For Churches - [test] A Rocha USA

For Churches

Care for creation together

Integrate care for God’s good creation into the life of your church community.

A Rocha USA is rooted in the Biblical story of God’s redemptive purposes from creation to new creation. As part of A Rocha’s international family of organizations, we are part of an over 40-year long story of working around the world to care for creation as Christians. Read more about our commitment to creation care.

Our vision is for Christians and churches in the US to be fully engaged in caring for creation as part of faithful discipleship and witness. Our learn, engage, support model provides resources for churches at any stage on this journey.

Discover tools to integrate care for God’s good creation into all aspects of congregational life, from worship and teaching to community engagement and lifestyle practices.

Learn

Get worship and teaching resources from the A Rocha network.

Access our growing collection of videos, small group studies, curriculum, and more for Christians of all ages on our Creation Care Resources page (coming soon!).

Engage

Hands-on conservation ideas and guidance for church-level action.

Start with Community: Love Your Place

Connect with others in the US and Canada integrating creation care into church life. Join Love Your Place, then join the “Church Engagement” interest group.

Find tools and resources for creation care engagement at church (link to resources page)

Get on the list of churches interested in getting more information about our developing Church Partners program, launching fall 2025.

Care for Church Buildings: Reduce Emissions

Climate Stewards USA has a resource page about why carbon emission reduction is important and beneficial for God’s human and non-human creation.
360Carbon has a free carbon footprint calculator for churches. Go to the Quick Start Guide for Churches to access the calculator.
Energy for Purpose (partner organization) helps churches reduce emissions, lower costs, and free up funds for missions. They can provide an audit of your church facility’s energy use with recommendations. Rebates available, depending on location. Contact Colby May: colby@consultlit.com

Local Community Engagement

Beach (or river or lake) Clean Up . Use our Clean Up Guide to run a Beach or waterway Clean Up as a service project (great for a youth group!). Resources include a reflection and prayer to prepare your group for the experience.

Care for Church Grounds

Coming soon!

Support

Pray and partner with us. Join our church network and let’s grow together as creation caretakers.

Pray. We invite you to pray for A Rocha USA, for our conservation projects where we are restoring vulnerable species, habitat, and communities, and for our programs. If you’d like updated prayer requests or a message to share with your congregation, please let us know by emailing us at churches@arocha.us.

Donate. If your church wants to support the work of A Rocha USA, email churches@arocha.us to let us know, or simply go here to donate.

If your church is located near one of our conservation project sites (Titusville, FL or Austin, TX), ask us about opportunities to volunteer or have a speaker visit to share about our work, contact us at churches@arocha.us.

Worship and Teaching Resources

Videos

Creation Care Study.

An introduction to the importance of creation care by Lausanne Global Classroom. Features global Christian leaders and creation care practitioners speaking about God’s Word (theology/scripture), God’s world (current science and environmental issues), and God’s work (how the church and Christians can respond to the need). 12 short videos (3-7min) with discussion questions. Download the pdf here.

All of Life

Rev. Dave Bookless (Director of Theology, A Rocha International) explores how Jesus’ redemptive work is about all of life in a four part video series. “The Big Picture” looks at the gospel story in five acts and asks us, “How big is your Jesus?” “Putting Down Roots” explores the human need to belong and our call to a particular place. “All of Life” is about God’s kingdom and tangible shalom, while “Being Church in the Real World” dives into our vocation. Four videos ~20 minutes each) (link to ARUSA YouTube Channel, embedded on website, are there study guides?)

Elements Of Hope.

Members of the A Rocha worldwide community explore the human role in caring for God’s creation. From discovering the beauty and purpose in the small things, to understanding the importance of planting roots in places long-term, “Elements of Hope” offers a powerful message of hope in the face of today’s conservation challenges. Five-part video series (each video, ~6 minutes)

Kids Curriculum: Wild Wonder

Wild Wonder is a VBS-style camp curriculum that invites children to delight in God as creator, redeemer, and sustainer of all things by immersing them in the wonders of the created world. Children will learn that all of God’s works are good and that they themselves are beloved creations. Purchase Wild Wonder here.

Workbooks & Bible studies

Liturgies of Restoration. A five week study on how our habits can shape us into people who serve, protect, and restore God’s earth. Each week juxtaposes a liturgy of restoration with a counter-liturgy offered by our culture. For individual or small group use. Get Liturgies of Restoration here. Written by a Rocha USA board member, Liuan Huska, for the Au Sable Institute.

