Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Biblical Earth Stewardship: God’s Call to Care for Creation

By Cade Shadowlight
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Last time (article link), I laid out why common sense Earth stewardship beats ideological environmentalism hands down. Unlike environmentalism that pushes regulations or climate alarmism, biblical Earth stewardship respects human needs and God’s sovereignty. Let’s dig into scripture—it contains God’s playbook for tending His creation. 

I highly recommend you look these verses up yourself and read the exact quotes in full context. Here, I'll give you my brief notes on each. 
  • Genesis 1:28 - We are to subdue the Earth, and rule over it. Human lives first, but not only. Good rulers don't destroy their kingdoms. 
  • Genesis 1:31 - God calls His creation “good.” Nature is important, and has value on its own merits, not just for its usefulness to us.
  • Genesis 2:15 - The big command from God for Earth Stewardship. Mankind is installed by God as the caretakers for His creation - "to work it and watch over it" - to cultivate it for our use and guard it with care (the word is shâmar in Hebrew).
  • Leviticus 25:2-7 - The seven year cycle mirrors the seven day creation week. Six days of work, one day of rest for us. Six years of work, one year of rest for the land. This resting of fields is an important concept in sustainable agriculture, and helps maintain healthy soils. 
  • Deuteronomy 20:19 - Trees provide food, produce oxygen, and offer many benefits. God forbids their destruction as a war tactic, underscoring their value.
  • Job 12:7 - Says to ask the beasts, they’ll teach you. Nature teaches us resilience and balance, like how ecosystems recover from hardship.
  • Isaiah 24:4-6 - Mankind can, and will, bring destruction upon the Earth, and suffer ourselves for it, as our numbers decrease, and "few people are left.
  • Psalm 24:1 - The Earth and all of creation still belongs to God, not us. Some Christians believe God gave us the Earth. He did not. He made us caretakers over His creation, not owners.  
  • Proverbs 12:10 - It is regarded as righteous to care for animals, wicked if one doesn't. 
  • Romans 8:19-22 - Creation, nature, is a reflection of coming glory. 
  • Colossians 1:16-17 - God as the Creator of all things, including the Earth and nature. Shall we destroy what God created? 
  • Revelation 11:18 - A promise to reward the servants and "destroy those who destroy the Earth. 
Most of these aren’t direct ‘plant trees’ commands, yet they reveal creation tied to God’s purpose, as seen in Genesis 2:15 and Psalm 24:1, with humans as guardians and caretakers. It’s about balance: both humans and nature are important. Let’s live out this balance by supporting practices like sustainable farming, energy efficiency, and church-led community gardens—efforts that honor God’s creation without embracing secular agendas.

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My favorite and most often used bible is the American Patriot’s Bible, The Word of God and the Shaping of America (Amazon link). The NKJV translation is literal, accurate, and easy to read for modern folks. This study bible weaves U.S. history with biblical events, offering articles and notes that highlight God’s role in our nation’s founding and ongoing story. I personally rely on it for my studies—click the link or photo to explore it for yours!


Friday, April 11, 2025

Bigfoot Survival Strategies: Learning from the Legend

By Cade Shadowlight 
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This article combines two of my interests: survivalism and cryptozoology. Combining these topics creates an interesting and thought-provoking analysis. I hope you enjoy reading this unique article as much as I enjoyed writing it.

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Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch, is one of the most enduring and fascinating legends in North American folklore. If a large, bipedal ape-like species manages to survive undetected by modern science, they must be skilled at both survival and evasion. While the existence of Bigfoot remains a subject of hot debate, the many tales and supposed behaviors of this creature do offer some intriguing survival strategies. Here are survival lessons we might glean from the lore surrounding Bigfoot:

1. Bigfoot's Mastery of the Environment
  • Camouflage and Stealth: Bigfoot is quite elusive, easily blending into the forest environment. Lessons for survivalists:
    • Learn camouflage techniques for both clothing and behavior to avoid detection by wildlife or potential threats.
    • Move silently through the woods, understanding how to step, where to place your feet, and how to avoid breaking twigs or rustling leaves.
    • Learn by doing - if you want to learn camouflage techniques and how to move silently in the woods, the best way to do so is by actually getting out into the woods and practice these techniques. Consider hobbies like hiking, backpacking, camping, and hunting.
  • Knowledge of Terrain: Bigfoot knows his forests intimately. Lesson for survivalists:
    • Familiarize yourself with local geography, including escape routes, water sources, and edible plants. This knowledge can help in navigation and resource gathering.
    • Know your local areas of potential dangers (such as high crime areas, water contamination) and opportunities (potential resources such as local farmers markets, or nearby lakes & streams for water and fish).

