November 6, 2001
Despite the insistence from non-fans that the game of golf only “spoils a good walk,” I know why golfers enjoy their game and keep coming back. It’s that occasional perfect shot. I had a dream once in which I played a perfect golf game, finishing with a hole-in-one. I woke up laughing. Even though an occasional good shot gets me back on the course, in my case, perfection takes a lot more than dreaming.
My husband calls golf a “muscle memory” game. I say I have a bad memory. He says practice may not make me perfect but it would certainly help my game. So, I need to practice. Actually, if golf can teach me persistence, then this otherwise “spoiled good walk” has more value to it than I thought.
Persistence is an important commodity. History offers many examples. For instance, a family was forced out of their home when their son was seven. He had to work to help support them. His mother died two years later. At twenty-two, he lost his job. He wanted to go to law school but his education was insufficient so he went into debt to became a partner in a small business. Less than five years later, his business partner died and it took him years to repay the debt.
He courted a girl for four years but she turned down his marriage proposal. After trying three times, he was elected to Congress but failed to be re-elected two years later. Two years after that, his four-year-old son died. Four years later, he ran for the Senate and lost. In two years, he failed as candidate for vice-president, then two years after that failed to make the Senate again. Finally, at fifty-one, he was elected president of the United States. His name? Abraham Lincoln. He persisted and became part of American history.
God tells his people to also persist. When life gets rough, we are not only to keep trying, but the Bible says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance” (James 1)
Aside from the “be joyful” part, God makes sense. We are not born with persistence. We need trials to learn and develop it. Without steep hills to climb or difficulties to overcome, our lives atrophy.
The Bible continues: “Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” Gems are polished with friction; we are perfected with trials. Notice that enduring under pressure is the mark of maturity. Obviously, those who endure must be well-grounded in their faith. They can handle whatever comes their way with courage and determination because they know that God is with them and He will help them through the trial.
Compared to the difficulties faced by Abraham Lincoln, being persistent in golf is a small challenge but big or small, whatever looms up before us can be seen as important to our character development and maturity. Rather than letting trials produce whining and retreat, we can let them produce growth in our lives.
So I’m working on the ability to stick to it, no matter what. Facing obstacles is a challenge but I try. As I do, I’m also noticing there is one other obstacle — when I see trouble coming, I’m not quite yet able to be joyful about it!
Showing posts with label golf. Show all posts
Showing posts with label golf. Show all posts
Friday, May 4, 2018
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Golfing and Grace .............. Parables 297
December 17, 1991
The fourteenth hole at Hillside Golf Club has a creek meandering through, first in front of an elevated tee box, then along the right side and back across the fairway just before the green. For some reason, my golf balls always think they are ducks when we play the fourteenth hole.
That fourteenth hole confirms the golf pros who tell me that this is a game of concentration. Obviously one has to ignore the water and concentrate on where the golf ball should go, but after a few direct hits into the drink, it is tough to put that hazard out of your mind, even while taking aim at something a little less liquid. Personally, the harder I try to not think about the water, the more my ball is apt to head straight for it.
The first time we played that hole, my husband laughed with me as my ball sailed into the creek. Then he hit two in a row — both splashing in the same spot — right in front of a mallard duck. After a few more rounds on the back nine, it didn’t take a calculator to figure that our golf ball budget would last longer if we just skipped the fourteenth.
However, avoiding the tough holes will not improve my aim. Nor will wishful thinking do anything for my back swing. Concentrated effort and continual practice are necessary. Even at that, I’ll never be a golf pro.
Sometimes I feel the same about the flaws in my character as I do about my performance at the fourteenth hole. If certain situations could be avoided, maybe no one would notice those shortcomings, but life is not like that. Even on the golf course, you wind up running over other people to get around the parts you don’t like. So I must find another solution.
In golf, the best answer is hours at the driving range, yet for players like me, there is no guarantee that the next time I swing my driver, the ball will go where I want it to. Thank God, His remedy is a little different for character flaws.
Instead of trying to change myself, God promises to get me to my goal if I will only just LOOK and keep on LOOKING at the target. Since flawless character is the goal, of course that target is Jesus Christ. He is the “bull’s eye,” the perfect mark, the total hope and aspiration of anyone trying to live to please God.
Obviously, we must rely on God’s power to become like Him. Our part includes complete commitment, refusing to be like we once were yet allowing Him to renew our minds and change our lives (Romans 12:1,2). Key to change is total honesty before Him, not hiding our sin or pretending to be what we are not. (That would be like trying to hide a hook or slice — what a joke!)
