Fiesta Wreath Invasion

Fiesta in San Antonio is officially over! The Fiesta wreath on our door couldn’t come down quickly enough. During Fiesta, many people place beautiful wreaths on their doors, as do we. The wreaths are bursting in color and cultural flair, usually adorned in handmade paper, plastic flowers, colorful mesh, and a PERFECT spot for a bird to build its nest.

Every morning, we’d open the door slightly and shake the Fiesta wreath, and greet the birdies. Sure enough, they would fly away immediately. Many a time, we’d leave or come home and forget the birdies. We were never quite ready for them to fly out right at us.

To top it off, over the two weeks of Fiesta, three times, a birdie got into the house and would fly from room to room. Each time, they overstayed their welcome. We found out that the Reacher grabber tool was the perfect implement for guiding the birdie out of the house.

The birdies might have thought the Fiesta wreath was a pretty and cozy place to choose for their new home. They didn’t know the temporary nature of the Fiesta wreath. They didn’t realize when it flew into the house that it was trapped from its real home, the great outdoors. They were just drawn to the beauty and glitz of our temporary Fiesta wreath.

I felt sorry for the birdies. They looked exhausted and irritated each time they had to leave their Fiesta wreath's temporary home.

Often, we can live a lot like these birdies.  We can be drawn to the beauty and glitz of the world around us, not realizing how temporary it is. Worldly ways often emphasize materialism, personal desires, and worldly success. Worldly ways are all about us looking good, being good, feeling good, and making an impression. Wordily ways, though glitzy and fun, leave us feeling empty.

When we find our home in Christ, we recognize Jesus as our source of belonging, security, and purpose. Our true home is not a physical house but a spiritual connection with the God of the universe. He’s not a temporary home but an eternal home. We can find comfort and strength with Christ as our home in difficult times, knowing He is our anchor and source of peace. We all long for safety and refuge—and we can find it only in God, our safe refuge.

As you start your day, take a moment to meditate and pray through these verses. Thank God for being your safe, secure, and eternal home.

Psalm 4:8 “In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.”

Psalm 16:8  “I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

Psalm 27:5 “For in the day of trouble, he will keep me safe in the shelter of his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tent; he will set me high upon a rock.”

Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”

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

Coach Pop

Last week, after 29 years of coaching the San Antonio Spurs, Coach Popovich retired and assumed the new role of President of Basketball Operations for the Spurs. Coach Pop had suffered a stroke in November and hadn’t coached since. In a statement, he said, “While my love and passion for the game remain, I’ve decided it’s time to step away as a head coach.”

Coach Pop is known and loved by so many people. Some years ago, I sent him a card and thanked him for how he responded to a certain situation. It wasn’t but a few weeks later that I received a nice card with his gratitude and thoughts on the situation. Coach Pop took the time to write me? Wow.

What I love the most about Pop is how much he poured into other people. So many NBA players had comments about Pop and the influence he had on their lives.

Dejounte Murray, a former Spur, said, “I love you, Pop, and I thank God for allowing basketball to bring us together. The best part, besides you being the greatest coach ever, is the way you care for everyone genuinely off the court. In my darkest days, you were always a shoulder to lean on and cry on, and I will never forget that. Shoutout to Coach Pop 4Life!"

DeMar DeRozan, a former Spur, said “My pops had passed when I was playing in San Antonio. We were stuck in Charlotte and I called the GM like “yo, bro, I’m about to fly home tonight, I’m about to try to get a plane outta here, I gotta get home. My pops just passed. I didn’t want anybody to know. I didn’t want it to be all in the media. Literally 90 seconds later, I hear a knock on the door. It’s Pop. Pop sat in a room with me and cried with me for about two hours. He was like, ‘I’m not leaving until you leave.’ And that just showed the person he was.”

I couldn’t help but notice Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili on each side of Coach Pop as he came to the podium at the press conference. It was obvious that Coach Pop had a huge impact on their lives. Coach Pop spoke about them, “Timmy and Manu, who have been here for all of my workouts at The Rock. They say it’s because they love me and want to be there in case I fall- I call it payback, cause they give the rehab people new ideas of things to do to me. You’re not fooling anybody, especially you, Timmy.”

So much love in this Spurs family! Such a hard time, but a beautiful time as Coach Pop retires from coaching. I shed some tears for sure. One takeaway for me? Pouring into other people has lasting effects. So many people’s lives are changed forever because of Coach Pop’s influence and love. He took the time to love, listen, and care.

Philippians 2:4 says, “Let each of you look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others." Each day, we have the opportunity to love, listen, and care for people. What if we saw the lasting impact that could have on others?

“You do not need to be extraordinary. You need to be ordinary, inhabited by the extraordinary life of God. A word, a meal, or a cup of cold water has the capacity to bring the life of God to this world and delight His heart.” Diane Langberg, PhD

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

Burden Bearing

We can become so overwhelmed by so many people’s problems. Why? Because people have problems. It doesn’t take too many conversations to see the enormous pain many people carry. At one time or another, we all will.

We all probably know someone with cancer or other physical issues. The physical burdens that many carry are more than we can imagine! Other people are going through hardship with their kids. Still others have emotional and mental health issues that are so overwhelming. Some just want to meet the right person and have a lasting relationship.

How do we help carry others’ burdens? How do we truly love people without feeling like the burden is on us? Galations 6:2 says, “Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”  If God calls us to do this, how?

We can take on responsibility for people or situations that God has not given us to carry. We can feel obligated to do certain things because we feel we ‘should’ instead of what God is calling us to. What would it look like to carry others’ burdens well, without being overburdened ourselves?

Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus gives an invitation to each of us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Jesus offers us His yoke when we're weary and weighed down, either by our burdens or others. Perhaps we’re carrying a weight God doesn’t want us to carry.

Just think…wouldn’t it be wonderful to walk through the day and lovingly carry people’s burdens with Jesus’ help? When I try to take on the burdens of one person after another, I can tune out, block out, or simply ignore those who are struggling. I can miss out on the blessing that God is giving me to lovingly care for them.

When I get that Jesus wants me to “yoke” with Him, my attitude changes. I have a sigh of relief. I’m not alone. I can care for others with Jesus’ help! In Matthew 11:28-30, a yoke was a farming tool, made of wood to connect the necks of two oxen. The Greek word is chrestos, meaning “well-fitted.” A poorly fitted wooden yoke around your neck would be a massive challenge. It would be a burden, heavy and hard to bear. A well-fitted yoke, however, would be a joy as you walked deeply connected to Jesus. Jesus would carry those burdens with you and guide you.

As we’re yoked with Jesus and experience His presence, we can practice the ministry of presence with others. Sometimes, the best thing we can do for others is just to be with them. We can listen. We can care for someone’s physical needs.  We can pray with them and pray for them.

As we yoke ourselves with Christ, we won’t grow weary in bearing the burdens of others.

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