I recently quit golf. I didn’t quit because I don’t like golf, in fact I really love golf. It’s a great game and maybe one day I will pick it up again. But for now I am quitting and below are some reasons why. I am not suggesting you quit golf or whatever hobby you enjoy, but maybe if you are wrestling with a similar issue, I can be of some help.
#1 Time
Golf is time consuming. If you want to play well, you have to play! There is something in me that will not allow me to be mediocre at what I am doing, so I want to practice and play as much as I can. However, I have things that I don’t want to look back on and realize that I have missed. I want to spend as much time with my wife as I can. I want to spend as much time with my son as I can. I want to write and pray and study and exhaust myself for the kingdom. Golf was not restful for me, it was tiring mentally and physically, so I quit.
#2Money
Golf is expensive and I don’t like to spend money, even on food. Protein shakes cost less and go down much faster! Golf membership and green fees can get pretty high, and I want to be able to first of all provide for my family and be able to give as much as I can to whatever kingdom causes I can. If I have to make a decision between giving and golf, golf seems too much like storing treasures on earth, as opposed to racking up treasures in heaven. I don’t want it to be a financial priority.
#3 Who Says I Need A Hobby
Why do we as Americans think we need hobbies? I find no verse in the Bible that says we should spend large amounts of time and money on something as trivial as golf. I am not saying that hobbies are bad, there are other things I love to do. But it’s OK if you don’t have six extra activities to fill your schedule. Aren’t you busy enough?! I don’t see how I can possibly relate well to my wife and my son if I am never around them. Now I certainly think that we should all have things that we enjoy doing that allow us to express ourselves, but at some point certain hobbies become self-centered and prideful. I know too many men who work all week and then hit the golf course or the woods or the ball field as soon as they get a free day. This cannot be the way to build a healthy marriage and lead a Christ exalting home.
#4 Drained Affections
I found that at times golf would stir my affections for Jesus and at times it would not. I would go four or five hours without thinking about God. When I played bad, which was often, I would go home distant and frustrated about a silly game! This cannot be pleasing to the Lord. If something causes you to forget about the glories of Christ on a regular basis, you might want to think about giving that thing up. For me, golf was doing that.
Not Against Hobbies
Let me say again, that I am not against hobbies. I am against whatever drains you of your love for Jesus and makes less of Him, thereby causing you to relate poorly to others. I am not suggesting you quit golf or hunting or whatever, I am suggesting that you place everything before the Lord and be willing to do what He wants. This might mean shunning certain things from your life, or quite possibly adding some things to your life. Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (1Corinthians 10:31).
GB
