Golfing with God

Golf can be one of the most rewarding sports that you will ever play. Many courses are among some of the most beautiful places in the world and are amazing sites to see. I have seen Pebble Beach and can attest to the fact that it is one of the most spectacular places I have ever seen. Standing right alongside the reward of golf, are some of the most frustrating times you will ever have playing a sport. In fact, author John Feinstein wrote a book about golf entitled, “A Good Walk Spoiled”. If you have ever played golf, you know what he is talking about. Golf is a sport that can be played seriously, just for fun, for exercise, for mental health, or just for the beauty of the course. But like any situation in life, we have to be aware of the pitfalls golf can bring to our lives if we are not careful. Golf can easily become a habit for us and sometimes, even an addition. Golf can take over our lives and become an idol for us. Golf can consume our time and our finances and we end up putting it before God, the very essence of an idol.

“Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Mark 14:38 ESV

Golf is used in the example above because normally it is a good thing. It is a blessing to be able to get out with some friends and have some quality time on the golf course. Most people have heard the saying, “too much of a good thing is a bad thing”. The real problem of “too much of a good thing” is that it is consuming us and it becomes elevated above everything else, including God. Those “good things” we are elevating are becoming our idols. They become the things that consume us, that is, they are in our thoughts, our actions tend to revolve around them, and worst of all, these idols are firmly planted in our hearts. We not only displace God in our hearts with these idols, but we also tend to forget many other things in our life that are important. Our wife, our families, our other relationships suffer as we let these idols consume us. It is imperative that our God is our only idol.

“Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them.” Jonah 2:8 NIV

The consequences of having idols other than God are severe. Throughout the Bible, God has abandoned those who chose other idols. In some cases He destroyed them. In our recent times, God will never leave you, (Deuteronomy 31:8) however, you will have no time for God and in essence, you will be leaving God. You will not have the time to read the word of God and you will lose your knowledge and power to fight the spiritual battles of the enemy. You will be in a weakened state and many cracks will form in you in which the enemy will try and penetrate. Your Armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18) will be off and you will be susceptible to the temptations of the world. These consequences of idolatry can be severe but it must be recognized and dealt with before another idol is born in your heart.

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:15-17 ESV

Golf is often referred to as a “Gentlemen’s Game”. Unlike some other sports, players don’t engage in trash talking, they shake each others hands before and after each match, they often praise and cheer for each other, and it is up to each player to ensure that they adhere to the rules of golf. In fact, if you find yourself on the course and know that you violated a rule, you must call the rule infraction on yourself and take any penalty that comes with the violation. In the 1925 US Open, golf great Bobby Jones called a rule violation on himself when he thought his ball had moved upon addressing it with his club. Although no one else saw the ball move, Jones insisted he had violated a rule and assessed himself a one stroke penalty. It would cost him dearly as he lost the US Open that year by one stroke. 

As Christian men, we are called upon to act with integrity, be courageous, be kind, be loving, be honorable, and to be accountable. Christianity is a “Gentlemen’s Game”. At all times, as Christian men, we need to be cognizant of our thoughts, our words, and our actions. We are the examples of Christianity that the world sees and we must understand that the world needs to know what true Christ followers represent. The worlds vision of a real man is often some testosterone-filled, rugged, strong, tough, take-no-flak kind of guy. They see no room for weakness or humbleness inside a real man. Jesus paints a different picture for us in his words. He tells us to be humble, kind, compassionate, non-judging, and loving. When the world sees a Christ following man, they should be able to tell that we are different. They should recognize that we are men who live as Jesus commanded us to, but also see leaders of other men. They should see us and want to strive to be like us.

“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:29 NIV

As we walk through our days of life, we often have many choices to make. In our work, our family, and outside social lives, we often are confronted with situations which require us to speak or to act. We can choose the path of anger, harsh words, physical confrontation, revenge, or other means, but this is not how Jesus commands us to behave. Over time many people who claim to be Christian have not reacted well in situations and it has led to the worlds view of Christianity as hypocritical. We often see it on the news and we must remember there are many people who want to persecute Christianity (John 15) and they will take every opportunity to do so. There is no room in our hearts for hate and anger as it will spill out into our words and actions toward others. We represent Christianity “AT ALL TIMES” and we need people to see what true Christianity is about.

