The recent earthquakes that we have experienced in the Philippines make us question about why God allowed an earthquake to happen.
Earthquakes play a vital role in maintaining the balance and habitability of the planet. If the world had been designed without earthquakes, life as it exists today could not survive.
The following points, supported by scientific insights, reveal how earthquakes are essential to the world God designed.
First, God uses earthquakes to renew the Earth.
Without the movement of tectonic plates, the planet’s crust would never be recycled. Continents would slowly erode and sink, leaving behind a flat, ocean-covered planet with poor soil. Without this renewal, plants and animals would struggle to survive.
Earthquakes act like pressure valves that release seismic energy: stored elastic force built up by moving plates.
A Magnitude 7 quake releases energy equivalent to millions of tons of TNT (USGS, 2023). This controlled release keeps the Earth’s crust active instead of collapsing under stress.
They also release gases and fluids trapped beneath the surface: carbon dioxide, methane, and even water. These materials rise through cracks opened by fault movements, maintaining the balance of the atmosphere and nutrient cycles (USGS, 2021).
Furthermore, earthquakes bring minerals and heat to the surface. As hot fluids move through these cracks, they deposit valuable resources like gold, copper, and fertile soil.
Earthquakes also release heat from friction, forming magma that enriches volcanic regions like the Ring of Fire.
Finally, they manage crustal stress changes, redistributing energy to nearby faults and preventing massive buildups that could destroy the planet’s structure. In God’s design, earthquakes preserve balance and renewal within creation.
Second, earthquakes help keep our climate stable.
Earthquakes are linked to the carbon cycle. When tectonic plates shift and collide, carbon from the atmosphere becomes trapped deep in the Earth’s crust. This process regulates carbon dioxide levels, keeping the planet’s temperature suitable for life (NASA, 2019).
Through this natural balance, God sustains a climate where His creation can flourish.
Third, earthquakes keep the Earth’s heart alive and its magnetic shield strong.
The Earth’s magnetic field, our invisible shield, is part of God’s protective design. It works like a giant dipole magnet, with north and south poles roughly aligned with the planet’s rotation. This magnetic field extends thousands of kilometers into space, forming the magnetosphere that protects life from the Sun’s charged particles and harmful cosmic rays (NASA, 2020).
This field is generated by the geodynamo in the Earth’s core, where molten iron and nickel circulate due to heat and rotation. The movement of these metals creates electric currents, which in turn produce the magnetic field. This magnetic field is dynamic and variable, sometimes shifting or flipping poles. Its strength changes with time, showing that the Earth is alive and active beneath our feet (USGS, 2022).
Earthquakes reflect that dynamic system, reminding us that God designed a world in motion; a world that protects and sustains life through its very movement.
Fourth, earthquakes shape the beauty and diversity of creation.
The mountains that rise high above us, the islands that are in the seas, and the mineral-rich valleys we cultivate all exist because of tectonic activity. When the crust moves, new landscapes are born. These provide diverse habitats for countless species and resources for human civilization.
In this way, earthquakes contribute to the variety and richness of life. Without them, Earth would be dull and barren, lacking the beauty, diversity, and resources that sustain both life and progress.
In recognizing God’s wisdom in designing a dynamic and living Earth, we are also called to act responsibly. Earthquakes are part of God’s creation, but their effects become disastrous when human beings neglect integrity and preparedness. Therefore, we must build faithfully by following the proper building codes, using quality materials without corruption, and ensuring that every structure reflects honesty and care for human life. We must also practice safety protocols, such as “Drop, Cover, and Hold On,” to protect ourselves and others when the ground shakes. In doing so, we become stewards of God’s creation; trusting His design while doing our part to safeguard life.
As the Psalmist declares, “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it” (Psalm 24:1). | NWI
References: NASA. (2019). The carbon cycle. https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/CarbonCycle
