Simple Pursuit

Have you heard of Zach Meerkreebs? I hadn't either, until a few weeks ago. Zack is on staff at Envision and a volunteer soccer coach who on February 8, addressed the student body at Asbury University. He had only spoken to the student body twice.

Here’s a portion of the improvised sermon on love: “Some of you guys have experienced radically poor love. Some of you guys have experienced that love in the church. Maybe it’s not violent, maybe it’s not molestation, its not taken advantage of- but if feels like someone has pulled a fast one on you” Then he uttered the invitation that ignited a movement: “If you need to hear the voice of God- the Father in Heaven who will never love you that way, that is perfect in love, gentle and kind- you come up here and experience his love. Don’t waste this opportunity.” In a final, kind of corny throwaway line, he said “I pray that this sits on you guys like an itchy sweater, and you gotta itch, you gotta take care of it.” (The FreePress, February 19, 2023, by Olivia Reingold)

Meekreebs said later he was certain that he had “totally whiffed” the sermon, and immediately got off stage and texted his wife, “Latest stinker. I’ll be home soon.”

God was doing something that Meekreebs didn’t even realize. This revival isn’t at all about Meekreebs. God uses ordinary people, whiffs and all, to bring about his purposes.

Some of us have experienced radically poor love too. Too many of us have experienced that kind of love in the church. Bullying. Abuse. Betrayal. Mean people. People that didn’t look at all like the character of Jesus Christ.  Maybe it wasn't violent, maybe it was. But it gave you a poor taste of the church. 

I pray for anyone reading this blog, that You would also hear the voice of God, the Father in heaven. He's so different than us humans who will eventually "whiff" a lot of things in life. God's love is perfect and is always trustworthy. You see, I think many people want nothing to do with the church because they’ve been disappointed and disillusioned by both the people and leaders IN the church. I will forever be challenged by Mahatma Gandhi’s quote “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

Perhaps the Asbury Revival is so beautiful because there’s just a bunch of normal, no-name people gathering to seek more authenticity, prayer, pursuing God, humility, and repentance. Maybe God is calling us to radically seek Christ and begin to take on his character too! Maybe this revival is calling each one of us to consider our relationship with God. What’s holding you back from God?

Let’s come back to the heart of worshiping the only One who deserves our worship. May each one of us be challenged by what’s going on with the #AsburyRevival as well as the revivals that are spilling out at other universities over the country. God's up to something.

Take a listen: The Heart of worship (Live) Matt Redman: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4RUjGsTfks

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

Spiritual AI

My husband, Ben, and I had a bit of fun with ChatGPT over the holidays. We called a few people and sang them a very personalized song, whether it be their birthday or just because. The songs were full of goofiness, fun lyrics, great rhyming, and surprisingly personal. The recipients of our lovely songs didn’t know how we had quickly become songwriters!

ChatGPT is a computer program developed by Open AI (an artificial intelligence laboratory) that stimulates human conversation and provides helpful and informative responses. It basically does the thinking, or songwriting, in our case.

While many love what ChatGPT provides, there are some negative effects. Ben now has the challenge of making the most of ChatGPT in the university classroom, while at the same time providing exams where students can’t get their answers from ChatGPT.  He wants the students to work in cooperation with ChatGPT. That way, they can actually produce more, because they have it as their helper.

For example, my husband asked ChatGPT about a personal struggle that I’m having. Frankly, it had great answers. They were somewhat specialized textbook answers to the specific wording of the question. But it was good advice! This is not surprising because there are a lot of people and documents on the internet that can and have provided good advice. But, Ben said there was more stuff that only a person who really knows me could say to encourage me. You see, Ben knows me, he’s my husband. And God knows us too, as unique individuals. God can answer things really specialized for you and me.

Take a look at Psalm 139:13-18 with a focus on how very much God knows you and me intimately: “For you created my inmost being, you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful; I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand-when I awake, I am still with you.”

God knows you and me inside and out. He cares about our thoughts, our circumstances, our highs, our lows, our relationships, our worries, and our joys. He longs for a personal intimate relationship with us. He waits to be wanted. He is real. He is God.

