Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. (Ecclesiastes 5:2, NLT)
The follies broke out at Doral last Friday, with 30 mile per hour winds sweeping across the refashioned holes of the storied course.
Sergio Garcia opened his day with a nine. Five-time major champion Phil Mickelson made three double bogeys in a row. Many players were, like you and I often are, simply happy to break 80.
You don’t have to be lousy for golf to humble you. This game is no respecter of persons in that regard!
What’s funny, then, is that many who do play the game aren’t so humble. They have much to say about their game and yours. The good shots are regaled; the bad ones somehow disappear.
But those who really know golf know that the difference between a champion and a chump is often no more than a hole or two.
We could say the same is true in life. Those who remember only their successes build pedestals under their own two feet. They’re long on explanations, short on apologies. Their next big idea always covers for the last slip in the standings. Oh, and this: they have a hard time remembering who’s sovereign.
By the time he penned Ecclesiastes, Solomon—to whom most commentators credit the book—had made a hash of things in his life. His wisdom was missing practical application a good deal of the time, and he had given himself over to his passions. But it was clear than even then he did not forget God. In fact, in the humility that increased by way of his errors, Solomon had secured one great understanding for himself: He didn’t know much. That’s right, the author of all those remarkable bits of wisdom we call the Proverbs didn’t stand an owl’s chance against the God of heaven. And he knew it.
But therein lay his strength. In knowing his place, Solomon gave God his-all deserved credit. Shhh! wrote the king. You’re speaking in the Lord’s presence. Be careful what you say.
Jesus told a parable about places of honor that fit this same theme (see Luke 14:7-11). People, he noticed, thrust themselves right to the front whenever they get the chance. But those who hold back in deference, these are the ones who will be exalted. Solomon was right all along: “Humility comes before honor” (Proverbs 18:12).
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Jeff Hopper
March 12, 2014
Copyright 2014 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.