The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7, ESV)
“Grandma, all you have to do is hit the ball straight!” Those were the wise words of my nine-year-old grandson. He was my partner that day, playing against his younger brother and my husband. Unfortunately, we lost!
My grandson was expecting so much more because I was an adult. I was still learning the basics, having just taken up golf in my sixties. After that day, I decided to study the game, hire an instructor, watch videos, read golf magazines and reluctantly ask my husband for advice a few times. He was wise enough to wait until I asked.
This determination reminded me of my new life as a Christian when I was thirty-four. I wanted to know the truth about this new relationship with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I was a single mom, but I found the time to take my children to church, read the Bible, attend studies and spend lots of time with my mentor, the woman who led me to the LORD.
My diligence was blessed in many ways, but more so when God called me to teach here in the United States, Mexico, Uganda, and Israel. Before knowing God would send me off to Israel, He used my encouraging and persistent friends to drag me to Hebrew language classes taught by Messianic Jewish Leaders who believe Jesus is the Messiah.
So, I learned the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, with new eyes and an open mind. The noun Torah means to cause something or someone to move straight and true. The visual teaching is an archer using his bow and arrow to hit a bullseye. Pause for a moment and reflect on this imagery. The Hebrew word for this “pause and reflect” is “Selah.”
The Creator gives perfect instructions to his not-so-perfect human beings. Do we know them? It surprises me how many Christians do not know the Ten Commandments, God’s fundamental moral law for His people, repeated in the New Testament and the basis of the Greatest Commandment of Jesus to love God, yourself, and others.
Thank goodness for the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide our skills with our “bow & arrows” through life. Mine have not always been so straight. At times, I’ve questioned Jesus’s friendship, but I have also learned from the wounds of Truth.
Staying in God’s Word helped. I would read Proverbs in the morning to gain wisdom and Psalms in the evening to learn how to have different conversations with God under any circumstance. The relationship is a journey, and we’re all on different paths, or should I say fairways?
By playing golf, I have gained new athletic abilities, new friends, and a greater appreciation of nature. I have been told I recover very nicely from the bunkers. Well, guess what? I learned that skill the hard way by consistently being there.
A learning journey with God is not so different. Learn to make that perfect “straight” shot from the perfect Instructor!
Prayer: Holy Spirit, we ask for Your help, instruction & empowerment to be better human beings while sojourning through your awesome universe.