Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit. (Jeremiah 17:7-8, ESV)
One of the reasons I love coaching golf in Nashville, Tennessee, is because it is in part of the country that is capable of growing bentgrass and Bermuda grass. There are other types of grass, like perennial ryegrass, Poa annua and zoysia, but the grasses we normally see on the courses we play in tournaments are bentgrass and Bermuda. Our short game facility has both a bentgrass and Bermuda putting green. This helps us to prepare for whatever part of the country where we are headed. In fact, it’s not uncommon for a few PGA guys in the area to come and practice at our short game facility in preparation for the Masters because of our well-manicured bentgrass green.
We are called blessed when we place our trust not in our paycheck, nor our job security, nor our family, nor our friends, but in the Lord.While you may not be a professional or collegiate golfer, we can all appreciate the time and effort it takes to keep a golf course in great shape. Superintendents have the challenging job of taking care of not just one lawn, but essentially thousands! On top of that, they’re constantly being critiqued by the golfers playing their courses. As one superintendent said, “There are a lot of Google agronomists out there!” While many people believe they are being helpful, the superintendent and staff are aware of far more than meets the eye.
As followers of Jesus, we would do well to be as attentive to the condition of our souls as we are to the condition of the courses we play. Our passage for today uses a picture of horticultural health to describe a believer whose trust in God is fixed in place.
We are called blessed when we place our trust not in our paycheck, nor our job security, nor our family, nor our friends, but in the Lord. He created us to be connected to him. We grow—similar to a strong tree—when we trust in him.
I’m not an expert on trees and how they grow, but I do know that generally, the deeper the root system, the sturdier the tree. Deep roots provide the tree with nutrients and moisture to flourish. If we are the tree, we want to be planted near water (God’s Word) so that we have an abundance of nutrients to give us life even in the hardest of seasons. Having deep roots in the Word means that when challenging times come, we keep thriving because we stay connected to the Lord by reading and meditating on it.
As our thoughts lead to our words and our words lead to our actions, thoughts serve as the root to our words and actions. May God’s Word be where we spend our time to influence our thoughts.
My prayer is that we would care for our souls as thoughtfully as superintendents do for the courses they take care of each day.
—
Aimee Neff
March 23, 2017
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.