When Everyone Leans on You and Nobody Asks How You're Doing

There's a loneliness that comes with being the person everyone leans on. In this episode, discover what God said to Moses when he hit his limit, and why the load He designed for you was never meant to be carried alone.In 2022, 65 percent of American pastors reported regular feelings of loneliness and isolation. That was up from 42 percent in 2015, meaning the share of pastors describing themselves as lonely had grown by more than half in roughly 7 years. Among pastors who felt lonely, 26 percent had experienced thoughts of self-harm. Among pastors who felt connected and supported, that number dropped to nearly zero.Most of those lonely pastors had never told a single person.The people in their pews had no idea. They brought their prayer requests on Sunday morning and leaned on their pastor through the painful things in their own lives, and assumed he was fine because he always seemed fine. He was the one you called. That's just who he was.This episode is for the person who is always the one everyone leans on and nobody ever asks how they're doing. It's also for the person who is leaning on someone and has never thought to ask.Being the person everyone depends on comes with its own kind of loneliness. You're surrounded by people. They trust you and need you. You make the calls and absorb the weight of the decisions. You show up no matter what. And nobody asks.Moses felt every bit of this. In Numbers 11, he had been leading an entire nation through the wilderness and something in him broke. He told God he'd rather die than keep going. God didn't rebuke him for it. He looked at what Moses was carrying and gave him 70 people to share the load. God's response to exhaustion was community, more people to carry it with him.This episode also includes something personal. There have been decisions I had to make in my ministry that I knew wouldn't be popular. There were seasons I was close to handing in my resignation. What kept me going, more than anything, was 2 or 3 other leaders I could call when I needed to talk. Just to say it out loud to someone who understood. Those relationships have been the difference more than once.Through the Barna data and Numbers 11, this episode makes the case that the load God designed for you was never meant to be carried alone. The provision is there. But you have to be willing to ask for it.BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING, YOU'LL DISCOVER:Why the loneliness of being the person everyone depends on is its own kind of isolation, and why it tends to stay hiddenWhat God's response to Moses's exhaustion in Numbers 11 reveals about how He provides for leaders who are carrying too much2 concrete challenges, one for the person everyone leans on, and one for the person doing the leaningThe load God designed for you was never meant to be carried alone. He provides for it. But someone has to ask.Share This Episode:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/236Need Prayer? Leave me a voicemail:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/voicemailWant to keep these devotions coming? Please consider supporting this podcast.https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/support/Rate and Reviewhttps://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/reviews/new/Connect with BartFacebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/dailydevotionsforbusylivesWebsite: https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.comFeeling spiritually drained? Start here. Download your free copy of my eBook Making Time for Jesus here.Mentioned in this episode:Join Our Private Facebook CommunityIf you're looking for a place to connect with other Daily Devotions listeners and pray for each other, I'd love for you to join our private Facebook community group. Come find us at https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/group