Taking the Word of God to the world of golf
Logos Golf Ministries
Ken Revie May 3-6 Barcelona Spanish Open
Buenos dias mis amigos
This was really the first event of the season in an ongoing weekly manner, and for the players the start of the European part of the "European tour" They have been to S. Africa, the Middle-East and Asia through January to April with only a two week flurry in Sicily and Malaga ... So the players also see this as a fresh start, as many of them don't get to play in the far flung co-sanctioned events where there are a lot of local nationals taking up places in them.....
This was also my first of three training weeks with Sports Marketing Survey, who operate on the first day at the range compiling all the equipment of each player at the event.... As always there is more than meets the eye to everything and the three tournament training will be needed ... not so much what you have to collate, more the fact there is a time limit to it all as the players will begin their warm-up roughly an hour before their tee time, so in Barcelona the first time was 7.45am and we are on the range at 6.45 and you need to look to keep at least 45 minutes ahead of the game.... it is good to have that contact and it can only breed familiarity through time ...
The SMS situation does open the door to the press area of tournaments, which I hadn't thought of, the press are well catered for at events and it'll be good to make a few contacts there .... did get to give my testimony to one curious pressman and this opened up a chat on the commandments with a few others over the lunch table, every little is another step isn't it .....
There were many of last season's Challenge Tour players there and so it was good to reacquaint myself with them and see how they were coping with the step up ... it is still early in the season but half a dozen of them [42 moved up] are doing okay so far, but with a restricted amount of starts in events they have to make the most of every opportunity and this extra pressure can take its toll....
All in all it was a good start, seen everyone I was looking for, met a good few caddies for the first time [there are 156 of them, one for each player] and I remembered yet again it's nothing to do with me, as "apart from me you can do nothing" [John 15:5] said Jesus .... Isn’t it amazing how often we look to ourselves, when all the time God is sufficient for everything!
One thing you might keep in your prayers for next week which is still in Spain, Majorca Open, with the sad passing of Seve and the effect that brought to the Spanish Open with the observance of a minutes silence during play, a rare event in golf, and death makes people stop and think in the thoroughfare of the European tour .... I have no doubt that will spill over into the next few weeks when many special occasions will be arranged to bring tribute to him for his role in pioneering the current state of the ET .....
"The Son can do nothing by himself; he can only do what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son does also ..." Jn 5:19
I appreciate and value your care, interest and prayers beyond any words I can express
Buenos dias mis amigos … again
Second week in a row in Spain, lots of sunshine once again … And more importantly I would say this was the best week to date since I started with Logos …
There was lots of contacts in the transport back and forth from the hotels, met a few players for the first time and that initial link is so important no matter how light and short it might initially be and there was the growing connection with those in the press area through Sports Marketing Survey work.
The SMS went well, getting the hang of it, and it is proving invaluable as compared to the Challenge tour you don’t see players so often in and around the official hotel, so SMS is filling that gap and indeed is even better as you are in touch with everyone, caddies, coaches etc on the practice areas ….
The one big encouragement was meeting up with a professional who professed salvation last season … I made a point of saying hello and it was good to see his response in that he came back to me and was keen to meet for a midweek study and gave me his e-mail details so we could correspond and organize schedules ….. It will be good to have that contact with a player and with him more in touch with the other golfers the possibilities are that knowledge of Logos presence on the tour can begin to grow …. So that was a major breakthrough.
This week it’s off to the Madeira Islands …. This is one of the two co-sanctioned events where the main and Challenge tour join together so there will be a good deal of players there that I came across last year.
Thank you for all the heartening texts and e-mails and I am very aware of your prayers and the presence of God …..
Bom dia a todos [little Portugese for you]
This was one of those trips where you spend more time traveling than at the event … Of the three and a half days only one and a quarter were spent at the venue … Madeira is easy enough found but the tournament was on the north island which is another short plane journey and with only three planes a day that hold 30 people a time space was scarce …. There are always a couple of tricky ones each year …. There is another coming up in August to the Czech Republic which looks like it might be the equivalent of a manned mission to Pluto, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it …
The short plane journey was interesting, Madeira is very windy and the airport runways tight for landing, the plane didn’t so much land as drop out of the air ….
