Exploring the Connection Between God's Creation, Mental Health, and Spiritual Growth
Being in nature helps our mental health and spiritual development.
When I am in nature, I feel better emotionally. Whether I am looking at the vineyards surrounding where I live or on a beach along California’s Central Coast, my mood lifts. I recently wrote an article about how the environment affects our mental health. The effects can be positive or negative. Studies show that being in nature helps our mental health. One study found that natural outdoor environments were statistically significantly tied to better mental health.
I am reading a book called Original Blessing by Matthew Fox. He talks about the incarnation, of God coming into the world as a first-century Jewish man named Jesus. “The doctrine of the incarnation is itself an invitation to all believers to love the earth, cherish it, find the divine in it,” Fox says. In other words, the incarnation of Christ invites us to see God in His creation.
When you gaze upon a tree, remember that God created it. See His imprint in the leaves and branches. Look at the sky and see God’s touch in the stars and moon. God’s art is everywhere. When I was a child, I thought the phrase from the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father, who art in heaven,” meant that God created art from heaven. God does indeed create art from heaven. His art is the sun, moon, stars, plant life, animals, soil, oceans, humanity, and so much more.
“For Christians, the mystery of the incarnation consists in the revelation that God became totally enfleshed, as thoroughly animalistic as ourselves.” Matthew Fox
Cutting ourselves off from blessings
When we forget about the beauties of God’s creation, we cut ourselves off from a source of blessings to our mental health and spirituality. God’s first incarnation was in creation when He created the universe. Genesis 1:1-2 in the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) says, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
Christianity emphasizes Genesis 1:26 which says that humanity has dominion over the earth. Doing so denies that God is present in creation, and causes Christians to shun creation spirituality. We need to appreciate and see God in His creation. By doing so, we will take better care of it, and that will bring us mental health benefits. Consider that Australian researchers found a link between depression and dryland salinity. That indicates that environmental problems might drive the high degree of mental health issues in Australian populations in degrading ecosystems.
Perhaps the problem American Christians have with appreciating creation is that our culture emphasizes an inward journey, which only emphasizes the self. An inner journey is taken into something–prayer, music, art, etc. We can take an inner journey while appreciating nature. For example, in a seminary class taken on a Saturday, the professor asked us to spend an hour outside letting nature speak to us. I sat near a tree on campus that I loved. As I gazed at it, I thought about how leaves on the tree die and fall off every autumn, but come back in the spring. I realized that the pattern of death and rebirth mirrors Christ’s life. In that moment, I truly understood that creation speaks of spiritual truths.
“When humans cannot welcome the cosmos and reverence it as the blessing it is then we will fight it.” Matthew Fox
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Resources
The Surprising Connection Between the Environment and Mental Health by Gina-Marie Cheeseman
Original Blessing: Putting Sin In Its Rightful Place by Matthew Fox
If you have questions for me or need a word of encouragement, email me at thepossiblepath@gmail.com.
In my early years until I was about eight years old I grew up in Templeton near all the vineyards. I lived in the foothills of AC with an ocean view throughout the 2000s, but moved following my divorce. The central coast is definitely gods country and he lets you know it. Blessings to you! 💕💫🤗