the wobbly leaves

I was sitting in my tree stand the other day. It was the middle of the day - not the best for encountering a deer necessarily, but a great time to just take in the wonder of the world and talk to God about life.

So, it, of course, is fall here in Indiana and the trees around the stand are an amazing array of colors, the smells are almost overpowering of the fallen leaves and the woods. It is like God decided to explode his color pallette and scent factory all over!

So, there i sat and as I took it all in i noticed a funky little leaf. It actually was 3 leaves, on one stem. They were sitting leaves down, with the stem up, wedged in the crook of the stem, on a branch. With each gust of the wind, the 3 little leaves swayed back and forth and yet they did not move. They just went on swaying back abd forth, back and forth, back and forth. These little leaves had already fallen off the tree, and yet they had not fallen to the ground. I thought it was kinda sad.

Here were all their brother and sister and cousin leaves falling to the ground, where they would be used by the forest to make that beautiful smell of the forest and eventually become fertilizer to make the next year's soil even richer - their lives would be used up for the life of the forest - a wonderful and meaningful purpose. Either that or the others were still on the tree - some were there giving life to the tree - taking the energy from the sun and giving it to the tree - a wonderful purpose and a great life to be sure.

Then there was this one silly little clump of leaves - it was almost like they could not decide what they wanted to do - they were not heading back to the tree to give life into it and they were not falling to the ground, where their lives could be used to make something else much better. Nope, there they sat, determined to stick it out where they were, flapping in the breeze, no purpose, no meaninf, nothing, just watching out for themselves!!

So, the more i looked at the 3 little leaves - wobbling around - i felt sad. i saw myself in those 3 little leaves. i saw America in those 3 little leaves. i saw a man who talks about giving himself, but lives in luxury. i saw a man who talks about sacrifice, but who wines when he gets hungry. i saw a country that talks about loving a neighbor but does nothing about it. Truth is, it is how we act, how we live our lives, that tells what we really believe and think is the most important thing - not what we say, or what creeds we recite, or what church we attend or what humanitarian group we are a part of.

You see, the more i say one thing and do another, i find that i am just like that cluster of leaves - pitiful - unable to go one way or the other - unable to make my life really count for anything, unable to live for any purpose - just flapping in the wind.

i choose to not live that way - i choose to give my life - to jump off the tree and make a difference in the world around me. Is is hard? Yes. There is always someone silly hunter who commes along and tromps on me - i get bumped and jostled and even peed on sometimes (sorry if that's too crude). But the way of life that REALLY matters is always one that requires some being tromped on, some pain.

But, it is sooooo worth it. I meet hundreds and hundreds of people whose lives are empty - meaningless - they realize that their lives really matter for very little - they are flapping in the wind - never really comitting to anything. But, when they begin to see that there is something More to life than just the usual, they come alive - their lives begin anew - with fire and passion and excitement, with healing and restoration and even joy. You see, when I jump off the flapping branch and choose instead to dive in head first to be used, i find myself face to face with people who need help - and when they get help, embedded in the life and love of a person, they find meaning and value in their lives that they did not know before.

This is where life explodes with wonder! This is the heart of More than more.

We choose to no longer follow the usual way if selfishness and flapping around with whatever breeze happens to blow by - no we choose to give up our lives, to jump in head first, to make a difference!

Tomorrow this is what we will be doing at McAllister Recreation Center - we will be giving away hundreds of pairs of shoes, and dozens of prescriptions and doctor visits. We will be jumping off the branch - and it will be fantastic!

If this kind of life sounds like something you'd like to learn more about, we would love to have you join us next Thursday - 11/4, from 6:45-8:00 PM, at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - of course there will be free childcare for your kids - we hope to see you!