The planet is heating up, ice caps are melting, oceans are acidifying, and if you’ve ever found yourself spiraling over it all, you’re not alone. Climate anxiety—a chronic fear of environmental doom—is surging, especially among young people. According to a 2021 Lancet study of 10,000 youth in 10 countries, 59% said they were very or extremely worried about climate change. More than 45% said climate-related distress impacted their daily lives. So no, it’s not just you nervously Googling “how long do humans have left.”
But while panic might feel like the only rational response, followers of Jesus are called to something deeper: active, embodied hope. Not denial. Not cynicism. And definitely not throwing our hands in the air and saying, “Well, God’s just going to burn it all anyway.”
The Theology of Shrugging Is Not Biblical
There’s a particularly fatalistic strain of Christian thought that views environmental concern as unnecessary—because, as the logic goes, the Earth is temporary. Jesus is coming back. So why bother recycling?
But that idea has more in common with escapist theology than the teachings of Christ.
In fact, Scripture is packed with environmental implications. Genesis 2:15 doesn’t mince words: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” The Hebrew words used—abad (to serve) and shamar (to keep, preserve)—imply stewardship, not exploitation.
Jesus Himself, though not handing out carbon emissions charts, consistently referenced creation in His parables and lifestyle. He walked everywhere. He noticed the lilies of the field and the birds of the air. He calmed storms. He multiplied fish but also told His disciples to gather the leftovers. In other words: Jesus paid attention.
So if your faith isn’t big enough to include the fate of the planet, it might be time to zoom out.
The Numbers Aren’t Pretty
Let’s be real. The climate crisis isn’t some abstract future threat—it’s already here.
- 2024 was the hottest year ever recorded, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service
- One million animal and plant species are currently threatened with extinction, per the UN’s Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity
- The World Health Organization estimates 250,000 additional deaths per year between 2030 and 2050 will be attributable to climate change through malnutrition, malaria and heat stress
The crisis is global, but it hits the most vulnerable the hardest—low-income communities, Indigenous groups and people in the Global South who contribute the least to carbon emissions but suffer the most. If Christians are serious about justice, they can’t stay silent.
That’s because the climate crisis is a justice crisis. Loving our neighbor today means caring about the very air they breathe and the water they drink.
So What Can Christians Actually Do?
Step one: Don’t retreat into guilt. Or worse—apathy disguised as theological superiority. The point isn’t to single-handedly reverse the climate crisis with your reusable straw. It’s to live faithfully in the tension of a broken world and take responsibility where you can.
“The Earth is the Lord’s,” says Myal Greene, president and CEO of World Relief. “If we really believe that, then we need to take responsibility for how we treat it. Creation care is not a fringe issue—it’s a core part of Christian discipleship.”
That discipleship shows up in action, not just vibes. After all, hope is a discipline. It’s something we practice—not something we feel when everything is fine.
Here are a few places to start:
- Engage locally: Join a local environmental group, support green infrastructure projects or show up to city council meetings when climate policy is on the docket
- Vote with your wallet: Support sustainable brands, eat less meat and reduce fast fashion consumption (yes, that means maybe not buying that $9 Shein haul)
- Push the Church: If your church hasn’t mentioned creation care since VBS, speak up. Ask about sustainability practices. Invite climate experts to speak. Normalize green theology from the pulpit
Most of all, reject the lie that caring for creation is somehow “liberal” or extra credit. It’s not. It’s part of loving God with all your heart, soul and mind—and loving your neighbor as yourself.
Climate Action Is Kingdom Work
Climate grief is real. But so is resurrection. Christians are resurrection people—called to resist despair with defiant hope.
The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 8 that “creation itself groans,” longing for restoration. But that groaning isn’t the end of the story. Scripture points to a renewed Heaven and Earth—not an escape pod, but a restoration.
In other words: God isn’t done with this place. So neither are we.
So compost your banana peels. Write your representatives. Talk to your church. And when the climate doomscrolling gets too loud, remember: hope isn’t naivety. It’s rebellion. And Jesus is still in the business of making all things new.
