I like to play golf.  I am not all that great (at least in my eyes), but I like to play.  I also like to watch golf (no it is not as boring as it sounds).  You see…there is just something about watching those guys hit those shots that makes me feel that "I can do that."  Yea…right!  Not in a million years.  Then I watch these players tee it up against Tiger Woods and I wonder what that is like.  How would I fare?  Well…there really is no question about that.  And there really is no question about how other pros fare as well.  You see…one of Tiger’s routines is to wear red on Sunday (the final round of a tournament) when he is in the hunt.  In a way, it is a ploy to mess with the other golfers.  And the things is, Tiger can be that cocky and confident.  After all he has won 7 straight PGA Tour events.  He is chasing Jack Nickolas for the most major victories.  When Tiger is playing on Sunday while on the leader board, he generally wins.  So I wonder…what is it like for a player to walk onto that tee box and see Tiger there…wearing red.  They speak a good game like "Tiger can be beaten" but behind those words they are thinking, "Oh crap, he we go again."

I like to play tennis.  I have only played a handful of times and I am definitely a worse tennis player than golfer.  But I like to play.  I also like to watch tennis.  There is something about watching those guys hit those shots that makes me feel very inferior (which I am o.k. with).  Then I wonder…what is it like for players to walk onto the tennis court and look across at their opponent…Roger Federer.  Roger has won 10 grand slam events.  He has won 36 straight matches and has been number one for something like 156 straight weeks.  How do you get ready to play the best player in the world…knowing somewhere in you head that you are more than likely going to lose.  Basically you are done before you start.

I am a pastor.  I like being a pastor.  Am I good at it?  It all depends on how you define "good".  I feel I am doing the job that God called me to.  I know I am not perfect; that I make my share of mistakes.  This past Sunday, for example, I forgot to mention in the prayers two families that lost loved ones.  Two parishioners told me about these losses on Saturday, but I did not write them down and subsequently I forgot on Sunday.  One parishioner is O.K. but the other one is very angry with me.  I make mistakes.  I am not perfect.

But then I wonder how one does a job like mine seeing the expectations of perfection staring you in the face.  Maybe you know what I am saying.  Maybe you have those same expectations haunting you.  Sometimes I feel I can’t make mistakes.  But for me, I relate better to someone who does make mistakes.  If I had a pastor who never made mistakes I would feel so intimidated by them that I would hardly ever approach them; afraid of being judged.  So I "stare across the court" looking at my opponent…perfection…wondering how I will fare.  I admit it…I am overwhelmed and there is a BIG part of me that knows I will lose.  But maybe that is O.K.

In Tennis or Golf or any sport, attitude is everything.  You need to believe you are going to win.  If you think you are going to lose, then you will probably find a way to accomplish that feat.  Attitude is everything.  But in the BIG "game of life" if you feel you are going to win against "perfection" then you are in trouble because in the end you WILL lose.  It doesn’t mean we don’t strive for perfection, it means we should not get too down on ourselves when we fall short.  Jesus Christ was the only one who was perfect in EVERY way.  And he needed to be perfect to give us access to God and to salvation.  So take comfort that through Christ we are perfect in God’s eyes.  And that is the only thing that matters.

I am O.K. with being flawed.  I will try to learn from my mistakes and avoid them in the future, but I won’t let my opponent…perfection…defeat me through submitting to expectations.  So I guess people are going to just have to accept this fact.  I will strive for perfection; I will strive to be the best I can be, but I know I am not perfect and I never will be perfect.  The only perfection I will know is through Jesus Christ who died and rose FOR ME and FOR YOU.  So forget about Tiger; forget about Roger and be the person God created you to be.  That is all you can do.  Tee it up and take your best shot, but God loves you no matter what.  Praise be to God and Amen.  -EDH-