Man-ticipation. A new word coined by my husband, Ben, after our one day walking tour around Cleveland, Ohio recently. What does one do when given a day in Cleveland? We were pleasantly surprised by the beautiful old buildings, ornate statutes and new hipster parts of downtown. Of course, being a sports fan, I was also intrigued by the stately stadiums on the waterfront for the Cleveland Indians, Cavaliers and Browns.
With a quick walk through the Browns gift shop, we were greeted by a new shipment of orange and brown shirts with a prominent number 2 and the name "Manziel" on the back. Everywhere I turned, albeit, baby T-shirts, hats or adult tees...all had the name "Manziel" displayed. Several in the gift shop lamented their stressful struggle to keep up with Manziel T-Shirt orders. Later, in a quick walk downtown to the East 4th Street shops, my eyes were driven to another sports store with a new set of shirts...."Return of the King" and "Forgiven:The King Comes Home." LeBron James is coming home! Cleveland is a buzz! They are counting on Johnny Manziel and LeBron James to bring life to their city and teams. The anticipation was literally felt and seen throughout the city! I told my husband "These guys haven't even gotten here yet, and they are seen as sports saviors..."
It's funny, how we can put so much hope in people. People to help our teams win. People to make us feel better about ourselves. People who affirm us. People who can help us meet other people. People who help us succeed. People who make us look good. People that win. Man-ticipation. I'm all for hoping that LeBron and Manziel succeed. (I was born here.) My day in Cleveland was a reminder to me of how easy it is to place our hope in people. People don't always come through for us. People make mistakes. People don't always have the best intentions. People aren't perfect. People sometimes lose.
There appears to be a delicate balance. We are called by God to know and be known by other people. He did not put us on this planet to be alone. We are called to be in community, work, associate, live and love other people. However, we can not place our hope entirely in people People will let us down. People are people. God is God. God reminds us throughout Scriptures to place our hope in Him. To trust Him, not man. How about you today? Are you counting on people to come through for you rather than God?
"It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in people." Psalm 118:8
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.
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