Starting Over II Corinthians 5:17-18, Jeremiah 29:11 January 1, 2017 Pastor E. David Streets I am not a very good golfer. Even as that statement reaches your ears there are men in our church, men who are in attendance today who are saying under their breath or whispering to their spouses, You can say that again!, Truer words were never spoken!, He s a terrible golfer! I sometimes miss-hit my tee shot. I often hit a lousy second shot. Sometimes I fail to keep my head down or keep my eye on the all. I have a slice. But I m usually a decent player once I m on the green, which may prompt some of you to say, then you should stick to miniature golf! Funny! As poorly as I play, there are people who ask me to play golf with them. They are kind people. Some even realize the strength of my game and they invite me anyway. One of them even said to me one time, It s too bad you don t play golf as well as you preach! I said, Thanks, I think. One time a guy asked me to play golf with him at Oakmont Country Club. Really! Oakmont Country Club, one of the top 3 or 4 courses in all of golf, and one of the hardest. Can you imagine me playing that course? It would be a disaster. I respectfully declined. I do love golf. I m not good because I don t play enough, I never practice, I ve never taken lessons and I don t have the time. Nevertheless, I enjoy playing the game as best I can. I hope to play more in 2017, so watch out! But after knowing all that, I assume you won t invite me. Golf has this wonderful courtesy, this wonderful extension of grace that some golfers extend to others when they hit a bad shot. Someone might say, Take a mulligan. It means hit another shot without counting that first lousy shot you just hit. 1
For example, if you are on the tee and your first shot must clear a pond, you might over-swing and not hit the ball as well as you could have. And your shot could go right into the lake. You feel terrible and hate yourself for being such a failure at this wonderful game. You re having thoughts that you may sell your clubs and never play the game again. But then suddenly someone from your foursome offers those words that are music to your ears and restore your self-worth. Take a mulligan! Hit another ball like it s your first, like you never even hit that first ball into the drink. Professional golfers don t take, nor do they give mulligans. Golfers, even nonprofessional golfers do not take or give mulligans when they are engaged in tournament play, when they are playing for something. People who aren t quite so competitive; people who are simply glad to be outdoors; and people who simply feel sorry for that poor slob on the tee who just sliced his tee shot into the next county give mulligans. Why do they do that? Because they want that person to have a better start to their day. They want that person to feel better about themselves, to perk-up and enjoy the day. They want that person to not be so hard on themselves and to have a fresh start. They give a mulligan because they care about that person. I love the concept of the mulligan, the do over. But perhaps what I like most about it, is that it demonstrates concern for the individual among the group. Perhaps each golfer has had his or her share of those days. Perhaps they know the person isn t a great player and seldom gets to play. Maybe they were the one who invited the person to play and they want to make sure that they don t get down on themselves; that they have a good time; that they keep in perspective the fact that it s just a game. Take a mulligan. Have a do over. You get a fresh start. That s what I love about the beginning of a new year. It s a chance to start over. Many of us have come to the close of a year that contained lots of heartache such that we were glad to see that year come to an end. Maybe you or someone endured a surgery, maybe you lost a loved one. Perhaps you lost your job or broke-up with your girlfriend or your marriage ended. If that describes you then you were glad to 2
get 2016, or whatever year it was, behind you. You are glad to be able to begin another new year with a clean slate. Take a mulligan. You get a chance to start over with a fresh new year. In other instances, the beginning of a new year causes us to examine ourselves, our life circumstances and gives us a chance to make some changes. Maybe we want to be a nicer person in the new year. Maybe we ll spend less, save more, come to worship more often, give more to the church. Perhaps we want to be a better person, a better spouse, a better son or daughter. Maybe we want to eat less, exercise more and lose weight. This week the gyms will be crowded. A month from now, not so much. Perhaps in the new year you want to spend more time with God, you want to be more like Jesus, you want some devotional time with Jesus every day. Today, January 1, 2017 gives you the chance to start over again. If you begin any of those changes today, you ve been perfect in these areas so far this year. Congratulations! That s awesome! But do you know what? You ll not be able to maintain perfection in all areas every day. Someday you ll vary from your diet, raise your voice with your spouse or your kids, you ll decide you don t have time for God some morning cause you ll be late for work, or you will yield to the strong urgency to do something or say something that is totally unlike anything Jesus ever did or said. When that happens you ll be disappointed in yourself and you ll feel like I feel when I hit the golf ball into the pond. Maybe you ll feel worse. Maybe you ll feel like pond scum. When that happens, Jesus comes along side of you and says Take a mulligan. Have a do over. Take the ball and put it on the tee once again and start over. Don t give up on trying to get it right. Early in December my wife s cousin died. His name was Karl Schmidt. He was a very well-regarded, deeply loved pastor in the Congregational Church. His funeral celebrated his life. I participated in his service. 3
His son David spoke about his dad as he knew him. Whenever something went wrong that Karl didn t expect, like when the steps to his attic above the garage broke and he couldn t down his Christmas decorations, Karl would say, Ever since the Fall of Adam things have not gone right for mankind We laughed. He was right. He is right. We are not perfect. Humanity was created perfect but then sin entered the world through the Fall of Humanity. So we try to do our best, we try to never make a mistake, we try to be flawless but we fail. That s who we are: We try to do our best, we fail, then we try again. We don t give up on ourselves. We get back up on the horse because God offers us forgiveness, a mulligan, a second chance, a fresh start. Why does he do that? Because he loves us. He cares about us that much. We are precious in his sight. God never gives up on us. As we begin this new year together, many of us have our lists of resolutions on paper or in our minds. Because it s a new year you get to start over. Good luck with that! But I also want you to keep in mind that you belong to God, he sent his son to live and die and live again so you could be forgiven over and over again. You don t need to wait for a new year. Paul says: Anyone who belongs to Christ is a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! All of this is a gift from God. II Cor. 5: 17-18 Jeremiah writes for the Lord, For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jer. 29:11 As we see 2016 in the rear view mirror, let us embark on 2017 together, let us increase our attentiveness to God s presence in our lives. May we begin each day Grateful for who we are and what God is doing in us. Let us recognize that a close walk with God is a life of continual newness. Let us seek God s face hungry to discover what God has in store for us. Let us open up our minds, knowing that our journey with God involves being transformed by the renewing of your mind. 4
Let s start over in search of God together, confident that Jesus is by our side, assured that we are new creations in Him. When you do something that causes you to sulk and get down on yourself, take a mulligan, start over, get back up on the horse, trust in God s presence and guidance and forgiveness. You are a new creation in Christ! Amen 5