The mind of man plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps. (Proverbs 19:9, NASB)
Who would have ever figured this would happen? It was 50 years ago that I experienced the glorious adventure of playing in the Byron Nelson golf tournament in Dallas, Texas. It would prove to be the closest I ever came to winning a PGA Tour event, losing by two strokes to Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, who tied. Nicklaus won in a playoff.
It was there in the last round, as I stood on the tenth tee with nine holes to play, that my wife noticed something different. On the ninth green behind us were Nicklaus and Palmer, who playing together. She noticed thousands of fans surrounding the green and fairway. She said, “There’s Arnie’s Army and Jack’s Pack.” Then she looked at the tenth tee and thought, And here are Randy’s Relatives. And, if the tournament had not been in Texas, she said, “it would be Wolff’s Wife.”
My caddie in that tournament was a young man of 15 by the name of Bobby. He had persuaded his parents to let him skip school that week in early May. He carried my bag and cleaned the clubs but left the course management and decision making up to me. That is just the way it was then for unproven PGA Tour players without a regular caddie.
I have so much gratitude that God could use golf to bring old friends back together to be new friends forever.
I had not seen this young man since May of 1970. And then through some unusual circumstances in our Links Players golf community, we were recently reunited. He and his wife live in a community near us in north Texas. A friend of mine was just casually talking to Bobby on the practice tee, and the conversation led to the past and the PGA Tour. Bobby mentioned that he had caddied in the Byron Nelson 50 years ago. My friend made the connection and contacted me. Well, I arranged a lunch meeting with Bobby and his wife Mary. This led to Bobby and Mary attending our Life Group at our local church. And the even greater news now is that I had the privilege and honor to baptize them both this past Sunday, November 1, in our church. The eternal friendship continues.
We make plans but God directs our steps. It is only in looking back that we begin to understand the present. You see, Bobby and Mary have had some real-life experiences that have driven them to their knees. God has been working on them in many ways. The suffering has led them to reach out and proclaim, “I want to be baptized.” They know that baptism does not save them, but it does loudly proclaim that salvation has taken place. Baptism is a personal issue, but our Bible tells us that it should never be private. Jesus and the apostle Paul are two good examples of making this proclamation public.
So, what does all this mean? It means that our lives are a manuscript, and he uses a cast of characters to weave in and out of his story. He uses a friend to start a conversation on the practice tee to talk about a round of golf 50 years ago. God then works on all of us to convince us that this is not just a chance meeting. Maybe this meeting could lead to that step of faith that we have avoided in the past. We can now boldly tell the world that we are followers of Jesus.
We are all now part of “God’s Army.” That army lasts forever. I love golf, but I love God so much more. I have so much gratitude that he could use this game to bring old friends back together to be new friends forever. There are no random, chance encounters along the way.
Everyone you meet today may be a part of the story God is using to tell others about his Son.
—
Randy Wolff
November 3, 2020
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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