I love to watch golf on TV. My wife says she would rather watch paint dry. It is just relaxing to me. I don’t know. Maybe I’m weird.
It occurred to me the other day that golf courses are designed to be hard. Every aspect of the course challenges the player to make shots that stay within the boundaries. And to emphasize the importance of being a straight shooter, they have names for those areas to avoid.
Those beautiful sand filled holes. Those are called traps. If you miss the fairway, you are in the rough. And those gorgeous lakes and streams are called hazards. They even have a red line around each hole that marks the area that is out of bounds.
Don’t you wish the Christian life could be that way with every evil temptation and enticement clearly marked? We all make decisions every day and most of the time the consequences are not always as obvious as a sand trap or an out of bounds marker. In fact, our enemy, Satan takes pleasure in hiding them or even disguising them, so our aim isn’t what it needs to be. James in the New Testament even warns us that our own evil desires will tempt us to take chances with those consequences.
The hazards of this world for a Christian are not always obvious. Unlike golf, we can’t depend on our skills and physical ability to stay out of them. The Apostle Paul wrote, “For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world.” We have to depend on God and His Spirit that lives in us for wisdom and guidance.
Jesus said broad is the road that leads to destruction. And, unfortunately, it is well traveled. Being and staying on the narrow way takes full trust and obedience in Him.
Golfers are careful to stay out of the hazards. They don’t just swing wildly hoping for the best. As Christians, neither should we. Peter said it this way, “Be sober and alert. Your enemy, the Devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
