Crazy Busy

Does your life seem crazy busy these days? Maybe you wonder like I do “How did I get this way?  Why doesn’t there seem to be enough hours in the day? Why is it hard to slow down and really listen to people who need me? 

I supposed if you or I were in a support group to deal with our busyness, we would start by saying  “Hello, my name is _____________ and I have hurried sickness.”

No one wants to admit it. Few want to deal with it. Breaking free from hurried sickness isn’t easy. There’s just so much to get done!

Jesus knew busyness. Check out this passage in Mark 1:35-39 “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.”  The crowds wanted Jesus all the time! If He were here today, He’d probably have way more emails and calls than any of us.

Kevin Deyoung in “Crazy Busy” writes “Jesus knew the difference between urgent and important. He understood that all the good things hecould do were not necessarily the things he ought to do.” Just when everyone was waiting for his healing touch, he was out praying in a desolate place. Do you suppose that Jesus is modeling a way of dealing with busyness?’

It seems like Jesus knew His priorities. He didn’t get caught up in pleasing people, although He had compassion for people. His relationship with His Father drove His way of life. So, if Jesus needed this time with God, why wouldn’t we? Why do we avoid God in our life? Do we really think that we can do life without Him?

DeYoung writes “We hate being busy. But we may never hate it enough to change." How about you? Do you hate it enough to change?

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.

Redeemed!

Who would have thought that Tiger Woods would walk off the Masters Course with a win?  Everything about it was beautiful. His response. Hugging his kids, girlfriend and loved ones. The crowds’ response. A spectacular moment in sports, for sure.

The victory electrified golf fans and also people like me who don’t care so much about golf. The Tiger Woods saga is a long tale of woes that began the night he crashed his car in 2009, leading to revelations of infidelity, the breakup of his marriage and years of struggling to overcome sexual addiction and back pain. Tiger had been struggling for more than a decade and at one point, two years ago at the Masters dinner for champions, said these words “I’m done.”

Helen Raleigh, wrote “His personal failings reminded us that we are all fallible. His physical failings remind us how fragile our own bodies are and how little control we have. Like a funhouse mirror, his outsized fall forced us to star back at a reality we didn’t want to face.” Raleigh went on to write “Wood’s redemption on Palm Sunday serves a good reminder for all of us that no matter how far we fall- or how flawed we are- we can all be redeemed.”

Have you reached a point in life when you uttered the words ‘I’m done?’ You know, that point when you realize you just can’t be good enough or strong enough or perfect enough? That moment when you know you botched it and have to admit it? That moment where you know you need help?

This past week, I lamented about my own sinful tendencies. It was very, very real. Then, I remembered the beautiful reality of what took place Easter! Jesus took every last one of my sinful tendencies and desires to the cross- 2000 years ago! Because of Jesus Christ, I have experienced redemption!

Easter is behind us, but life is ahead of us. Your response to Easter and all that it’s about makes all the difference in the world.

Redeemed 

Seems like all I can see was the struggle

Haunted by ghosts that lived in the past

Bound up in shackles of all my failures

Wondering how long is this gonna last

Then You look at this prisoner and say to me “Son

Stop fighting a fight that’s already been won”

I am redeemed, You set me free

So I’ll shake off these heavy chains

And wipe away every stain now I’m not who

I used to be

I am redeemed

I’m redeemed..... 

(Song by Big Daddy Weave)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

"But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; on him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and by his stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.

Wake Up!

I can sometimes struggle when I read the Bible. I get mad at the disciple dudes in the story leading up to Easter. Why couldn’t they just trust Jesus? Why in the world would they let Jesus down at such a crucial time? Check out Matthew 26:36-40:

“Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” And He took with Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.”

And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour?”

So, not only did Jesus’ disciples let him down once, but it happened twomore times! Again he came back and there they were, with their eyes pretty much closed. He called them out the third time….”Are you still sleeping and resting? Behold, the hour is at hand and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.“ (Matthew 26:45)

Knowing what was about to happen, I can’t imagine all that Jesus must have felt at this moment….

Facing the pain of betrayed by a disciple

Feeling deeply grieved to the point of death

Watching His friends fall asleep when He needed them the most

Contemplating the pain of what was about to take place the coming week

To be honest, I think we humans would like to avoid what Jesus endured altogether. It makes us uncomfortable. We squirm in our chair. We hide from the emotion of it all. Why? Because entering into the pain, betrayal and excruciating agony of Jesus is makes us beg the question 'why?' We can’t fathom WHY He’d willingly march to the cross. We’d rather think about our grocery list for Easter.

Remember when I said I get mad at the disciple dudes? Why couldn’t they just trust Jesus? Why did they let Jesus down over and over? Well, I ask that of myself. Why do I let Jesus down? Why do you let Jesus down? How have we fallen asleep in our hearts? Have we missed altogether what Jesus did for us?