Plastic in God’s Oceans. Scripture readings and discussion questions move through four topics: God’s purpose for the ocean, humankind’s relationship to the ocean, the suffering of the ocean, and the source of hope for the ocean. Download Plastic in God’s Oceans here.

Books from the A Rocha network

Unless noted, all titles are available for purchase on Amazon and many other booksellers.

Planetwise, by Rev. Dave Bookless, Director of Theology for A Rocha International.

A compelling biblical case for caring for the planet God made for his glory and his people’s enjoyment. A hopeful message that God can take our small and insignificant efforts and multiply them in his great plan.

Creation Care, A Biblical Theology of the Natural World, by Douglas Moo and Jonathan Moo.

A joyful vision of the world as God’s creation in which readers can rediscover who they truly are as creatures called to love and serve the Creator, and to delight in all he has made.

Refugia Faith: Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth, by Debra Rienstra.

On how Christian spirituality and practice must adapt to prepare for life on a climate-altered planet. Rienstra applies the concept of refugia – a place of shelter – to human culture and faith, asking, in this era of ecological devastation, how can Christians become people of refugia, not only in the biomes of the earth, but in our human cultural systems and in our spiritual lives?

A Place at the Table, by Jo Swinney and Miranda Harris.

An exploration of the transformative way that food and hospitality are at the heart of a shared life, and how they have shaped A Rocha’s story. Purchase from the Rabbit Room.

Under the Bright Wings, by Peter Harris.

The story of A Rocha as told by one of its founders. Chronicles the beginnings of A Rocha at a field study center in Portugal through the expansion into other countries and contexts.

Doing Good Without Giving Up, by Ben Lowe, Executive Director of A Rocha USA.

An exploration of the Christian’s call to follow Christ and do good in the world, even when success does not seem achievable. Not solely creation care focused. Includes study questions.

Creation and Worship Resources

Coming soon!

For an even deeper dive into A Rocha USA’s recommended resources

Find Community: Love Your Place

The Love Your Place online community can connect you to others around the US and Canada who are integrating creation care into the life of their church. First join Love Your Place. Once in, join the “Church Engagement” interest group to meet others doing this work, get ideas and inspiration, and attend the monthly Church Earthkeepers Meetups.

Care for Church Buildings: Reducing Emissions

Interested in managing your church property to reduce your carbon footprint? Use our tools to measure your church’s emissions, get support, and learn how to reduce them.

Climate Stewards USA has a resource page to learn more about why carbon emission reduction is important and beneficial for God’s human and non-human creation.
360Carbon is a free carbon footprint calculator for churches, offered by our Climate Stewards USA program. Check out the Quick Start Guide for Churches and get access to the calculator.
Energy for Purpose is a partner organization that can provide a thorough audit of your church facility’s energy use. Often, simple changes can lower emissions and reduce costs, freeing more funds for missions. Rebates available, depending on location. Contact Colby May for more information: colby@consultlit.com

Community Engagement

Beach Clean Up (or river or lake!). Use our Clean Up Guide to run a Beach Clean Up as a service project to take care of God’s creation (great for a youth group!). Additional resources include a reflection and prayer to prepare your group for the experience. This activity can take place on any body of water.

Care for Church Grounds:

Coming soon!

There are three ways your church can support A Rocha USA.

Pray. We invite you to pray for A Rocha USA, for our conservation projects where we are restoring vulnerable species, habitat, and communities, and for our programs (see our end of year campaign and vision) . If you’d like updated prayer requests or a message to share with your congregation, please let us know by emailing us at churches@arocha.us.

Partner. If your church is committed to actively learning, engaging, and supporting creation care and wants to partner with A Rocha USA, you can become an A Rocha USA Church Partner. Email churches@arocha.us to tell us more about your church community and that you’d like to become a partner, or please fill out this form to tell us more about your church community.

There are many ways in which churches can help A Rocha’s work, for example running events, promoting our story, praying, and providing financial support. The benefits are that you can:

Make a Difference

Make a difference to Christian conservation efforts globally

Networking

Join a network of churches and organizations committed to caring for creation

Opportunities

Receive access to resources and engagement opportunities to live out God’s calling to care for creation in your church

Churches are an important source of financial support for A Rocha USA. Churches from the US and around the world donate to us as an extension of their mission. To make a donation, go here or contact churches@arocha.us and we will provide guidance.