Lost Soles

Not to spiritualize everything, but I lost my sole at Hinckley Hills Golf Course today.  Then I lost my left sole. 

My son Matt and I took the morning off today to go golfing, which we do only every other year.  For us, a good round of golf is when we find more golf balls than we lose.  Today, though, I lost my sole at the green of the fifth hole and two holes later I lost my left sole.

I was wearing some pretty nice hiking boots that I bought some years ago for Boy Scout camp and hikes and other such occasions, back when Matt was in Scouts and High School and when I was more energetic.  They were still in pretty good shape, and I'd worn them in the past on the golf course.  Not really golf shoes, of course, but the treads generally do a passable job as soft cleats, and they're pretty comfortable to walk in.  Except that they were pretty old to begin with and the last time I'd used them was the last time we'd golfed, and they were more out of shape than I was.  To make a long story short, the strain was too much for them and the soles just worked their way off the shoes before we got to the end of the nine holes.

This all reminds me of a conversation I had with some teenagers a couple of years ago about spiritual disciplines and the Spiritual Armor in Ephesians 6.  One of the kids opined that he didn't need to practice spiritual disciplines because God would provided him with the Spiritual Armor when he needed it.  I suggested that the football coach wasn't likely to just grab somebody from the stands, throw some equipment on him and pitch him into the big game without practicing or learning some plays first.  That made some sense to some of the others, but not to the first guy.  He stuck to his guns, insisting that God would give him the weapons he would need when the time came.

Well, I'm sure He will.  But this much I know:  it wasn't God's fault that I didn't check my shoes carefully this morning to make sure they were in adequate shape for a couple of hours of golf-course hiking.  It won't be God's fault if I don't fill my gas tank before I run out of gas on the side of the road.  And it won't be God's fault if I'm caught with my pants down in a spiritual crisis because I've been lax or lazy with my prayer life, or my life in His Word, or my attendance at His Sacraments or among the community of His believers.