Today I came across a small quote that has a big message. It was by Julia Cameron in her daily meditation book, The Artist’s Way…Everyday. Today’s passage ended with:
“When we stop playing God, God can play through us.”
For me, the term “playing through” was always associated with golf. Being a golfer of the most amateur kind, I have a lot of experience with letting more experienced golfers “play through” so the frantic chasing of my ball down the fairway wouldn’t hold them up. By my stepping aside, they were able to continue their game without frustration, and I was able to play mine without pressure, and with the added bonus of seeing “how it’s done”.
We all have “life issues”. Some bigger than others, but the one response that we all have in common is that we want to rush in and fix it. One of the things I have learned on my journey through 2011 is to step aside and let God “play through”. As soon as I did, I got to witness some beautiful fairway shots that ended with a “hole in one” every time. Then, after watching God show me “how it’s done”, I could calmly pick up my club, step up to the tee, raise the club and follow through on my swing and watch the ball fly smoothly into the air and land squarely in the middle of the fairway.
Being the amateur that I am, I still tend to ignore God, refuse to step aside and insist on playing first. And, being the gracious God He is, He let’s me. The result is never good. I end up in the rough, or in a sand trap, or even worse, at the bottom of the pond. I started 2011 at the bottom of the pond, suffocating and drowning, and I have no plans of ending up back in there. The sand traps, where I spent the better part of the spring, were frustrating, but at least I was alive and could feel myself breathing as I furiously beat and chopped at that ball to kick it up and back onto the turf. I have no plans of going back into those, either. My days of beating, begging, crying, chopping, pushing, and shoving – only to eventually sit down, sweating and covered with sand – are over.
Now, in the seventh month of my journey, the rough still gets me. Once in awhile I still insist on going first. The only difference now is, as soon as that ball lands in the rough just to the side of the fairway, I quickly step aside and let God “play through” instead of chasing it down the fairway and whacking it myself over and over while God stands there shaking His head. I remember the sand traps and the dreaded ponds. All they taught me was to never approach a golf ball with anxiety or frustration. Always let the better golfers play through. Watch and learn. Then approach your ball calmly, without pressure. Focus, swing, connect, and, though it’s not a hole in one, it’s sweet to have that ball glide gently through the air and land dead on in the middle of the fairway.
And so, as another day goes by, I graciously step aside, and ….I have written.
* golfgurls.com is a women’s golf blog written by a writer friend of mine. Her unique style teaches me about more than golf. Check it out.
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