One more thought about ChatGPT. My husband asked, "What do you know about me, Ben Abbott, in San Antonio?" It said, “I don’t know anything about you beyond the name you have provided. My purpose is to provide general information and answer questions to the best of my ability based on the knowledge fed into me through my training.”

For me, I prefer someone who fully knows me.

Let’s wrap up with a few more verses from Psalm 139:1-4 “You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.”

This is how I want to be known, fully.

Take a listen:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xckDgX8xNfg

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

Love One Another

Valentine’s Day can be hard for many people. I know many who’ve lost a spouse since last year and could find this day tough. Many have experienced divorce and may have lingering pain. Others are single, and this day can remind singles of what they don’t have.

Of course, many enjoy this special day to honor, celebrate and love their spouse or significant other. Today is that day when you may be running to your nearest grocery store for a card, flowers, or Chocolate covered strawberries.

When I was single, I was determined to make that day special, no matter what. I didn’t want a Hallmark holiday to determine my emotions, identity, or status in life. I knew that Valentine’s Day was a special day to share God’s love by loving others well every day of the year. 

Whatever ‘feels’ that Valentine’s Day conjures up in you, why not use this day to remind us to love as the way God challenges us to love?

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 in The Message says: “Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, Doesn’t have a swelled head, Doesn’t force itself on others, Isn’t always “me first,” Doesn’t fly off the handle, Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, Doesn’t revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of the truth, Puts up with anything, Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end.  Love never dies.”

God demonstrated the greatest love when He loved us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to come to this earth and die for our sins on the cross. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 gives us guidance in how to love sacrificially. Loving others like 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 is a lofty goal. As you look over these verses, how do you want to grow in loving others well? Where do you fall short? God loves to help us love well every day of the year.  

Let’s pray: Dear God, We have to all admit, we fall short of loving as You love. It’s so easy to be “me first” or fly off the handle when we don’t mean to. So often, our impatience shows more than our patience. Forgive us Lord for our lack of love. Help each one of us to love well, with these qualities in mind. Give us a love that is sensitive to those that are struggling, hurting, or grieving. Show us how to encourage others well. Teach us to love, Lord. Amen.

What would it look like to love God and love people? Take a listen to Danny Gokey (Love God Love People): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQ8D2Mx7tGg

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

Firm Foundation

We don’t live in South Texas for weather like last week. A good chunk of Texas endured some “weather event” albeit ice, snow, sleet, or a combination thereof. The frozen trees, icy roads, and power outages wreaked havoc on so many! The barn where my horse, Daisy, lives had incredible damage to trees.  We didn’t have damage like the barn and our next-door neighbor, but we went quite a while without power. Let’s just say I have a new appreciation for electricity and warmth.

I was blown away by all the damage to trees in central Texas. Across the Texas Hill Country, trees snapped under the weight of more and more ice during several days of freezing rain. As the branches gave way to the heavy ice, they took power lines with them. I learned that Live Oaks, which keep their leaves through the winter, collect more ice than trees that drop their leaves in the fall. Juniper trees, (Cedar trees) were hit hard too, as was our neighbor’s tree. It was shocking to see the destruction of what looked like strong trees.

With the Central Texas operations for Texas A& M Forest Service, Jonathan Motsinger summed it up well “It’s a really, really, thick layer of ice. Trees can only support weight to a certain extent and then they fail.”

As we experienced some of these challenges this week, I couldn’t help but think about the character of our God and how He is not at all like those trees, swaying, cracking, breaking, and falling. He will never, never fail us. I think the song by Maverick City Music, “Firm Foundation (He Won’t)” is perfect for a week like this! Consider these words:

Christ is my firm foundation
The rock on which I stand
When everything around me is shaken
I’ve never been more glad
That I put my faith in Jesus
‘Cause He’s never let me down
He’s faithful through generations 
So why would He fail now?
He won’t.

No, He won’t, no, He won’t
No, He won’t
He won’t, He won’t, He won’t, He won’t

I’ve still got joy in chaos
I’ve got peace that makes no sense
I won’t be going under 
I’m not held by my own strength
‘Cause I’ve built my life on Jesus
He’s never let me down
He’s faithful through every season
So why would He fail now? (He won’t) 

Rain came, wind blew
But my house was built on You
I’m safe with You
I’m gonna make it through………..

