GOLF and LIFE

I haven’t written a blog post in quite a while. Frankly I just could not come up with anything to say. But this has been on my mind for a couple of days so I thought I would attempt putting it in writing. For those of you who do not know me there are few things outside my salvation, family and friends that I am passionate about. Southern Gospel Music and golf are at the top of that list. I started playing golf about forty years ago and really enjoy the game. Now golf is a sort that does not depend on size and strength. Anyone can learn to play golf. There are a few basic fundamentals like proper posture, stance, grip, swing and choosing the right club but, then you let the club take over and do the work. If you follow these fundamentals you will have a good game and your score at the end of the round will be good. If you do not follow these fundamentals you are asking for frustration and a lousy score. For example I played golf last Friday afternoon. I was doing quite well and playing my game and my score card reflected this. Then I got to a long par 4 hole. I was on the tee box and took a practice swing and mentally checked the swing to make sure it was right. I approached the ball and mentally checked my posture, stance and grip. I had my driver in my hand. I took a good smooth fluid swing and let the driver take over. The result was the ball flew about 270 yards down the middle of the fairway. This is where I started getting in the way. For my second shot I chose a club I have yet to master and frankly probably the wrong club for the job. I decided I could muscle the shot to the green. The result was a ball lying about 15 yards off the fairway behind some trees. Going against everything I have read and all instructions I have ever received I decided I could get the ball up and over the trees and on the green. I gave it my best shot. I could hear the ball clipping small branches but never heard the thud of the ball striking anything solid. I was elated I had gotten through. We searched the green, the area around the green including the sand traps and could not find the ball. We went back and looked around the area where the trees were to see if it had been knocked off course and still could’t find the ball. Finally I had to take a penalty stroke and drop a ball. I now have three strokes. I take the fourth stroke and chip up to the green and double putt for a 6 on the hole. All my training says I should have taken a club and punched the ball back into the fairway and then proceeded to chip. Had I followed those instructions I could have gotten a par on the hole or at worse a bogey. But I let me get in the way. As I was leaving the green I happen to look up and there firmly wedged in a fork of a tree limb was my ball about 25 feet off the ground. Now what is the point of all of this? Our walk with God is much like that golf game. When we follow the rules and instructions (the Bible) and then let God take over we do much better than when we decide to let ourselves get in the way. Just like that golf game when I get in God’s way life does not go so well. But when I leave it up to him the score card looks much better. In life we should read and follow the instructions given to us in the Bible and then just get out of the way and let Good take over and do the work. We can’t do it anyway. Here’s wishing you a good score card on the golf course but more importantly in life.