A Leaf Story

One day in the woods, the most beautiful red leaf came lightly falling through the forest canopy. As it drifted down, it spied a green, leafy bush below.

“That would be a fantastic place to land!” thought the red leaf, and it fluttered down toward the bush, where it gently landed.

Safely in the bush, the red leaf began meeting its new neighbors, the green leaves. They were very kind, and soon the red leaf had forgotten that it had begun its life in a tree. It felt like it fit in perfectly. So perfectly that it began volunteering to work around the bush, work that it saw the green leaves doing.

And how joyful was that work! It was so nice being involved. The green leaves loved the red leaf. The red leaves loved the green leaf. The green leaves invited the red leaf to stay. “Become one of us,” they begged. “You can be grafted in!”

But while the red leaf loved the green bush, the red leaf also liked its independence. The red leaf liked the idea that it could come and go whenever it pleased, that it could once again take to the freedom of the sky. In the meantime, the red leaf faithfully worked in the green bush.

As the days went on, something happened. The red leaf wasn’t quite sure when it started, but one day it noticed that it wasn’t really enjoying doing the work that the green leaves all did. And its luxurious red color, which the green leaves had all noticed, was turning a bit brown. And though the red leaf had taken pride in how flexible it was, now it noticed that at certain times, its points felt, well, rather brittle.

So things continued – for the green leaves, everything was as usual. But for the red leaf, every day was harder and harder to face. Nobody else seemed to feel it, but the red leaf was getting tired of life in the green bush.

And then one day, the red leaf decided to leave. Just as suddenly as it had arrived on the green bush, and in precisely the same manner, it left, taking once again to the air. But this time, there was no other bush to land in. The red leaf landed on the ground, where it was promptly raked up, piled into a giant pile, and unceremoniously burned.

What had gone wrong?

Though the red leaf lived in the green bush, the red leaf never accepted its place there. The red leaf had the opportunity to be grafted in, but it thought of its “freedom” and declined. Therefore, without any connection to the bush and to its root, the red leaf was slowly dying. By the time it fell from the bush, it was already dead, and the only thing left to do was for someone to rake it up and burn it.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown in the fire and burned.” - Jesus; from John 15:5-6

Isolation vs. Connection

This week I read a statistic that said that 70% of pastors fight depression constantly. For full disclosure, I should note that while I do not fight it constantly, I do have my seasons of depression. Thankfully, running is often an extremely effective “medication” for this.  When I heard this statistic, I shared it on Facebook, and I got some interesting responses.

Among the responses were lack of privacy, politics (on local church levels as well as district and conference levels), poor time management skills, poor boundaries and/or the inability to say no, and an ability to hide depression well. One of the big problems for pastors is one of isolation; we are often held to an impossible standard, all the while being subject to unreasonable scrutiny and criticism for everything conceivable under the sun. If you add to that a tendency toward perfectionism (at least this is something I deal with; believe me – I am way harder on myself than any of you are on me).

As I was thinking about this, I realized that isolation is increasingly problematic for many people, not just pastors, but that’s why God organized us into the church! For me, I have found wonderful respite in my “clergy cluster” – a community group made up of fellow pastors who support each other, encourage one another, and even collaborate on sermon series. I have found a renewed sense of United Methodist connectionalism, but even moreso, I have experienced the love and support of my colleagues, and I no longer feel isolated. I believe God has made that kind of connection available for all of us, and He called that connection “Church.” We do not have to be isolated! God is so good!

No Christian needs to spend their time depressed and isolated. Jesus Himself calls us to “Come unto me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” And many times, Jesus takes the form of fellow Christians who come alongside and share the burden.  

The best thing for pastors (and everyone else!) to remember is that Jesus will carry our burdens. When things are at their most difficult, seek Jesus. The Bible tells us that God rewards those who earnestly seek him (Hebrews 11:6b). That is my prayer for all of us.

If you suffer from clinical depression, there is no shame whatsoever in receiving treatment. But for the daily malaise that many people experience, there is nothing like experiencing God’s Goodness to bring you through. I have found that when I spend my time communing with the Lord, things fall into perspective. There are times when I find myself in need of Truth, God’s Truth, which counteracts and nullifies the world’s lies. When you encounter those lies, speak God’s Truth – speak it aloud (there is power in the spoken word; after all; God made us in His image, and God spoke the world into existence). When I am reminded of how much God loves me, I am humbled and blessed. When I think about the fact that I am a vessel of the Holy Spirit, that God Himself has chosen to live in me, I am overwhelmed with gratitude.

Another thing that I have found helpful when I’m down in the dumps is service. When I am serving someone else, I usually find myself being the one who gets uplifted. And it’s no wonder; Jesus says that when we serve “the least of these,” we are, in fact, serving Him. So we find ourselves in the immediate presence of Jesus Christ. How can we be anything but filled with joy?

Remember if you are one who struggles with depression that you are not alone. Tell someone who loves you and who you can trust to uplift you. Allow your church family to pray for you. And receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, who is a Spirit of Power, a power greater than everything we face on this earth!