In this crazy, unstable world I need a God that will never let me down. He never has. He never will.  

Take a listen: (Chandler Moore and Cody Carnes, by Mavercity City Music) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOP4s8fOEm0

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

Complaining

My phone was ringing as I was saddling up Daisy, my horse. I checked it and noticed a familiar area code, making me immediately stop what I was doing. My dad’s assisted living residence. The nurse was letting me know that everything was good with my dad. No emergencies. She was reporting my dad’s improvements. Improvements? 96 years old and improving! Wow!

Just two years ago, my dad broke his hip and had a tough, long recovery. Yet, in these last two years, he’s made considerable progress and doing as well as expected for 96. To hear that he might be upgraded in a key area was music to my ears. The nurse went on to tell me how Angus is one of the staff’s favorites. The nurse reported that he never complains, has a great sense of humor, and has a bit of fun with the staff.

Things are far from perfect with my dad. He’s in a wheelchair and forgets a lot of things. Yet, he’s learned to make the most of it and treat those who serve him with respect. My dad was a son of a Wyoming rancher. His mom, a suffragette, had homesteaded from Ohio to Wyoming after college to teach school. He was the oldest of 4 children. I think he really did walk (or ride a horse) several miles to school in the blowing cold snow. He is a World War II veteran, serving in the Navy in Southeast Asia and Europe, and was recently honored. Meals at the Assisted Living are called “going down to chow hall.” He eats puree food but marvels at how good the food is there! (insert my own potential complaint!) I think over the course of his life, he learned the value of making the most of what he had.

How do you and I make the most of our challenges? Nothing is perfect with us either. We may not be in a wheelchair or forgetting things, but we have circumstances in our life that are significantly challenging. We can either complain about these things or we can figure out how to make the most of things as my dad has.

Whining and complaining come naturally to most of us, whether you’re 30 or 96. When we’re disgruntled about something, we can let loose without thinking twice. Have you ever listened to yourself complain? I have. Not happy with myself when I do!

Paul in the Bible knew about this issue of complaining. Paul was encouraging the Philippians to stand strong amidst the external conflicts they were facing. It would have been easy for the Philippians to get caught up in grumbling. Paul was teaching them literally to stand strong against those struggles, one of which was complaining. Philippians 2:14 says “Do everything without complaining and arguing.”

Paul is writing this letter in prison! He had plenty of things to complain about! Paul was harassed wherever he went and had enemies hunting him down. In the book of Philippians, you can see how he focused on living free from discontentment and grumbling. He challenged others to do the same.

There are times when life seems so unfair. We didn’t expect this or that to happen. Yet, despite ___________________, (the thing that makes life hard for you) God is still good. He longs to transform our grumbly, disgruntled hearts and give us a spirit of gratitude. God helps us recognize when our negative thoughts take over and help us control them as we seek Him for help.

I’m thankful for the nurse’s call today. I was so proud of my dad! It was also a good reminder to me to look at my own life. Am I whining or complaining? I want to have a grateful, non-complaining heart, even in the hard seasons of life. 

I want to have a grateful heart, don't you? Take a listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oh2goMABFPc

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

Mistakes

I’ve been a Dallas Cowboys fan for as long as I can remember. Of course, I was thrilled to see the Cowboys beat the Buccaneers last week. They looked like legit Super Bowl contenders, except when the kicker, Brett Maher, was on the field.

I read the horrible statistic about his four missed field goals. Supposedly, Maher is the only player in the NFL since 1932 to miss four extra points in one game, regular-season, or playoffs. (@Toddarcher)

Twitter went crazy with memes, jokes, rants, etc. about Maher’s misses. One favorite was: “If you can kick and are currently in the stadium right now come on down to the field, we got a jersey for you.”  I really liked this quote too “I’ve had days like the Dallas kicker.” You and me both, dude.