Things went well at the course; the SMS moves on and continues too create familiarity with more and more players, officials and press …. On a taxi journey I met the coach of the French players and with Mark knowing a pastor in France who is an ex-French player then that could lead to some contact …. I mentioned the only believer we know of on the Challenge tour, previously and I’m glad to say we met up …. He will also next event in Brussels so we shall renew acquaintance there … Please continue to pray for this situation as there is no question the way to other players is through this type of liaison …
There is one Northern Ireland player on the tour, who is very successful in the local region here in Ireland and has played Europro tour and main tour before, I have come across him at both the last two events and he is very friendly and chatty, please remember him.
Generally things are going progressively well and this coming week I am off to a Challenge tour event in Brussels …. Do please keep in mind the names previously and with this tour being more condensed in that mostly everyone is in the same hotel there is always more opportunity to “chance” into people ….
As always your prayers are greatly valued …
Brussels Blog
Three good things happened in Brussels …. I had one of those “coincidences” moments that is described in the book of Ruth when she “happened” to turn into the field owned by the families Kinsman redeemer ….. I’d been speaking to the only believer on Challenge tour I’m aware of, the previous week in Madeira but we only had a five minute chat on the practice area before he went off to play, so I was keen to see him this week …. He had told me that he wouldn’t be arriving in Brussels until late on the Wednesday due to the awkwardness of the Madeira travel so I didn’t hold out much hope of seeing him ….
Having sussed out the territory on the Tuesday I thought I’d walk to the course on Wednesday morning, it was 5km away but as it was a long straight road I reckoned that some golfer would pass in a car and who knows who you might end up contacting!
With only a quarter of the way tramped I spotted a golfer [you can tell them a mile away] walking into the local McDonalds for breakfast [very flashy 5 star McDonalds in Brussels] and as I walked in I recognised him having breakfast, we had fruitful conversation for an hour and a half ….. He has little, indeed next to no Christian support with the lack of believers on the tour and at home he is the lone Christian amongst his family, so he was grateful for the chat and promise of more meetings in the future.
I came across the physiotherapist on the tour, a Sikh, and we had an interesting 30 minute chat whilst waiting for transport that never came …. he is from Birmingham.
Finally the SMS proved beneficial in that one of the players, came up to me having met him the last two tournaments on the driving range whilst checking his clubs, and was very friendly and that auger’s well for the future …..
This is a free week for me with David Lewis attending the Wales Open on his home territory and the Challenge Tour event being in far recesses of Austria where you need to ski a few miles over mountain tops to finally get there ….
I had intended calling this week’s blog “Chat from Calais” but I’m afraid it turned out to be “Catalogue of Catastrophes from Calais.”
I don’t know where to start or finish and quarter of the way through you’d be shouting stop, so I won’t even start …. It was a good job I was reading Psalm 91 this week … and as we know you need to see the big picture and perseverance wins the day [Luke 18:8].
So onwards we go ….
With the situation with SMS changing a little it means that my intended destination of Inverness and the Challenge tour is not going ahead and instead it’s Munich for the main tour and a big BMW event this coming week ….
This is the crux of the season regards big events; Munich, French open, Scottish open in Inverness then the Open itself followed by two other big money events …..
I’d ask you to pray for contacts made this week and that we shall wait on God to lead where he will and to other professionals.
I trust better news for you next week …..
“Give thanks in all circumstances for this is Gods will for you in Christ Jesus …” 1 Thess 5:24
Ken Revie Scottish Open at Inverness 28 June – 01 July
Insights from Inverness
I’m sure you have seen the landslides, lakes, bulldozers etc from Inverness, Scotland in summer it’s called …. The whole set up was first class; the course, big crowds, lots of room for the vast array of exhibition tents, many big name players and the hope was that with the risk of going so far north even in July the weather would hold up! Well …..
