Tag: golf

Don’t Look Back

When I miss a putt or just have a bad hole in golf I have a hard time moving forward to the next hole. As golf mimics life, the same thing happens to me a lot in life. When I screw up I have a tendency to keep looking back. Well, I’m here to say you can’t look back. Looking back is only OK if you are trying to learn from your mistakes. Beating yourself up and dwelling on mistakes just feeds the devil, who wants you stuck and not moving ahead.

God knows what you have done and will do. He knows you’re not perfect and will make mistakes. Although He expects you to learn from your mistakes, He doesn’t expect you to get stuck up in your mistakes. He expects, and wants, you to move forward. To move forward to Him. And stay positive, not negative.

If you are into golf, there is a pretty famous book by a sports psychologist entitled, Golf is Not a Game of Perfect. Watch any pro tournament and the best players in the world hit errant shots. They screw up. But they recover because they look forward.

Life is not a game of perfect. It’s filled with ups and downs, and offshoots and even dead ends. The key to life is to keep moving forward. Understand that life is not a game of perfect. I’m not saying it’s easy to not dwell on the past but the past is just that—the past. Treat it as such. Work on moving forward and forgetting. And God is always there encouraging you forward—if you let Him.

Keep moving forward today and every day. And have an EXCEPTIONAL time doing so!

Mulligans

I like to think of the New Year as giving me a second (and third, fourth, fifth, etc, etc.) chance at renewal. There’s something psychological about the fresh start the New Year brings. Dieting, exercising, being a better person, doing something different with your life, whatever. The New Year gives us another chance at changing. But then it hits me that God gives us a second chance every day. In fact, every second of every day. And God doesn’t count how many mulligans (sorry; that’s golf for “do-over”) He gives us in life. They are infinite.

I love the fact that Christmas is a week before New Year’s Day. It reminds me that God gave His only Son for us to give us all those mulligans in life. Jesus wiped out all our sins—past, present, and future. They are all forgiven if we just acknowledge them and ask for that forgiveness Jesus was born into our lives on Christmas morning. So, the new year may be psychological but it’s not important because, in a way, every day is New Year with Jesus in our lives.

We all screw up. Some  more than others (I’m in that camp!). I love what St. Paul says, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” (Romans 7:15). Bingo!!! That’s me. I know what I should do but I don’t do it. That’s why I need a lot of mulligans. It’s pretty amazing that the guy (Paul) who almost singlehandedly spread Christianity to the world knew that he screwed up. Guess I’m in good company.

Thank you Jesus for those mulligans!

Wishing you the very best of the New Year ahead. Blessings, joy, health, and prosperity!!!

Every Day is Christmas

It’s over. The decorations will come down. The bells will stop ringing. Blink and stores will start selling Easter candy. Christmas is over. Or is it?

Wade through all the commercialism of Christmas and there is only one thing Christmas is about: celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. If you focus on the true meaning of Christmas, then that’s all it’s about. That tiny child coming into the world, living as a tradesman in obscurity, until around 30 years old started a 3-year or so mission that changed the world forever. And will change us is we bring Jesus into our minds, hearts, and souls!

Every day should be Christmas! We should wake up celebrating Jesus coming into the world, coming into our lives every day. And it’s a celebration like none other!

It’s the 26th of December, the day after the “official” celebration of Christmas. But celebrate Christmas today, tomorrow, and every next day forever. Every day should be Christmas! That’s the real beauty of celebrating Christmas.

Merry Christmas!!! I pray for peace and joy in your life this day and every day to come!

The Secret to Golf & Life: Hold On Lightly!

After more years than I can recall playing golf, I finally found a secret to the game. Hold the club lightly, as lightly as you possibly can. The problem with golf is that we hold the club as tightly as possible, practically choking it to death. The result is it creates tension in our entire bodies, making it very difficult to really swing through the golf ball. So, what’s a golf lesson has to do with life? Continue reading “The Secret to Golf & Life: Hold On Lightly!”

Golf & God—All in the Follow-Through!

What most amateurs don’t understand is that the critical part of the golf swing is the follow-through and accelerating through the ball. I think the same holds true for most “amateur” Christians. Yes, I’m taking some time off and trying to work on my golf game. However, more importantly, I’m working on my relationship with God. Hang with me for a little explanation. Continue reading “Golf & God—All in the Follow-Through!”

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