The Road to J. O. Y.Sýnishorn

Parade Your J.O.Y.

Pride is also a “championship problem.” After you win a title, it can be easy to think you were the reason. We have talked a lot about King David over the years in our chapels. As a younger program without any history of success, it was easy to compare ourselves to David, who, as a boy, was chosen to defeat the much greater warrior in Goliath. And even though it didn’t make sense to the world, David slew Goliath through his faith in God (1 Samuel 17). Lots of people know that story. We’ve frequently told it to our players. But David’s story didn’t end there, and neither does ours.

David went on to become king, and while he was a man after God’s own heart, his reign wasn’t without its stumbles. He committed adultery with one of his soldiers’ wives; then he had the soldier, Uriah, intentionally placed in harm’s way so he would be killed, leaving Bathsheba to David. He would later repent to God for those sins and be forgiven, though the consequences of his sin would linger. God still blessed David and gave him and Bathsheba a son, Solomon, who became a great ruler.

Despite what God had done in David’s life—lifting him up in his battle with Goliath and forgiving him for some of the most grievous betrayals one can imagine—David still kept falling short of God’s glory. Toward the end of his reign, as he prepared for a great battle, the Bible tells us David was tempted by Satan to count his army so that he might take pride in its size as opposed to trusting the Lord to help him prevail in battle.

After winning the Final Four against Gonzaga, I was thinking about the story of David on that beautiful championship parade day as we walked down Austin Avenue in Waco. It can be easy to, as David did, count your army and think success is because of the resources that you bring to the table, not God. By definition, once David started counting his army, he took his eyes off of God.

Like David’s after he beat Goliath, our story will continue also. Now we get to be the so-called kings of college basketball, at least for a little while. How will we reign? How will we handle the attention, the spotlight, and the opportunities that come with our accomplishments? It was important to our staff that, for the parade, we celebrate what God had done in the lives of our players, our coaches, and our program. We didn’t want to count our army, though they would be marching down the street.

When it came time to plan the parade, we did what we felt was the best way to honor God and our culture of J.O.Y. We put Jesus first, then others, then ourselves last. And that’s exactly how we lined up in the parade.

At the front of the parade, as always, was God. God had led us to where we were that day. God had delivered us from our own brokenness, both individually and as a program. Yes, the team had been in complete disarray when we arrived eighteen years earlier. But the humble beginnings we’d inherited only served to heighten the greatness of what God has done in Waco. And for God, our story wasn’t really that unique.

We had one player murder another, then some coaches lied about some of the details to avoid judgment and punishment. Cain killed Abel, then lied about it to God for the same reasons (Genesis 4). We as people are too broken to deserve the rewards God promises us through a relationship with Jesus Christ. That’s why His grace is so overwhelming. We need it to be.

From the back of the parade, I could see Jesus upfront, because who else could take a group of broken people and turn it into this perfect thing? And, man, the parade was perfect.

As a coach, I’ve been in a few parades in my day. But I have to say, walking the streets of Waco that April morning was one of the more spiritually rewarding experiences of my life. When Kelly and I arrived in Waco eighteen years ago, we were a young married couple just starting a career, really. There was so much unknown: how bad was the situation at Baylor? How much punishment would we get from the NCAA? Could we keep the players who had been on that team? Was I ready to be a Power Five conference coach?

The only thing we knew for sure was that God was good, all the time. We said yes to Baylor because we trusted God. Walking down the parade route was like walking past all the ways God had delivered on His promise. We walked past thousands of cheering fans. We walked with amazing players who had lived their lives in God-honoring ways and done amazing things on a basketball court. And I walked with not only my wife but now my three children, Mackenzie, Peyton, and Brody.

God has clearly blessed Kelly and me with a terrific family. But it goes well beyond our kids. Walking up that street, I was overcome with gratitude for how God put everyone in that parade into our lives.

Thousands of people cheering us whom we didn’t even know we had impacted. So many of our former players, all of whom had a role in making us who we had become. Celebration. Laughter. Joy.

This wasn’t just a parade. It was a small glimpse of what heaven will be like.

And in His goodness, God gave us a sample of it that April day.

That is truly the most hopeful place I can end. Something as overwhelming and joyous as a national championship victory parade barely scratches the surface of what awaits us forever in heaven when our season on earth is done.

Respond

List the names of people who have impacted your life for Christ.

Now list the names of people you have invested in or should invest in for Jesus.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for the people You have placed in my life. Help me love them well and show You to them daily.