By faith, Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward. By faith, he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible. (Hebrews 11:24-27, ESV)
Trust is a huge issue in this game we love! How often have we heard the best of the best, after making a career-defining putt, say, “I simply trusted the process,” or, after flaring one way right, say, “I didn’t trust my swing?”
I’ve recently revisited the difference between “range golf” and “course golf.” As always, several factors differentiate range golf from actually playing golf, not the least of which is one’s psychological/emotional constitution.
For me, the issue of playing in faith as opposed to fear is enormous—fear of embarrassment, fear of failure, fear of reality (i.e., not being as good as I hoped I was), fear of other’s opinions; all seem to emerge in me the moment we are playing for real. Worse still is discovering that fear is rooted in pride.
This recent reminder of how various fears can impact the game came home to roost over the last few weeks after I decided to start playing with the “boys,” men who play on Wednesday mornings.
In particular, various fears manifested in my swing mechanics—it went from relatively long and slow to short and jerky in transition. Yikes!
My teaching professional pointed out the difference between my range swing and course swing. Once I had time to digest what he was saying, I realized that the issue was not primarily mechanics but a heart issue—trust versus fear(s).
I am confident that I am not alone in this battle. I cannot count how many men I’ve watched on the range look around after a cold, dead top to see if anyone is looking. I usually divert my eyes to play like I didn’t see it unless it’s a close friend. Playful verbal abuse typically follows if it’s a close friend.
Shamefully, I realized this tendency in myself a few years back and decided to address it. From that moment on, I refused to look up whenever I “laid the sod over it.” Refusing to look around after a bad shot is also a good habit to address the remaining pride that rears its ugly head.
Let’s make some connections from all this to Moses. Moses had social status—after all, he was the son of Pharoah’s daughter. Moses had access to unlimited personal and cultural pleasures. Moses was heir to unspeakable treasures. Moses was highly educated—he was “trained in all the learnings of the Egyptians.” And yet, he walked away from it all!
How does a man walk away from social prestige, wide-ranging pleasures, incalculable treasures, the learned class, and political power? Answer: he saw, by faith, something immeasurably more valuable—he considered the “reproach of Christ more valuable than the treasures of Egypt.”
This is not to say Moses didn’t battle with fear and pride. All men live in that battle. When Moses first attempted to free his people by killing an Egyptian, he ran in fear. Yet, over time, Scripture would record that Moses “was the meekest of all men.”
By faith, Moses weighed the inexpressible worth of Christ and the inestimable value of heaven’s reward against all that Egypt had to offer, and he found the scales eternally tipped in favor of suffering for Christ in the present to receive that which awaited him in the future.
How does this apply to us? When the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to the truths and promise(s) found in Scripture, we see realities that the naked eye cannot see. Those realities, seen by faith, empower us to live differently in an age that passes away.
Prayer: Father, train us to see as you see. Teach us to play/live the “long game.”