When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. (1 Corinthians 13:11, NASB)
God’s timing—as anyone who has known me more than five minutes has probably heard me say—is always perfect. Which explains why I played a poor round of golf this morning.
No, I’m not saying my less-than-stellar score was God’s fault. In fact, I was thinking as I was stepping into the bunker on seventeen that the round seemed more like the work of Satan’s minions, even though my guardian angels had managed to strike a blow for good a couple of times. I lipped out or burned the edge on about seven putts, and I was in no fewer than five bunkers. My playing companions were empathetic and consoling, which I appreciated, but as the frustration grew, some part of me began looking for a club to break. Not one of mine, of course, but if I’d had an old one along….
When good and bad things are happening to me, even on a golf course and even from my own hand, I try to see the spiritual side. In this particular case I could feel the temptation to get angry, to express my displeasure in some act of aggression. Happily, I did not yield to that temptation, and the primary reason I didn’t was because I knew that doing so would be a bad reflection on both Links Players and on Jesus. I needed to behave like an adult, and a Christian adult at that.
So then I got home and sat down to write a devotional to go with a short video I recorded back in November, the content of which I didn’t remember. I watched the video (which you can, too, above) and said, “Aha!”
The scripture I refer to there, as you will see, is Ephesians 4:1, which includes the phrase, “walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called.” It’s a little easier to do that when you’re playing great and all the putts are dropping (or your stocks are going up or your boss is being nice or your spouse is happy with you), but there are days—like mine today—when walking the walk is harder than golf itself. And that’s hard.
I hope you enjoy the video, but more than that I hope it helps you remember, whether you are hitting every green or every bunker, how to walk.
—
Lewis Greer
January 20, 2014
Copyright 2014 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.