I was there from the Tuesday through to Friday at 1pm and had super weather, then after I left it went haywire … must be a message there?
We had our fellowship time on the Wednesday night, looking at the purpose and plan God has for our lives …. If plan A hasn’t worked then God has a plan B, I said in my case I was at plan W …. But relying on the last part of Romans 8:28 “… who have been called according to his purpose.”
Please continue to pray for the fellowship time as we are calling it …. That God will move other golfers through a quiet invitation, seeing the notice at the tournament office etc … I’m now beginning to get to know some of the caddies and officials, with over 500 people involved week in week out it takes a while to learn names, but of course it isn’t only the players I’m here to deal with …..
I’m not at the Open this week and so I shall be doing a few visits to Logos supporters, some Christian club pros and such like whilst here in Scotland …..
As always appreciative of all your prayers ….
Ken Revie July 19 – 21 The Story from Stockholm
A few more little steps forward this week … I had asked God that there might be a new person at the study, to make a new substantial contact and that flight connections which were tight [putting it mildly] would work out … All three were granted and then some …
Once again, taxis, buses and hotels were the places for contacts …. I met one of the caddies at the airport going and we managed to find [he did, very shrewd boys these caddies] a courtesy car to the course from the airport in Stockholm, so a good chat was had there. On the bus from the hotel to the course which took 40 minutes I met up again with a golfer who I first came across at the Challenge Tour event in St Omer last year and thought there had been a hopeful contact made, then he went and won the event, and as it was co-sanctioned it took him onto the main tour and I didn’t see him again … but as we know God has times for everything and we had a good long talk on the bus. …. Please pray for this situation to blossom …
We had a new face at the study on the Wednesday also, and there were two more golfers joined the four from the study for a meal afterwards so it was good to meet them too …..
The flight connection on the return journey meant getting through passport control, bag collection and from south to north terminal in 35 minutes, and that was with no delay on the flight from Stockholm …. It was made with a whole two minutes too spare!
So it was a good week for meeting new players and caddies and I’d ask you to add to your prayer.
This week is a “local” event in Cork! The Irish open, 26 – 28 July …. I hope you are encouraged by the relationships being made and the progress with the study going on weekly …. Thank you for all your encouragement to me
The Parlez from Paris
A good week in France with the Fellowship gathering now entrenched permanently at 6pm on Wednesday nights.
The players and those involved in the tournament are playing at different times, working varied hours and staying in assorted hotels so we thought it would be good to keep the same time and day and we settled on the above …..
The sign is on the tournament board from the Monday, so with a stable meeting time and personal invites the seeds are being sown,
A new player took part in the study, So could I ask you to pray for all the players who now attend and also that the outreach nature will start to become an objective …
As well as the DVD and chat we had a time of prayer, so it is good to be sitting there amongst fellow believers and know that the Spirit of God is moving …
As ever each week it was good to make a few new contacts; simple hellos are always a start and there are many caddies and officials from Ulster, Ireland and Scotland which create’s common ground when on foreign soil .. The SMS work continues to prove helpful in those situations.
Two week spell in Scotland coming up with the Scottish open in Inverness this week and I’m going around visiting a few Christian club pro’s, Logos supporters and friends around Scotland and the north of England ….
The travel in France was a little unpredictable [pain in the neck really] so please ask for smooth passages.
I appreciate your continued interest, care and support.
Ken Revie July 26 – 28 Irish Open
The Krack from Killarney
The Irish open was as always well attended and had plenty talking points; twitters from commentators to players, public fall outs etc …. It was also Summer Fest week in Killarney, which was brimming over with tourists from all over the world ….
We had our own local golfer, Dermot McElroy, who along with the three other top amateurs in Ireland was given an invite to play ….. So there was plenty going on …
For my part it was a quiet week … One of those times when you are there, and seen, but with little by way of progress in chats, relationships etc … then again these are the times when we wait, watch and see where God will take us next with some of those players/caddies etc we are all praying for ….