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” Colossians 3:12-14 NIV

The key to acting like Christian men is our understanding of the word. We must study it and ensure we have the words in our hearts at all times. This is our main defense mechanism against acting in ways Jesus would not approve of. The word in our hearts will drive our thoughts, our words, and our actions. In today’s world, it is imperative that Christian men take the commands of Jesus to heart and be examples of the kind and loving men Jesus wanted us to be.

“For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:5-8 NIV

For those of you who golf, you know what the “Snowman” is. It is your worst nightmare on the scorecard. You just scored an “8” on one hole. Obviously, the 8 looks like a snowman. It took you 8 shots to complete the hole which is either a triple bogey or worse for less than Par 5 holes. It is very hard to recover and complete a great round once you put that “Snowman” on the scorecard. The reality is, you really butchered up the hole. Sand traps, water, trees, or other hazards probably played a role in your score on the hole. In short, you made multiple mistakes while playing the hole. In fact, after you made your first mistake, rather than admitting to yourself you made a mistake, more than likely you tried to take a shortcut to try and salvage the hole, but you probably made another mistake while attempting the “miracle” shot. For most of us, we try and fix it again and make even more mistakes and the hole heads south really fast. After it is over, the result is a “Snowman”.

In our lives as Christian men, we are going to make mistakes. Some of us more than others.

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23 NIV

When we make mistakes, there are many paths we can take at this point. The best path we can take is to admit our mistake, repent of our sins, and then face the consequences of the mistake we made. This is not the path most of us take though. We frequently try to cover up our mistakes or make another mistake trying to fix the first mistake. This scenario can lead to a “Snowman” in life. Multiple mistakes, causing multiple problems, hurting multiple people, and in the end we feel internally tormented, humiliated, weak, and as if we can never recover from our transgressions. The truth is, we can always recover from the “Snowman”. In golf, you get to walk to the next hole and start again. In life, we have the greatest gift of all, the gift of Jesus Christ. He took our sins to the grave so that we may be forgiven. It doesn’t matter how many mistakes we make along the way, the grace of Jesus never leaves us. 

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 2:1 NIV

The Bible refers to people as jars of clay. We are human beings who are molded by God, but who are fragile, weak, and can easily break. We are made to hold something inside, in this case the content is a treasure. That treasure is Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit that lives within us. If we believe in Jesus Christ, then we hold something internal which keeps our fragile jar of clay strong. When we mess up and make mistakes, we need to remember who lives inside of us. We need to remember that we are forgiven and can face up to the mistake we made. Hiding our mistakes or compounding that mistake with many more should not be an option for Christian men. To avoid the life “Snowman”, when a mistake is made, play the safe shot and get back into the fairway. One mistake is enough, end it there.

“As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” Ephesians 2:1-5 NIV

“Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Matthew 26:41 NIV

Many times when we are playing a round of golf, we hit our drive or other first shot, get into the cart, and drive up to our ball, only to realize the ball came to rest in a bad spot. The ball might be in the thick weeds, very tall grass, shallow water, near a tree, in the mud, and so on! It will be next to impossible to swing at the ball and hit it out from where it rests. We think to ourselves, this isn’t going to be pretty! Our ball is in an “unplayable lie”. The rules of golf say that when we are in this situation, we have a few options that, for a one stroke penalty, allow us to pick the ball up out of the unplayable lie and move it to a spot where we can hit it as long as it is within one club length of the original shot and no closer to the hole. For many of us, that’s not how it goes down. We think to ourselves that we can hit that ball and not have to take that stroke penalty. Temptation overcomes us. We talk ourselves into trying that once-in-a lifetime miracle shot. We’ve seen it on TV. Well, ninety nine percent of the time, it does not work out for us and we make matters even worse.