I think if we were super honest, we would admit that we prefer to hide our mistakes. We learned at an early age that our personal mistakes can hurt us. Others may joke, ridicule, gossip, put us down, ignore or shame us. In turn, we can often beat ourselves up in our minds for our mistakes.  As a result, it’s often hard to admit we made a mistake.

As I reflect on Maher’s game, I felt so badly for him. Can you imagine the whole country talking about your kicking mistakes? Can you imagine all the thoughts that went through his mind? Can you imagine how he felt about all the jokes on social media about him? Maher had a week that none of us would want. 

As a follower of God, I’ve grown to appreciate more and more the grace of God in my life. When I understand what God says about me, it truly changes my perspective. God forgives me. God accepts me. God loves me unconditionally. God doesn’t gossip and put me down when I make a mistake. God cares about every feeling I have and longs to encourage me. I can live in the absolute freedom His grace gives.

I want to learn from my mistakes, but not be debilitated by them. I want to be open about my mistakes, not hide them. I want to gain wisdom from the mistakes that I make. Because I’ve made plenty of mistakes in my life, I have sensitivity for others that make mistakes too. I want to treat them like our heavenly Father treats them. 

I’ve also learned the value of prayer in my life. Prayer helps me as I seek God for wisdom, choices, and actions. As I read God’s word, I learn to trust Him with all my heart and not lean on my own understanding, which is often wrong. (Proverbs 3:5-6) Sure, I’m going to still make mistakes, but maybe fewer mistakes, with God’s help.

We all make mistakes. Seek God. Seek forgiveness. Learn from your mistakes. Receive God's grace and mercy and don’t forget to extend that to others.  

So thankful for God's forgiveness! Take a listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZVjKrmvYYQ

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

Humility and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Today, we observe Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I want to focus on a quality of MLK that we could emulate as well. Humility. He carried his selflessness wherever he went. Americans could not help but take note, learn from MLK and change their behavior. MLK was different. Take note of his words on humility:

“If an of you are around when I have to meet my day, I don’t want a long funeral. And if you get somebody to deliver the eulogy, tell them not to talk too long. And every now and then I wonder what I want them to say. Tell them not to mention that I have a Nobel Peace Prize- that isn’t important. Tell them not to mention that I have three or four hundred other awards- that’s not important. Tell them not to mention where I went to school. I’d like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to give his life serving others. I’d like for somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to love somebody. I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question. I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry. And I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked. I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison….” (A portion of what was written by Martin Luther King Junior before he was brutally murdered in 1968.)

Where are selfless leaders today? What selfless leader would inspire you toward change? Sadly, humility is seen as a weakness by some. Yet, humility is the exact opposite. It is strength…… a quality that MLK emulated.

I refer to Richard Foster’s book, Learning Humility: A Year of Searching for a Vanishing Virtue.”  He writes “I rather think that pride seems so strong because it orients all our desires and all our appetites around the self. The human self becomes the most central thing in our thinking and our living. Add to this that a key element in pride is the love of power. It contains this need to control and manage everything…and everybody.” (pages 62-63)  He goes on to write “Humility is so very appealing when we see it in another person. Conversely, when we watch someone consumed with pride it feels unnatural, deformed, and twisted. Humility is beautiful, whereas pride is ugly.”

Do you yearn to be a woman or man that walks in humility? Do you see the beauty of humility in Martin Luther King, Jr.? You know, I think we all know humility when we see it. We know pride as well. But, reflect on these words, again by Richard Foster in his book, Learning Humility:

“Today I sit and watch people going about their daily tasks. I listen to the conversations that go on. I notice their body language. Some, it seems, are working hard to impress others. Some appear timid and fearful. Some are loud and appear determined to dominate everyone else. Still, others seem to be adjusting their position relative to the group. But a distinct few seem quite different. They listen to others with genuine interest. They speak easily but not to impress, only to participate in the conversation. They have an unusual ease about themselves. Most of all they are marked by a wonderful freedom from self-absorption. These, I think, are the truly humble ones.” (Page. 65)

Who are you? Who am I? May the Lord help each of us to walk in humility.

“I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Paul, Ephesians 4:1-3

Take a listen: Only Jesus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eQd3K2Fxp4

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