Wake up.  What Jesus went through was very, very real. Don’t fall asleep this Passion Week. Happy Easter!

Here’s an invitation to walk through Holy Week with Jesus by reading these accounts from Scripture:

Monday- Philippians 2:6-11

Tuesday- Isaiah 49:1-4

Wednesday- Isaiah 42:1-4

Thursday- Matthew 26:14-16

Friday- John 13:12-16 and Isaiah 53:1-5

Saturday- Romans 6:3-11

Sunday- John 20:1-9

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.

63 Seconds

So, Coach Pop made headlines this week with a new record. He was thrown out of the Spurs-Nuggets game in record time, 63 seconds. 

So, only 63 seconds, Pop? What??? I’m not sure his techs were legit, but who am I to say? We all have been in Pop’s shoes. We want to make a wrong right and we react. Self-control is NOT easy. We can be our worst enemy.

How do you practice self-control? I think we begin by celebrating those areas of our life where we actually HAVE self-control. We know that self-control is possible, because we’re experiencing it! We might find it easy to exercise each day or eat healthy or limit online activity. But, usually, there are several culprit areas of our life where we’re NOT so good at self-control. We usually like to avoid those areas! Cussing at the car that cut you off. Surfing the web for an hour at work. Allowing negativity to affect your work. Gossiping about someone at work. Keeping a budget. Let’s admit it, self-control isn’t easy!

I was so intrigued by getting a handle on self-control, that I bought a book written by a fellow twitter dude, Drew Dyck. His book is called “Your Future Self Will Thank You: Secrets to Self- Control from the Bible and Brain Science.” Dyck writes “Self-control isn’t the sexiest topic. After all, people don’t write songs about self-control. It doesn’t grab headlines. It won’t spark controversy. In fact, when self-control is functioning properly, it helps people avoid scandal and embarrassment. It’s an invisible virtue operating behind the scenes to sustain a healthy, holy life.” (pp. 213, Drew Dyck)

Cultivating self-control has the potential to improve your own life and bless those you know and love. That’s right, your self-control habits affects others, for sure! Seek to live a life marked by self-control. As Drew Dyck writes, “Your future self will thank you. And others will too.”

“O God, help us to be the masters of ourselves that we may be servants of others.” Sir Alec Paterson

“Now more than ever, one moment can destroy- in one day-your life’s work. The essential virtue: self-control. You can have all the talent in the world, and draw a ton of attention for it, but if your ability is not matched by strong character, you are in a precarious place. A lack of self-control has dire consequences. It’s not just politicians and pastors who need to heed his warning. For all of us, even a momentary break in willpower can cause irreversible damage.”  Owen Strachan

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.

Don't Be A Fool!

I strategize ahead of time to have the most possible impact for April Fools Day. My prankster gene goes into full force for this holiday. I love when my pranks are a total surprise, thus joyfully expressing those priceless words “April Fools!” (My favorite was joining with a group of friends to set up a garage sale at a friend’s house unbeknownst to her. We hauled in all sorts of junk and even advertised! People starting arriving early for the good deals. She walked outside in disbelief but then joined in the fun. I think she even made some money.)

April Fools jokes are fun, for sure. However, it’s a good time to catapult our thinking to some unique characteristics of what a fool really is. The common definition of a fool is: A person who acts unwisely or imprudently; a silly person, someone who lacks wisdom, dogmatic, closed to new thinking, resents discipline, and refuses to learn. I assume few of us, however, would categorize ourselves as a fool.

I can honestly say, looking back on my life, that there were times I acted like a fool. I was unwise and made bad choices. What was I thinking?Perhaps I wasn’t thinking! Sadly, I think we can all get caught in making the same bad choices over and over and wonder why we get the same results.

Many assume that as we get older, we naturally get wiser. Not necessarily. Sure, there’s wisdom in experience, but there is also a unique wisdom that is captured as we take God and His Word seriously.

I’ve been studying King Solomon in a bible study. King Solomon made some foolish mistakes in his lifetime. He acted unwisely and his choices affected many. But, he also made some good choices! King Solomon had a dream and God gave him a “whatever you want” offer. Solomon prayed a childlike prayer and asked God for wisdom and insight. God was so pleased in what he asked for that He gave Solomon him more than He asked for! (1 Kings 3:5-14)

You may get fooled today, but don’t be a fool. Be open to advise from others, especially from those you trust and can give counsel. Seek others out to learn from. Seek a mentor for your character. Study God’s word for insight and wisdom. Happy April Fools Day!

“A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.” Proverbs 18:2

“A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.”Proverbs 29:11

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7

Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain for the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.