As Christian men, we should realize there will be many times in life’s ups and downs that we will find ourselves in one of life’s “unplayable lies”. The world has so many distractions in it for men that it is inevitable that you will find yourself in a bad spot at some point. It could be some people we shouldn’t be around, places we shouldn’t be, pictures on your computer, social media garbage, or a thousand other distractions. What you choose to do at this point in life, can have profound impacts on you, your family, and many others. It’s decision time because this is the point where temptation shows its ugly head. Whether you meant to or not, you find yourself in a position you shouldn’t be in and you can take the penalty and make it right, or you can succumb to temptation and think you are immune to bad outcomes. There is always the right thing to do which is not always the most fun or popular thing to do but in every situation, you have a choice.

“No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13 NIV

As Christian men, we need to know that our enemy really only has one play in his playbook, lies. He also has only one real goal, to distract you from knowing Jesus which in the end will separate you from Christ when you die. Our enemy is very crafty and the lies he tells are designed to prey upon any weakness we might have and to provide for a distraction from the truth. The lies can pierce our hearts and allow temptation to enter. Temptation has ruined many men and we must understand when Satan is playing us against the truth. At any time, in any place, or in any situation, Satan is ready to go to work on us. He just needs us to give him an opening. The words of Jesus provide us with the truth and we must reject temptation when we feel it, even if it is seemingly for a minor thing. Life’s unplayable lies can get us into deep trouble if we allow temptation to win and don’t take our penalty and move on to the safe spot. Stay focused on Jesus and the truth, the enemy will run away from you.

“but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.” James 1:14 NIV

“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” James 4:17 NIV

Oh the driver! The one golf club that can really separate the men from the boys. We all want to take that club in our hands and smash the ball as far as it will go. That elusive 300 yard drive is the goal, or we want to at least outdrive everyone in our group. We get to the tee box, see a wide open fairway, and say to ourselves, this is the hole. I am going to go “beast mode” with this swing and knock that ball way down there. So we pick up the club, tee it up, and then we unleash the beast. We swing with such excessive force to try and crush that drive. For 99% of us, that’s not how it works out. We swing with so much excess force that we never get our bodies or our hands around and we hit that ball hard, but it is landing everywhere but the fairway. Shanks, pushes, wicked English, hooks, or you name it, these are the most likely outcomes. We all know we should just let the club do the work, take off the excessive speed or power we try to use on the drive, and just swing nice and smooth to get a good drive that lands somewhere in the fairway. In the game of golf, excess doesn’t always work out so well, rather a smooth controlled swing usually does.

Our world today seems to get faster, higher tech, sometimes bigger, and global. Most people tend to want newer things that make their lives easier. When someone has something you don’t have, well, you now have to go get it. Everyday, new gadgets of some type are being introduced and Americans can’t help themselves in wanting the new “things’. We think to ourselves this new technology will help us lead better and more peaceful lives. In reality, most polling data show that people are more unhappy, more in debt, and more stressed than ever before. The data is showing that living in excess is not getting us to a happier place, rather it is showing us that “new things” only make us happy for a while and then we want more new things. This lifestyle of “excess” is leading us to forget what it is like to be content. We keep swinging the life driver with excess rather than having that controlled smooth lifestyle swing. This is not how Jesus commanded us to live.

“Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” Luke 12:15 NIV

“Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.” Proverbs 23:5 NIV

Jesus commands us to be content with the things that we have. Everything that we are given is a gift from God and our God will always provide us with what we need (Philippians 4:19) if we are faithful to him. Consider where your happiness comes from, giving or taking. How do you feel when you give or when you take? Living a life of excess keeps us from being able to give back more to others. Living a life of excess keeps us wanting more and more things, many of which now will become our idols. Eventually these idols creep into our hearts and take up space, precious space which is meant for Gods word and His love. As God slowly is removed from our hearts, things like anxiety and stress overcome our bodies. There is no peace in our life and we are not content. It is a very vicious cycle that gets repeated far too often. Jesus tells us in Matthew 19:23-24 how much harder it will be for the rich to enter the Kingdom of Heaven because they will face so much temptation to live in excess. We are made to be content and when we feel like we “need” all the time, we are showing God that we do not have faith in Him to always provide. Being content is the key to bringing peace and happiness to our lives.

