“Alas, Sovereign LORD,’I said,‘I do not know how to speak; I am too young.’ But the LORD said to me, ‘Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,’ declares the LORD.” Jeremiah 1:6-7
“I hate this course.”
“I never play well on this course.”
These are some of the things I sometimes hear my players say on the way to any given match or tournament. These are the types of things I always said, as well, whenever I played competitive golf.
When I hear them say things like this, I might respond with something like, “I know you hate this course, but today it’s going to be your favorite course” or “I know you haven’t played well on this course, but today you are going to play great.” I want them to discover their inner confidence amidst the negative thoughts crossing their minds.
In Jeremiah 1, we witness God’s call upon Jeremiah. Jeremiah responds by saying, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” The Lord then responds by basically saying, “I’m going to be with you; you have nothing to fear.”
Sometimes the negative thoughts that cross my mind grow to become irrational, consuming fears. May we be reminded that God’s promise to Jeremiah of His presence is also a promise He makes to us because of the presence of the Holy Spirit within us. He is with us and will rescue us.
By Stephen Copeland
Stephen Copeland is a staff writer and columnist at Sports Spectrum. This devotional was taken from Sports Spectrum’s latest Training Table, a 13-week devotional published in each print issue. Log in HERE to view the Summer 2015 print issue of Sports Spectrum or access the Summer 2015 Training Table.
