Last week I did a radio interview with my friend Gregory Berg on The Morning Show at WGTD in Kenosha. Â The topic was how to survive the holidays. Â I thought y’all might appreciate the interview. Â It’s about 50 minutes or so. Â Enjoy!
Category Archives: holiday
Why be sad?
Rev. Greg Alms over at Incarnatus Est has a thought provoking post on the English carol, On Christmas Night:Â It’s Here
Why should men on earth be so sad?
One paragraph in particular is worth repeating:
God gives us Christmas and like feasts of the church year not only to learn the doctrines and the messages but to sing, to feel and know the joy that comes with losing oneself in the lifting up of one’s voice.
The carol itself is of course true. Our sadness, be it seasonal, mourning over sin and loss, or clinical, is a result of sin ultimately. The problem for those of us who suffer from clinical depression is that our Lord’s birth does not instantly remove the blight up our heart and mind. Our Lord’s birth will remove all sickness, sorrow and disease. We are at the beginning of that great and mighty work of HIs. But we have not seen its conclusion at the Last Day. So until then, we wait. We wait as prisoners who know they will be set free. We wait and hope.
May our Lord’s return come quickly, and deliver us from this vale of tears.
-DMR
Christmas Affective Disorder (CAD)
Pastors get Christmas Affective Disorder. I’m surprised it’s not in some medical journal somewhere. Here are the symptoms as I have come to experience them:
1. A fear and even dread of the month of December. It looks. It is coming, sure as St. Nick. With this season comes about six more services, plus everything else that goes into the most stressful month of the year for most Americans.
2. A desire to avoid people. Now I think most pastors who suffer from depression go through periods where they simply want to stay away from people. Probably a result in part of compassion fatigue. But December is worse. For myself, I’d say 60% of the “counseling” I do as a pastor occurs in December and January. It’s crazy. I am afraid to talk to people, yet at the same time I know that they need me now more than any other time of the year. What to do?
3. Sermon meltdown. I’m sure that I recycle more sermons this month than any other month as well. How many more ways can you say Jesus is born for you? When you are stressed, under the gun for time, emotionally strung out, and running on fumes, it is very hard to prepare those memorable sermons. On top of that, there is a very real expectation that the sermons this time of year will be GREAT! The texts are rich and varied. There are more visitors than usual. The need is high. The bar is simply higher. It’s a perfect setup for a meltdown.
4. An elusive sense of Christmas cheer. I want to be cheerful and happy and seasonal. I really, really do. But it is hard. I feel guilty for not being happy and chipper. Which makes me even less happy and chipper. I look at all of the blogs of pastors who are rejoicing so much in Advent and the upcoming Christmastide, and I say to myself, “Why can I be more like them?” I LOVE ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS! Why can’t I get with the program and just be jolly?
So what to do? Here are a few things I try to remember:
A) Jesus comes whether I am Jolly or not. That is the real and true beauty of the season. Our Lord’s Advent is not based on my love, joy, peace, sermons, abilitytointeractwithotherpeople, or whatever else the ailment of the day might be.
B) In the same way, the Word of God is effective, regardless of my personal disposition at the time.
C) Moods change. Just because one day is bad doesn’t mean the next one will be. It may be better. It may be wonderful. That’s the beauty of each new day.
What are your thoughts?
-DMR
Christmas Affective Disorder (CAD)
Pastors get Christmas Affective Disorder. I’m surprised it’s not in some medical journal somewhere. Here are the symptoms as I have come to experience them:
1. A fear and even dread of the month of December. It looks. It is coming, sure as St. Nick. With this season comes about six more services, plus everything else that goes into the most stressful month of the year for most Americans.
2. A desire to avoid people. Now I think most pastors who suffer from depression go through periods where they simply want to stay away from people. Probably a result in part of compassion fatigue. But December is worse. For myself, I’d say 60% of the “counseling” I do as a pastor occurs in December and January. It’s crazy. I am afraid to talk to people, yet at the same time I know that they need me now more than any other time of the year. What to do?
3. Sermon meltdown. I’m sure that I recycle more sermons this month than any other month as well. How many more ways can you say Jesus is born for you? When you are stressed, under the gun for time, emotionally strung out, and running on fumes, it is very hard to prepare those memorable sermons. On top of that, there is a very real expectation that the sermons this time of year will be GREAT! The texts are rich and varied. There are more visitors than usual. The need is high. The bar is simply higher. It’s a perfect setup for a meltdown.
4. An elusive sense of Christmas cheer. I want to be cheerful and happy and seasonal. I really, really do. But it is hard. I feel guilty for not being happy and chipper. Which makes me even less happy and chipper. I look at all of the blogs of pastors who are rejoicing so much in Advent and the upcoming Christmastide, and I say to myself, “Why can I be more like them?” I LOVE ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS! Why can’t I get with the program and just be jolly?
So what to do? Here are a few things I try to remember:
A) Jesus comes whether I am Jolly or not. That is the real and true beauty of the season. Our Lord’s Advent is not based on my love, joy, peace, sermons, abilitytointeractwithotherpeople, or whatever else the ailment of the day might be.
B) In the same way, the Word of God is effective, regardless of my personal disposition at the time.
C) Moods change. Just because one day is bad doesn’t mean the next one will be. It may be better. It may be wonderful. That’s the beauty of each new day.
What are your thoughts?
-DMR
Kicking Depression in the Holiday Season
Below is a nice article I ran across about giving thanks during the upcoming holiday season. The next six to eight weeks are the most difficult for the clinically depressed. Food, alcohol, family togetherness, money, stress, all of these things come in large doses during this time of year. Here are a few tips:
Be Mindful. Know that this is a difficult time, pray over it, and prepare for it.
Be Intentional. The more you react to situations, the more likely they are to control you. Think in advance as much as possible about how you will handle difficult situations. Rehearse in your mind how you will address them.
Be Prayerful. Never underestimate the power of of intercessory prayer. Pray for yourself, and ask others to pray for you. Especially if you are going down the slope. Drop me an email if you need encouragement. Been there. Done that. I will reply if it is humanly possible.
What am I missing? Help me out here, readers.
-DMR
PS Read the article!
Kicking Depression: Giving thanks, remembering this is a wonderful life: “”
Kicking Depression in the Holiday Season
Below is a nice article I ran across about giving thanks during the upcoming holiday season. The next six to eight weeks are the most difficult for the clinically depressed. Food, alcohol, family togetherness, money, stress, all of these things come in large doses during this time of year. Here are a few tips:
Be Mindful. Know that this is a difficult time, pray over it, and prepare for it.
Be Intentional. The more you react to situations, the more likely they are to control you. Think in advance as much as possible about how you will handle difficult situations. Rehearse in your mind how you will address them.
Be Prayerful. Never underestimate the power of of intercessory prayer. Pray for yourself, and ask others to pray for you. Especially if you are going down the slope. Drop me an email if you need encouragement. Been there. Done that. I will reply if it is humanly possible.
What am I missing? Help me out here, readers.
-DMR
PS Read the article!
Kicking Depression: Giving thanks, remembering this is a wonderful life: “”