“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:11-13 NIV

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 NIV

Most golf courses are equipped with the ability to provide beverages to golfers as they play a round of golf. There is usually a golf cart loaded with beverages & snacks that moves around the course to allow golfers to purchase items of their choice. The cart will pass by you once or twice during the front nine and back nine holes. The cart has different types of snacks and as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Often referred to as the “beer cart”, it is typically custom for a young lady to drive the cart around the course. The cart is welcomed by most golfers no matter what your beverage of choice is.

While the beverage cart provides needed snacks and beverages to golfers, as Christian men, we have to be on our guard for what the “beer cart” can also bring, a gateway to many things that can lead to debauchery. Too much of a good thing is usually not good, but too much of bad things is never good. We probably have all seen or know someone who went to far after having too much of the beer cart. The common things that most of us have seen include too much drinking, looking at or flirting with the cart girl, loudness or obnoxiousness, anger or bitterness, and reckless driving of a golf cart. I didn’t even mention driving home possibly under the influence. All of these things can happen on the golf course but as Christian men, we need to know our boundaries and stay true to our morals and values. It’s ok to have fun on the course, but we can have that fun while staying in our Christian man lane.

“Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.” Titus 1:7-8

Debauchery is often referred to when talking about sensual type pleasures however, it is pure and simple overindulgence in anything. Just like we can have too much of the “beer cart”, we can have too much of our world if we are not careful. The world can appear appealing and provide temptations for men, but we must remain strong in our faith and the guidance provided to us in the bible. Most of the time when we overindulge, we find ourselves sitting in the “fool” zone and usually embarrassed. Embarrassed looks like the good outcome compared to the trouble we could possibly get ourselves into, or worse, hurting the ones closest to us. It is our responsibility to be accountable to ourselves for our thoughts, our words, and our actions. Let's stay in our Christian man lane.

Christian Man Lane

1) If you do drink, limit your consumption.

“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” Ephesians 5:18

“Wine is a mocker and beer is a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.” Proverbs 20:1

2) It is never ok to lustfully look at or flirt with other women.

“But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:28

3) Anger or rage have no place in our hearts

“Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” Ephesians 4:31

4) Control your words

“But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.” Colossians 3:8

5) Always be in control

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a lion looking for someone to devour. 1Peter 5:8

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” Matthew 19:26 NIV

A golf handicap is a numerical measure of a golfer's potential that is used to enable players of varying abilities to compete against one another. Better players are those with the lowest handicaps. (Wikipedia)

Most people have heard the term handicap in golf. You probably have been asked before on a golf course, “Hey what’s your handicap”. If you are a very serious golfer, you know your exact handicap. However, if you are just an amateur golfer playing usually for fun, you just take a stab at a number. On top of that, most of us suggest our handicap is lower than it actually is to avoid the embarrassment of how bad we are at golf. A player who shoots par consistently is called a “scratch golfer”. The handicap allows an average golfer, or below average golfer, to compete against a better than average player. Each player shoots a round of golf and then subtracts his handicap from the score to determine his or her corrected score. The handicap was put in place to make up for the flaws most golfers have when playing golf. Let’s face it, unless you are a professional or play a lot of golf, most of us will be average or below average players. Playing a lot of golf and practicing gives us the ability to work on our shortcomings and fix them with continued work.

As Christian men, we all have our flaws in life. Not a single one of us is perfect and doesn’t mess up at some point. It is a given, we will do some dumb things. If only we had a Christian life handicap to correct for some of the not-so-perfect things we do! Some of us would have some high handicaps. All kidding aside, there is something else though that can help us in our daily lives. Our relationship with God. We must always remember; God has no handicap. He has no limits in what he can do for us if we put our faith in Him.

“For nothing will be impossible with God.” Luke 1:37 ESV

Just like in golf, how well we live as Christian men depends on how much practice and time we put into it. We have all heard the term “practice makes perfect”. In our life, we do this by getting into the word, i.e., reading the bible as much as we can. We should read the scripture, understand what it means, put it in our hearts, and live it every day.  What is in our thoughts, the words we speak from our mouths, and the actions we take reflect what is in our hearts. As we read the bible, the words begin to find their way into our hearts, slowly replacing other things which we may have in there. As time passes, we find that we become much more like the men that Jesus wants us to be like.

