“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” (Matthew 5:38-39, NAS95)
Golfers know a lot about change. The player who hasn’t recently changed something in his swing, or hasn’t changed her grip, or hasn’t changed to a new set of clubs or a different ball, is the player who is about to.
If a change in my grip can make that kind of improvement in my putting, imagine what changing the conversation could do for my club.Of course we don’t always use the word “change.” We re-grip, we take the club back a little more inside, and we try out that new driver. But changing is what we are doing, and it is a good thing.
So the idea of “changing the conversation,” the abbreviated form of the mission statement of Links Players, shouldn’t be a challenge to us. Although not part of playing the game, conversations are clearly part of the fabric of golf—and part of the fabric of golf clubs is “the conversation” at the club. Kind of like “the water cooler conversation” at the office, but in nicer surroundings.
I’d been using the phrase for a month or so when one of the Links Players at my home course sent me a text which said, “Question on changing the conversation… from what to what?”
Starting tomorrow, and each Monday and Tuesday for two weeks after that, I’ll give you my responses to that excellent question. In the meantime, take another look at today’s scripture.
Notice the phrases, You have heard that it was said and But I say to you. Jesus uses some form of “I say to you” nine times in this chapter alone, which is part of the Sermon on the Mount. When he does that, he is “changing the conversation” in real time, and here you can easily see from what to what. Note that in changing the conversation, Jesus was also pushing for a change in behavior. Thoughts turn into words, and words turn into actions. Changing the conversation should in fact change much more than mere talk, but that’s a good place to start.
Two days ago I was telling my friend that I had changed the way I’m holding my putter, and I challenged him to a putting contest. Because I was so confident in this change, I was undaunted by the fact that he is our current match-play club champion. And the change made all the difference.
If a change in my grip can make that kind of improvement in my putting, imagine what changing the conversation could do for my club. Imagine what it could do for yours.
—
Lewis Greer
September 5, 2016
Copyright 2016 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
OTHER DEVOTIONS IN THIS SERIES
Changing the Conversation: From Gossip to Truth
Changing the Conversation: From Temporal to Eternal
Changing the Conversation: From Surface to Substance
Changing the Conversation: From Political to Spiritual
Changing the Conversation: From Me to Others