Olympic Golf Balls

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.
Proverbs 11:3

The Olympics are here! I don’t know about you, but around our house we are engaged in Olympic mania. From the extravagance of the opening ceremonies to the awarding of gold medals and all the commercials in between, we seem to be glued to the TV. There are not enough hours in the day to absorb all the events, so we are recording those we want to come back to later.

What is it that so completely pulls us into watching the Olympics? Why would billions (billions, with a B) of people watch a basketball game? Do we want to share in the glory of the American gymnastics team taking home a gold medal? Or, are we secretly hoping to see the gymnasts fall off the uneven bars, stumble in a routine or take a tiny step on a landing? If you are not the one competing, does it really matter who wins in the swim meets? And, how is it that badminton is a sport that is internationally televised?

The answer is, I do not have a clue why the Olympics mesmerize us. But, as I was watching this weekend I was very conscience of the fact that this is a group of people who have their “golf balls” in the spotlight.

There is great pride on the American team that they are committed to competing “clean.” Not only are Olympians required to submit to blood and urine testing, but some of the major athletes on the American team have agreed to a more intensive regimen of testing to prove they are not using any form of performance enhancing products. Their blood samples will be stored for up to eight years in the event that more sophisticated testing becomes available to expose the use of prohibited products.

Imagine – not only is the world watching to see if you drop your golf ball. But, in the event that you drop your golf ball and nobody sees it, in eight years someone can pull out the proof that you did, indeed, drop the ball and drop it big. They can strip you of your medals and the integrity of everything you have ever done will be in question.

It would seem like those consequences would be sufficient to deter athletes from using the performance enhancers. Yet, estimates are that over 40 participants will be disqualified for just that reason before the games are over. That’s a lot of dropped golf balls.

God will not be mocked. It is a spiritual truth that if you will not deal in private with the issues in your life that the Lord wants resolved, He will bring them into the public arena for action. Your character and integrity flaws cannot be hidden from the Lord. If you do not protect them from blemish, if you do not repent when you know you have sinned, the Lord will bring up in public the issues He wants you to address. Deal with it now, or deal with it later. Just know, you will deal with it.

Lord, show me the areas of my character that need attention and give me the gift of repentance.