Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth. (Numbers 12:3, NAS95)
No one on earth knows more about you than you. It is safe to say that you know more about you than you know about any other topic. So when the conversation lags, it is but the work of a moment to interject something about you.
At least that is true for me, and sometimes the lag can be measured in nanoseconds. Like the other person taking a breath between sentences.
The next time you go play golf, go with the idea that the conversation will be about others.Golf creates a lot of time to chat, especially if you walk, and so does sitting around a table having a glass of tea after the round. Many of those conversations, in my experience, have a strong occurrence of the word “I.”
So finding an opportunity to change the conversation from me to others could not be simpler. All I have to do is keep my ears open and my “I’s” closed.
One benefit of listening to others—and I mean genuinely listening, not just being polite—is that you get to know them better. That can lead to deeper friendships, deeper conversations, and opportunities to serve. It is true that active listening of that kind can take your focus off of your swing thought du jour, but that might be a good thing.
When we start listening, we start learning; and when we learn about others, we care about others. When we care about others, we begin to fulfill the law of God. As Paul wrote to the Galatians, “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:14, ESV).
Does that seem different to you than the opening verse about Moses being humble? It isn’t, because humility is not thinking lowly of yourself—humility is simply not thinking of yourself at all! When you aren’t busy thinking of yourself, you can spend that time and energy thinking of others. That is what Moses did, and it is what we should do.
The next time you go play golf, go with the idea that the conversation will be about others. Listen with a loving heart, and it may well turn out to be the most rewarding time you’ve ever spent on a golf course.
Whether it is from gossip to truth, from temporal to eternal, from surface to substance, from political to spiritual, or from me to others, use the opportunities you have to change the conversation at your club. You just might change a life in the process, even your own.
—
Lewis Greer
September 20, 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 What to What?
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