2. Resource Utilization
  • Natural Shelter: Bigfoot constructs shelters from natural materials. Lessons for survivalists:
    • Build shelters using branches, leaves, and mud when necessary. Understand how to make different types of shelters for various climates (lean-tos, debris huts, etc.).
  • Foraging: Bigfoot likely lives off a diet of fish, deer, nuts, berries and other wild edibles. L
    essons for survivalists:
    • Learn to identify edible plants, fungi, and berries. Understand the seasons for harvesting and the signs of poisonous plants.
    • Learn how to hunt and fish. Again, the best way to learn is to do.

3. Survival Through Isolation and Adaptation
  • Avoiding Human Contact: Bigfoot's supposed avoidance of humans can be a strategy:
    • Maintain situational awareness. Pay attention to the potential threats and opportunities surrounding you. (situational awareness and the OODA loop article link).
    • Keep a low profile in survival situations where human interaction could be dangerous or detrimental. This includes knowing when to stay hidden or move silently.
    • The Gray Man strategy within the survivalist community is about blending in and not standing out in your surrounds.
  • Adaptation to Harsh Environments: Living in harsh conditions:
    • Adapt to extreme weather by understanding how to stay warm with natural insulation, finding or creating microclimates, and knowing how to start a fire in various conditions.
    • Practice by camping in winter, hiking in rain, etc.

4. Communication and Signaling
  • Vocalizations/Tree Knocking: Bigfoot is often attributed with unique calls or sounds, and engages in "tree knocking":
    • Communication is important. Although typically thought of as a solitary figure, evidence actually suggest that they typically stay in small, loose knit family groups, and communicate over distances with vocalizations and tree-knocking.
    • Communications gear: Having the ability to communicate over distances with others is important. For humans, this could mean anything from phones, to radios, to emergency whistles, depending on the situation.
    • Develop your own communication signals with your family, group, and tribe. Learn to mimic animal sounds to mislead or distract.
  • Leaving Signs: In some accounts, Bigfoot is said to leave signs like stick or rock structures, perhaps marking territory, travel routes, or areas of danger or resources. Lesson for survivalists:
    • Learn to use natural materials to leave messages or markers for others or yourself if you need to return to a spot later.

5. Physical Fitness and Endurance
  • Strength and Agility: Descriptions of Bigfoot often emphasize its physical prowess. Lesson for survivalists:
    • Maintain your health and physical fitness to handle the rigors of survival. This includes endurance for long treks, strength for building and carrying, and agility for navigating rough terrain.

While Bigfoot may or may not be real, the survival strategies derived from the tales of this creature emphasize living harmoniously with nature, understanding your environment deeply, and using every aspect of your surroundings to your advantage. Survival isn't just about having the right gear; it's about adopting the mindset of being part of the natural world, much like Bigfoot seems to do. By embodying these strategies, survivalists can learn to navigate, live, and even thrive in environments that are as wild and mysterious as the legends themselves.

My previous article: Cryptozoology for Survivalists - Myths, Legends, and Practical Wisdom (article link).
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Two books by Dr. Russell Jones that I own and recommend to those interested in the mysterious world of unknown beasts: The Appalachian Bigfoot (Amazon link) and Tracking the Stone Man: West Virginia’s Bigfoot (Amazon link). "The Appalachians are an ancient and mysterious mountain range, whose peaks at one time rivaled the Himalayans. The mysteries of these mountains have been cataloged by Native American tribes and settlers alike. One of these mysteries is that Bigfoot inhabits these parts."