And here is where the lesson of the fourteenth hole comes in: we must concentrate on the target... because He promises that when we do, we will be “transformed into the same image from glory to glory... by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
That does not mean it is easy. Just try thinking about God for 60 seconds without losing concentration. Distractions easily draw away our attention and our aim, and we find ourselves hitting something far less than the perfect target of Christlikeness. If it were not for His grace, I’m sure none would ever come even remotely close.
Someone once told me it was better to aim at the stars and hit the woodpile, than to aim at the woodpile and hit your foot. It doesn’t work in golf. Aiming at the pin and hitting the water is not any better than aiming at the water and hitting the water. But aim is important in ironing out those flaws. When Jesus is the target, whatever I hit is an improvement over how I would live without Him.
The fourteenth hole at Hillside Golf Club has a creek meandering through, first in front of an elevated tee box, then along the right side and back across the fairway just before the green. For some reason, my golf balls always think they are ducks when we play the fourteenth hole.
That fourteenth hole confirms the golf pros who tell me that this is a game of concentration. Obviously one has to ignore the water and concentrate on where the golf ball should go, but after a few direct hits into the drink, it is tough to put that hazard out of your mind, even while taking aim at something a little less liquid. Personally, the harder I try to not think about the water, the more my ball is apt to head straight for it.
The first time we played that hole, my husband laughed with me as my ball sailed into the creek. Then he hit two in a row — both splashing in the same spot — right in front of a mallard duck. After a few more rounds on the back nine, it didn’t take a calculator to figure that our golf ball budget would last longer if we just skipped the fourteenth.
However, avoiding the tough holes will not improve my aim. Nor will wishful thinking do anything for my back swing. Concentrated effort and continual practice are necessary. Even at that, I’ll never be a golf pro.
Sometimes I feel the same about the flaws in my character as I do about my performance at the fourteenth hole. If certain situations could be avoided, maybe no one would notice those shortcomings, but life is not like that. Even on the golf course, you wind up running over other people to get around the parts you don’t like. So I must find another solution.
In golf, the best answer is hours at the driving range, yet for players like me, there is no guarantee that the next time I swing my driver, the ball will go where I want it to. Thank God, His remedy is a little different for character flaws.
Instead of trying to change myself, God promises to get me to my goal if I will only just LOOK and keep on LOOKING at the target. Since flawless character is the goal, of course that target is Jesus Christ. He is the “bull’s eye,” the perfect mark, the total hope and aspiration of anyone trying to live to please God.
Obviously, we must rely on God’s power to become like Him. Our part includes complete commitment, refusing to be like we once were yet allowing Him to renew our minds and change our lives (Romans 12:1,2). Key to change is total honesty before Him, not hiding our sin or pretending to be what we are not. (That would be like trying to hide a hook or slice — what a joke!)
And here is where the lesson of the fourteenth hole comes in: we must concentrate on the target... because He promises that when we do, we will be “transformed into the same image from glory to glory... by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
That does not mean it is easy. Just try thinking about God for 60 seconds without losing concentration. Distractions easily draw away our attention and our aim, and we find ourselves hitting something far less than the perfect target of Christlikeness. If it were not for His grace, I’m sure none would ever come even remotely close.
Someone once told me it was better to aim at the stars and hit the woodpile, than to aim at the woodpile and hit your foot. It doesn’t work in golf. Aiming at the pin and hitting the water is not any better than aiming at the water and hitting the water. But aim is important in ironing out those flaws. When Jesus is the target, whatever I hit is an improvement over how I would live without Him.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
A ‘G’ Summer .............. Parables 285
September 18, 1991
Like an episode of Sesame Street, this past summer was hosted by the letter “G”. My husband and I set Goals for our lives and marriage, even reaching many of them because we experienced God’s Grace at work in our hearts. We became Grandparents again (naturally, it was a Girl). And I took on the challenges of learning Greek and Golf!
Those who know me well won’t be surprised about the Greek; academics are my bag. (G is “gamma” and it looks like a “y”). But seeing me packing a bag of a different sort, with irons, woods and tees in it, is a wonder. My children waver between disbelief and bewilderment. My husband, who always wanted to golf more and now has an excuse, is simply delighted, but he shakes his head and can’t figure this out. Why would his bookworm wife take up golf?
Maybe it was the notion that “multiple goals are fulfilling.” I read that somewhere and have always found it to be true, so I usually have several “irons in my fire” (only in this case, irons in my bag).
Maybe it was my mother’s example. All her life, she has had at least one “new” venture on the go, everything from photography to oil painting, raising quarter horses, quilting and invisible mending. Right now, at 75 years, she is taking organ lessons.
