LIKE A PINE TREE
"Like a slender pine leaning on other trees for support, I had been relying too much on those around me to shore up my self-worth."The other day I googled "pine tree LDS" because I wanted to find ways I could relate my favorite tree (it's an obsession, really) to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I came across an article on lds.org that the Lord knew I needed to read. Not only did this article use pine trees as a metaphor, but it talked about a subject that is very prevalent in my life right now.
As I've discussed before, I struggle with depression. It's something I've decided to be very open and honest about. I'm open and honest about it because so many people struggle with depression and if I can relate to or help just one person deal with their depression, then I've done what I want to do.
Anyhow, we've all heard the metaphor about how pine trees stay so strong and beautiful all year long. Winter doesn't phase them, winds don't phase them, etc. Their roots are so strong and they are so strong themselves that they stand tall and beautiful throughout the entire year. I've loved this metaphor, but as I've thought about it, I've realized how unrealistic this metaphor is. Does God expect us to be strong all the time? Of course He doesn't. God knows and understands that sometimes we are sad, sometimes we make mistakes, sometimes we are angry, sometimes we doubt, and sometimes we fail. And He is so okay with that. He wants us to experience all of those feelings - so we can get the most out of this time we have on earth.
Anyways, this article that I read (link in the first paragraph) gave me another way to look at pine trees. The author of the article discusses her struggle with depression. Even though she outwardly had a "perfect" life (happy marriage, children, money, etc.) she wasn't happy... she was very depressed. She was given the advice to go somewhere outside, in this beautiful earth, and just ponder and pray. She was very skeptical about doing this, but she decided to go for it. While she was there, she noticed that the very tall and slender pine trees were leaning against the other trees. If the other trees were not there, these trees would have surely fallen over. As she thought about these trees, she realized that she was the same way. She had solely been leaning on everyone else and their testimony in her life. She didn't have a testimony of God's love for her and she wasn't happy. She was just going with the flow of things, following along with everyone else, and hurting so much inside. Realizing this changed her point of view so much. She continued working towards happiness, and things got a lot better.
So, I absolutely loved reading this. It made me ask myself the questions and questions similar to, "When was the last time I truly felt God's and the Savior's
love?" "Have I been relying on my own testimony or my friend's and family's?" The past few months I've definitely struggled with feeling close to God. But, luckily I've found myself constantly learning things and taking steps to get closer and closer to Him. So, when I read this article, it helped me realize even more that I need to strengthen my own personal relationship with God and rely on that. There will always be times on our lives when the only testimony we have to rely on is our own, and that's how we can be truly happy. God and Jesus Christ both love us so so so much. And it is so important that we know that and always remember that.
So, sometimes in life you feel like a strong pine, with it's roots deep in the ground, standing strong an beautiful. But often we do feel like those slender pines, that are leaning on others, and want to fall over. And that is okay. Both of these trees are okay to be. And both of these trees are beautiful, in my opinion. There will always be times when we feel so sad and so distant from our Heavenly Father. I pray that each of us can gain a stronger relationship with Him and our Savior, Jesus Christ, so when we do have these hard times, they can seem that much easier.
“It is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.
Anyways, this article that I read (link in the first paragraph) gave me another way to look at pine trees. The author of the article discusses her struggle with depression. Even though she outwardly had a "perfect" life (happy marriage, children, money, etc.) she wasn't happy... she was very depressed. She was given the advice to go somewhere outside, in this beautiful earth, and just ponder and pray. She was very skeptical about doing this, but she decided to go for it. While she was there, she noticed that the very tall and slender pine trees were leaning against the other trees. If the other trees were not there, these trees would have surely fallen over. As she thought about these trees, she realized that she was the same way. She had solely been leaning on everyone else and their testimony in her life. She didn't have a testimony of God's love for her and she wasn't happy. She was just going with the flow of things, following along with everyone else, and hurting so much inside. Realizing this changed her point of view so much. She continued working towards happiness, and things got a lot better.
So, I absolutely loved reading this. It made me ask myself the questions and questions similar to, "When was the last time I truly felt God's and the Savior's
love?" "Have I been relying on my own testimony or my friend's and family's?" The past few months I've definitely struggled with feeling close to God. But, luckily I've found myself constantly learning things and taking steps to get closer and closer to Him. So, when I read this article, it helped me realize even more that I need to strengthen my own personal relationship with God and rely on that. There will always be times on our lives when the only testimony we have to rely on is our own, and that's how we can be truly happy. God and Jesus Christ both love us so so so much. And it is so important that we know that and always remember that.
So, sometimes in life you feel like a strong pine, with it's roots deep in the ground, standing strong an beautiful. But often we do feel like those slender pines, that are leaning on others, and want to fall over. And that is okay. Both of these trees are okay to be. And both of these trees are beautiful, in my opinion. There will always be times when we feel so sad and so distant from our Heavenly Father. I pray that each of us can gain a stronger relationship with Him and our Savior, Jesus Christ, so when we do have these hard times, they can seem that much easier.
“It is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.
” // Helamen 5:12
I hope you all have a wonderful week and remember how much God and His son, and our brother, Jesus Christ, loves you. I love you, too.
Xoxo, Kelvin McKay Findlay
