This past weekend my dad flew up to Chicago and spent a long weekend with my family and I. Needless to say, I had other commitments that I had to find a sub as some family events had to trump what would have been my "fun". So I asked my good friend Dave (from Faith Boy) to stand in for me and play a round of charity golf.I was so surprised by the course of his day that I asked him to do a guest blog for all of us...here it is:
Dante called me to ask if I would be able to take his place at a golf outing since he was unable to make it. I thanked him for thinking of me and inviting me but kindly declined because I had never golfed before. Dante encouraged me to go so I could try out the sport and to enjoy fellowship with the other guys in the group. So, I decided to go not knowing what to expect or whether I would have any talent at golfing. I enjoyed the time on the green with my 3 Christian brothers from Men of Faith and enjoyed God's beauty around me. I think I'm taking a liking to golf; I pleasantly enjoyed it after my much encouragement from my fellow players who also encourage me to be strong in Jesus Christ. It is brothers like them that make my walk stronger with my Savior. After the 18 holes, the golf outing was over. By the way, this was not a Christian golf outing. The four of us decided to eat dinner in the country club's restaurant. After getting our food and before eating, we prayed together. We really enjoyed one another's company and Christ was the center of the conversation. After an hour an a half, most of the other golfers who were at the outing left. There was a verbal altercation at the bar in the restaurant and one of the guys in our group kindly asked them to take it outside. They didn't take kindly to our request but after a few minutes, they calmed down. One part of our conversation was about brokeness and how Jesus helps us through our hurts and trials. Soon after, the waitress brought coffee to our table. Here's the great part of the story: the waitress turns to me and the other guys and says, "I was drawn to your conversation and I'm looking for God in my life." Of course, I was blown away how the Holy Spirit works and the opportunities He presents to us. I had a chance to tell her that what she said was awesome before she walked away. Christ was tugging at my heart to say more to her later. In the meantime, all of the commotion at the bar stopped and at least 4 guys who were at the bar, came to our table and said they were so sorry about what happened at the bar. I was also blown away by this - before leaving for the night, I got a chance to tell the waitress that one of our church locations was across from the country club. I encouraged her to attend. She said that she already heard about it and was thinking about going. She couldn't believe that we were from that same Church. Wow - that's just how the Holy Spirit works. Maybe that's the confirmation she needs to start going to Church and having a relationship with Jesus and that's our confirmation that Jesus' light was shining through us! What a great time it was to be with like minded brothers in Christ. Always bring Christ with you no matter where you go and His grace and glory will always show up.
Thanks Dave, great testimony!
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Sometimes we just have to live it to show it to get it in order to share it!
Our role is to encourage, comfort and encourage others to live a life worthy of Jesus Christ!
Blessings,
Dante