A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. Luke 6:45 NIV

The mere fact that we will never be perfect should be a reminder to us that we will always need to put in the work if we want to get better as Christian men. We don’t get better at golf unless we practice, and we won’t become better Christian men if we don’t do the same. Get into the word and start replacing the old stuff in your heart with the word. Life is difficult and our world today will provide many challenges an opportunities to fail, so we must be equipped with the tools that can make us better. Bringing God alongside us serves to help us to be that better men we strive for.

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22 NIV

Golf is an extremely hard game. I know it looks easy on TV but it can be one of the most frustrating games you will ever play. Just to make it a little more difficult, golf courses have some holes that are classified as a “dogleg” hole. What that means is that the hole is in the shape of a dogleg. It starts out straight and then takes a turn toward the flag, either to the left or to the right. Most of these types of holes make you think about what you are going to do with your first shot because they are always laid out to test your skills. Either you are going to play it safe and land it as close to the end of the first part of the dogleg, or you are going to try and cut the corner and land it in the second part of the dogleg. In the latter option, there is usually obstacles in the way, like trees, that make it difficult to take that option. Here is the rub on these types of holes. Almost all of us amateur golfers are not equipped for the dogleg hole, depending on which way the dogleg turns. Most amateur golfers hit the ball and it fades or slices right, or we hook or draw the ball to the left. Rarely as amateurs are we equipped with the tools to handle both directions of dogleg holes.

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness," 2 Timothy 3:16 NIV

In life, we are often thrown some curve balls that resemble a “dogleg”. In fact, the bible tells us that since we are Christians, we will face trials (Psalm 34:19). Just like the amateur golfer above, if we are not diligent in understanding the words of the bible, we will not be equipped to handle all of the doglegs we see on the course of life. If we are the casual Christian man, we will have faith only some of the time, at other times we will not know what to do. The “dogleg” we face may be in our wheelhouse because we have learned some tools to handle it, but some of the doglegs of life will present true challenges to us because we have not garnered all the tools we need to tackle every challenge. This leads us to rely on ourselves which is never the best thing we should do. The Zach Williams song says it all, “A little more of Jesus, a little less of me”.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 NLT

Relying on ourselves means we do not have complete faith that God can do anything. Reading and understanding the word gives us the tools we need to have faith in all circumstances, leaving putting ourselves above God out of the equation. If we are challenged in life, God is using these situations to grow us. We don’t always do the right thing, however in each moment, we are learning. In John 15:5, Jesus tells us He is the vine, and we are the branches, we must remain in Him if we want to bear fruit. When we stop reading the word or only casually read it, we are allowing our tools to slowly leave our heart. They are replaced with worldly things and a non-reliance on God. Only God can make us whole and use the challenges we face to keep us strong and able to handle them. Our complete faith in God is the only way we will be able to step up to any life “dogleg”, and be able to handle it like we were a pro.

“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.” 2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

“The strategic approach to playing a round of golf, focusing on shot selection, risk assessment, and decision-making to maximize scoring opportunities.”

Some golfers play the game very conservatively and take an approach of always making safe shots. Generally, their strategy is to keep out of the hazards that are present on the course. This is a strategy that works out most of the time, but can lead to somewhat of a higher score (lower score is better in golf) due to extra shots needed to navigate the course. Other golfers are risk takers! They cut corners where there are trees, try to go over water where possible, or even use unorthodox methods to get better results. The risk is high and the reward can also be high. There are classes you can take to help you walk through a round of golf. These courses have a PGA professional or caddie walk the course with you as you play, and they make you strategize about each shot. They point out the risks and rewards as well as how to safely navigate the course just by thinking about every shot. The purpose of course management is to help you reduce your score.

As Christian men, we are faced with decisions which bear risk every day. Today’s world is not making it any easier. We are bombarded by modern life in a way that used to be unconscionable and repulsive, yet today it is mainstream. Some of our choices are minor and some can potentially involve major risk. The consequences of our choices can have long-term effects on our lives, our families, and our friendships. Luckily, we all have a course we can take on Christian Life Management. It is the Bible. The guidance the Bible gives us on how we should act as Christian men should stand as the only truth And the only way we should conduct our lives. Walking in the word is like Jesus is walking along with us in life, and by understanding the words of the Bible, we are given guidance on how to make decisions and handle risks in our daily lives. Jesus is our “caddie” in life.