Maybe it is Psalm 37:4, which says: “Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” My delight in the Lord has been growing. More and more I realize the wonders of what He has done for me, not only for eternity but bountiful blessings in my life right now. Consequently, as those blessings add more fuel to my delight, according to this psalm, He puts more desires in my heart. Could it be that one of them was to play golf?
What possible godly purpose could be served playing golf? Well, the first time out, Bob told me the biggest frustration about the game was that you could hit the ball well for a while, then, without any apparent reason, your whole game just falls apart. I responded, “Just like life, eh?” So, learning to respond to erratic results on the golf course could be good practice for the larger game.
Another reason is togetherness. We did many things with our children when they were small yet our own time-out was limited. Now the kids are adults and the two of us share few hobbies. This game is an opportunity to help each other develop a good swing and cheer for each other after making a long drive off the tee. Such mutual support carries over into the larger game too.
Thirdly, we are a twosome and golf clubs prefer foursomes. This can be an occasion to take our friends for a fun outing or meet new people. Chatting from one hole to the next or looking together for a ball lost in the rough is a wonderful way to get to know other folks.
Last but not least, golfing is a celebration of life. At least it can be when I lay aside my frustration and any consuming desire to get rid of that persistent hook or slice. God’s gifts of creation, one another’s company, physical exercise, fresh air and sunshine are all ours to enjoy. So seldom do most of us stop and take the time to do just that.
So with Greek and Golf and a new Grandchild, summer 1991 in Moose Jaw has had lots of “G’s. God even added a few more: Green Grass (from abundant rain here too!), Gales (those Saskatchewan winds kept the mosquitoes away) and Get-aways (to Germany and other places). I could go on but bear with me for just a few more.... God has also blessed us with Generous Grace, which makes us feel Great, Glad, even Giggly, and certainly Grateful!
Like an episode of Sesame Street, this past summer was hosted by the letter “G”. My husband and I set Goals for our lives and marriage, even reaching many of them because we experienced God’s Grace at work in our hearts. We became Grandparents again (naturally, it was a Girl). And I took on the challenges of learning Greek and Golf!
Those who know me well won’t be surprised about the Greek; academics are my bag. (G is “gamma” and it looks like a “y”). But seeing me packing a bag of a different sort, with irons, woods and tees in it, is a wonder. My children waver between disbelief and bewilderment. My husband, who always wanted to golf more and now has an excuse, is simply delighted, but he shakes his head and can’t figure this out. Why would his bookworm wife take up golf?
Maybe it was the notion that “multiple goals are fulfilling.” I read that somewhere and have always found it to be true, so I usually have several “irons in my fire” (only in this case, irons in my bag).
Maybe it was my mother’s example. All her life, she has had at least one “new” venture on the go, everything from photography to oil painting, raising quarter horses, quilting and invisible mending. Right now, at 75 years, she is taking organ lessons.
Maybe it is Psalm 37:4, which says: “Delight yourself in the LORD; and He will give you the desires of your heart.” My delight in the Lord has been growing. More and more I realize the wonders of what He has done for me, not only for eternity but bountiful blessings in my life right now. Consequently, as those blessings add more fuel to my delight, according to this psalm, He puts more desires in my heart. Could it be that one of them was to play golf?
What possible godly purpose could be served playing golf? Well, the first time out, Bob told me the biggest frustration about the game was that you could hit the ball well for a while, then, without any apparent reason, your whole game just falls apart. I responded, “Just like life, eh?” So, learning to respond to erratic results on the golf course could be good practice for the larger game.
Another reason is togetherness. We did many things with our children when they were small yet our own time-out was limited. Now the kids are adults and the two of us share few hobbies. This game is an opportunity to help each other develop a good swing and cheer for each other after making a long drive off the tee. Such mutual support carries over into the larger game too.
Thirdly, we are a twosome and golf clubs prefer foursomes. This can be an occasion to take our friends for a fun outing or meet new people. Chatting from one hole to the next or looking together for a ball lost in the rough is a wonderful way to get to know other folks.
Last but not least, golfing is a celebration of life. At least it can be when I lay aside my frustration and any consuming desire to get rid of that persistent hook or slice. God’s gifts of creation, one another’s company, physical exercise, fresh air and sunshine are all ours to enjoy. So seldom do most of us stop and take the time to do just that.
So with Greek and Golf and a new Grandchild, summer 1991 in Moose Jaw has had lots of “G’s. God even added a few more: Green Grass (from abundant rain here too!), Gales (those Saskatchewan winds kept the mosquitoes away) and Get-aways (to Germany and other places). I could go on but bear with me for just a few more.... God has also blessed us with Generous Grace, which makes us feel Great, Glad, even Giggly, and certainly Grateful!
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