REFLECTIONS
June 19, 2005
 
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.
1 Peter 4:10
 
More Than Just A Game…
Last in the series Graduating from Sunday School
 
Golf is a game I have enjoyed and have been blessed to play with friends and family, and on other stages beyond my dreams. It is just a game; yet golf is a gift that has taught me a lot about life. In fact, someday I may write a book entitled, All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Golf. But my friends will readily confirm that in the past few years I have come to feel that golf doesn’t seem to matter very much.
Recently though, I was exposed to a short essay written by my 17 year-old grandson, Phillip. Entitled Swing Easy, he recounted some of our times together on the golf course. In it he described the fun our family shares in playing together in an annual golf tournament at Christmas time and how competitive we all are. But the richness of his message is found in the following paragraph that is shared with his permission:
Every hole we play in life is different, we select our club, estimate the difficulty, and approach it with every bit of knowledge we can. Sometimes we swing straight, while other times we overshoot or find ourselves lying in a deep bunker. A lot of times, unfortunately, my ball somehow always likes to find the bunker no matter how good I think I swing. “Now Phillip, just swing easy and the ball will do the rest,” my Grandpa says. “You’re swinging too hard.” Sure enough I swung easy and my ball ended up right down the center of the fairway. My Grandpa along with everyone else in this world has not always swung the club easy in life. It takes patience, hard work, and support from family and friends to help be the caddy through these long 18 holes. …When my Grandpa swings easy, and yet finds himself deep in the sand trap, he can’t help the fact that that’s just the game, but he was sure of a safe play out. There will be the right time, the right place, (the right hole) where your life sails smoothly down the middle of that flawless green grass, maybe not when your heart desires, but it truly will. He has taught me that with faith, trust and confidence, your ball will go in the right direction, but to just take it one stroke at a time, let the ball (God) do the work.
Golf is just a game, so I am surprised to discover that this seemingly ordinary gift has been included in my Sunday School curriculum. It has served as more than just a game. Golf has served as an influential stage I didn’t know I was playing on. Now, if I can only learn to use other ordinary gifts on the stages they offer!—
Maybe then I will find that I have graduated from Sunday School.
 
You are the light of the world,

Richard(& Phillip Scott) Ì


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