10 Ways to Celebrate Earth Day as a Church

Here are 10 ways to make Earth Day a church day for your congregation, small group, or family.

1. Ask your Sunday school class or small group to study and discuss a Bible study on creation care. Talk about how your church can take a leadership role in caring for creation.
2. Organize a trash pick up before or after Easter celebrations.
3. Encourage a children's Sunday school class to plant a tree on church property.
4. Commit to leading a Sunday school class to study what scripture has to say about caring for the earth.
5. Dye Easter eggs using natural dyes such as beets, turmeric, or coffee boiled in water. (Additional recipes can be found on my blog.)
6. Candy advertising during the Easter season ($90+ million) is even greater than the weeks leading up to Halloween ($61 million). Consider substituting candy in easter baskets for coupons for rewards such as "lunch date with mom or dad" or "get out of one chore free."
7. The average shopper who celebrates Easter spends more than $135 on the holiday. Cut Easter spending in half and donate the savings to nonprofit organizations that promote good stewardship of the Earth.
8. Get up early for a sunrise Easter service and celebrate outdoors. It is our favorite worship service of the year, when we feel most connected to God's creation.
9. Instead of Easter lilies, purchase a small azalea or pot of pansies that can be replanted outdoors.
10. Take an inventory of the "tech-gods" in your life and consider taking a fast from email, TV, cell phones, or Internet shopping not only on Easter, but every Sunday throughout the coming year. Taking a true day of rest will change your relationships with God, family, and friends -- a gift you can open 52 times a year.

Nancy Sleeth is the author of Go Green, Save Green, the first faith-based practical book incorporating creation care principles into every area of our daily life. After a faith and environmental conversion experience, the Sleeths and their two children got rid of half of their possessions, cut their energy use back by more than two-thirds, and moved to a house with the same footprint as their old garage. The Sleeths reside in Lexington, Kentucky.