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” Ephesians 5:15-17 NIV

Surprisingly, the words of the bible do not always call for us to take the conservative path in every situation. In some situations, Jesus calls on us to be bold and stand up as Christians. He wants us to take risks in the name of Christianity. In Matthew 5:10-12, Jesus tells us we will be persecuted for standing strong as Christians. Jesus calls us to help the poor, the tired, the elderly, and other indigenous people. Jesus calls us to boldly pray and profess our faith. In today’s world, this comes with a risk as hate against Christian’s is rising rapidly. But we must be ambassadors of the word, disciples who look for opportunities to spread the truth of Christianity. Our faith is under attack and we are the only ones who can tell the truth. We must not be afraid of the consequences of spreading the gospel of truth, for our battle with the enemy is alive and well today, and is in a heightened state.

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” 1 Corinthians 16:13 NIV

For the most part though, Jesus tells us to make conservative decisions based upon the teachings of the word. The word commands us to act appropriately in all situations. We must have a pure heart with compassion and empathy for others. Our thoughts, our words, and our actions must reflect what is taught in the word. If we study the word, know the word, an act out our faith, our hearts will represent Jesus and we will be protected by Him. In every situation, our “caddie” and teacher will show us the way to a righteous Christian life.

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21 NIV

“The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.” Proverbs 12:15 NIV

Have you ever played Army Golf? This is the kind of golf where you are all over the place on the golf course. First, you may tee off and hit the ball to the left side of the fairway. Your next shot lands on the right side of the fairway. Your third shot goes back to the left. You get the picture! This is called Army Golf. Get it. Left, right, left, right, just like the Army guys march. Generally it happens on one of those days when nothing seems to be going correctly. You just are struggling to hit the ball straight. It makes for a very frustrating day and for the most part, the day is not a lot of fun.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

As Christian men in the world today, it is so easy to get off our straight path with God. Sometimes we get off path because we make poor decisions, other times we succumb to the temptations of the world, and other times, we just think our way is the better way. In all these situations, we tend to find ourselves to the left or to the right of our faith and righteous walk with God. I have written before that the only trick in our enemy’s playbook is to lie. When we tend to fall away from our straight paths, something else usually catches our attention and it causes us to veer off course. Make no mistake, this is the enemy trying to get you to believe the lie. Our world is full of glamour and glitz and things can appear cool or attractive to us. Again, this is how our enemy works, he frames a lie that appears to be good things, and we are often baited into acting. We know it has happened when we find ourselves far from our faith, and hopefully we recognize we need to get back on track.

“I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths.” Proverbs 4:11

The good news for all of us is that our God is a God full of grace. No matter how far you are to the left or right of path, God will never abandon you. He knows our enemy is cunning and can fool the best of us. We do need to recognize when we have drifted off path, and then take the steps necessary to get back to it. Usually when we hear that inner voice telling us we need to spend more time with God, that is our clue that we have drifted. Many call it our conscience but it is really the Holy Spirit. God allowed the Holy Spirit to enter us, and it keeps our hearts in tune with what God wants for us. Like every instrument, our heart can fall out of tune, but a good dose of the word keeps the heart in harmony with God.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:8-10

The key to staying on our path is to be consistent with God. In any relationship, a closeness develops when we spend more time with the other person. It is the same with God. Having a personal relationship with God requires us to consistently seek his word. Reading the word on a daily basis is like continually feeding our hearts with God. When our hearts are filled with the Holy Spirit, the world cannot enter at its will. The lies of the enemy become more recognizable and soon he will flee because he is defeated again. The enemy looks for vulnerable targets, not those who are strongest in the word of God.

“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you”. James 4:7

Having a consistent and close relationship with God is the key to keeping our faith. The hope of the world is riding on Christian men to remain consistent in Christ, and then becoming disciples of the word, spreading it for others to hear.

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” 1 Corinthians 16:13