What Golfing Can Teach Us About God
My husband has been talking about learning to golf for years. One problem, he needed clubs. Ladies, this is not a cheap hobby. If it was, my handsome hubby would have been swing dancing with his Callaways a long time ago. For this reason, it took me a very long time to save up enough money to surprise him with a brand new set of golf clubs for his 35th Birthday. Seeing the look on his face made it worth every penny I spent. But this is not a tale of financial wisdom, nor surprise party know-how, this is a tale of what golfing can teach us about God.
On an unusually sunny Sunday near the end of a grey Oklahoma winter, we found ourselves piddling around the front yard enjoying family and the promise of an early Spring. My husband, who came home the day before extremely frustrated after his first practice session at the driving range, seized the opportunity to get some swing practice with his new clubs on our front lawn. He had since received a little golfing advice from a neighbor, advice he was now putting into practice. “How does your swing feel now?” I hollered across the yard, keeping a safe distance from me and his 5 Iron. “Better. Doing it this way (as advised by our golfing neighbor) makes me feel like I have less control, but will cause the ball to go where I want it to.” He muffled over his shoulder. Interesting, I thought, how many things in life tend do better when we loosen our grip a little.
I thought about that for awhile. How the direction of our lives can change with one simple move. How loosening our grip a little can give God room to move, the way the club slips through the air seeming effortless to those looking on, but taking all of the skills of a trained professional to drive the ball to where it needs to go. According to Golflink.com the first step to a great golf stroke is to “Grip the club in your fingers and not in the palm of your hand. On a scale from one to 10, with 10 being the firmest, hold the club with a grip pressure of about three.” Whether you are holding on tight to your golf clubs, or your life, it may be time to loosen your grip. Not all the way, we don’t want you dancing naked in the streets or tossing your golf club to the wind. Loosen your grip just enough to get the ball where it needs to go. The more control you have over your life, the less control God has over you. He’s not asking you to lose control, just to share it, like from a 10 to a three. Loosen your grip, and give God room to move.
