Fore!

Yesterday I did something I haven't done in about three years. I played golf.

Yes, I have played putt-putt more recently, but that doesn't really count.

I was invited to join three friends to play 18 holes.

So yesterday morning I wiped the dust off my clubs, dug out my golf shoes, and headed out to the course. Since I received the invitation the evening before, there was no time to hit the driving range or warm up. I went out to the course and my first swing was on the first tee.

I ended up hitting a 102. Not bad for not having picked up my clubs - other than to move them around the garage - in a few years. I even had one birdie and one par. That tells you how bad the rest of my game must have looked at times.

As I was towards the end of my round, something hit me. Some Christians "play" following Jesus like I play golf. They occasionally clean off their gifts and abilities and decide to put them to use for the Kingdom.

And it shows. Like my golf game yesterday, they spend a lot of time dealing with missing the mark. If they haven't really been following Jesus consistently for a while, they spend time in the "rough" and "traps." Their inconsistency creates bad situations and poor choices.

This doesn't mean that consistently following Jesus will make everything perfect. In golf, even Tiger Woods has his poor shots. He is not perfect. But his endless hours of practice and preparation have served him well on the golf course.

I am no Tiger Woods, but I would venture to guess that if I played several times a week every week, I would become a better golfer.

How much better would many Christians be at following Jesus if they made it more than a weekend hobby?

shine!
Jason