish.

As a Christian I find it ironic that many other believers seem to have little or know concern for the environment. It is as if they have adopted a fatalistic view that since it is all going to burn anyway, who cares! The irony is that one of the first commands that God gives is to be stewards of His creation. That means we as believers should be leading the charge when it comes to responsible behavior and the environment.

The rift between me and left-leaning environmentalists comes from different world views. To those on the left, we are viewed as evolutionary accidents that have multiplied out of control—living on the earth as parasites. Humans are blamed for everything from active Hurricane seasons, to earthquakes and flooding because we drive cars, eat meat and breath in oxygen. This view makes prosperous nations the enemy that must be brought into submission by the U.N., environmental treaties and nobel-prize winning Al Gore.

The martians must be abusing the enironment as well, since Mars is experiencing global warming also.

All of the politics and factions regarding the environment are making it an issue where it seems like you are being forced to take and extreme position.

I refuse to do that.

I will still drive my car. I will still throw things away. I will still eat meat.

But, I will put my recycling bin out by the street. I will try to reduce waste. I will even purchase energy efficient options when possible.

In short, I will try to live up to the Outdoor Code I learned in boy scouts:

As an American, I will do my best to
Be clean in my outdoor manners,
Be careful with fire,
Be considerate in the outdoors, and
Be conservation-minded.