One interesting thing that came up was another connection with a new player whom I mentioned last week …. Also met up with a past Ryder cup player, was there in his capacity as a coach… I met him in Majorca and Munich but his commitments did not allow him to come along to the meeting. They hold a poignant place in his life as it was through those Logos led meetings in the past he came to know Jesus, in the days of Mark Pinney and Bernhard Langer etc …. It was great to have him there and as always we, all went for a meal afterwards.
I also mention the contact I had the previous week whose interests in the unknown; the atmosphere, planets, how did it all begin? …. so that opens another avenue of conversation with him, so do keep praying for him, that God will afford us an occasion to go a little further ….
The tour goes off to the USA for two weeks for a couple of big events.
I’ll not be travelling but will be attending a couple of golf days for Logos, one of which is this coming Friday August 5th at Ballymena, no need to book times, just come along between 9am and 6pm and play, £10 [£5 Jnrs] …..
One other piece of info for you is that I shall be continuing with the Logos/SMS work in the winter months. The “long haul” events, as they’re known, was first mooted a few months ago but after the possibility being revisited a couple of times the juggling of my winter coaching and attending 10 or so events between November and April just wasn’t working out to suit anyone really …. So it all went on the back burner … The Logos board had there quarterly meeting recently and felt that God was leading them to keep me on the tour over those winter months, so they have committed to paying the fees I’d normally have been earning with the winter coaching. Freeing me up to go along to the 10 or so weeks with long haul tournaments, with the free weeks being taken up doing some visiting of Logos supporters, friends, Christian golf pros etc in Ireland and Scotland ….
I thank you all for your loving support and prayers, appreciated more than words can tell ….
“…. golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.” Rev 5:8
Ken Revie The Chat from the Czech Republic Aug 15 – 19
The good news is that they are thinking of moving this event to Prague! Everyone who had to make the journey to Ostrava will be happy too see that …. I spent two and a half days getting there and back to have two and a half days there, and the European tour chartered a plane to take the players there …. That lets you know how out of the way it was ….
Have to say the place was very good and the weather terrific ….
Due to the vast area everyone was spread eagled all over so we weren’t able to meet but I made a point of getting around to meet them, please put these men on your prayer list.
This was one of those weeks when you have a chat with lots of the players and caddies and it is always good to follow up on the friendship side of things ….
The one new and interesting contact was a coach, who is the tutor to the Czech Republic team and they had many players there. It was through the SMS side of things this came up, at the end of our afternoon session he was looking over a couple of their players and we got chatting. He is very much into the approach that moves away from the technical aspect and looks to the “Zen and all round mental” approach and he was more than interested in hearing what I was doing there. We had an exchange of cards and he is someone to put into your prayers, for as fleeting as some of these meetings are who knows what God will do with them in due time for, There will be a Czech open next year …. And as I always say, he might forget me, but I’ll not forget him …
Over to homelands next week at Gleneagles, where I hear Colin Montgomerie has invited Tiger to play!
Always grateful for your prayers.
Ken Revie Gleanings from Gleneagles Aug 23-25
Gleneagles went well, once the fog lifted … a few of the people where back in the country so met on the Wednesday night and we had a time together around the bible.... One of the things Mark [Pinney] is always reminding me of, is that we must not make the 6pm Wednesday time together the be and end all, for the one to one friendship/relationship building amongst others is vital … This is becoming increasingly apparent as the season draws near its conclusion …. Only September and October to go with 7 events left and out of the 250 or so on the order of merit there will be just 115 keeping their status for next season …. This is a time fraught with anxiety for lots of players ….
I am very aware of this and making a point of “happening” to bump into those whom I know are below the cut line, just simply to let them know they are not forgotten in their ventures ….
I’m beginning to come across more and more caddies, for there as many of them around as there are players so starting a get a little more familiar with who caddies for who and remembering a few more names ... lots of names to remember, 250 players plus 200 caddies = a lot ....
One good thing for next week in Crans sur Sierre in Switzerland some of the guys are staying in an apartment together. One of the guy’s will give his testimony and I'll do a five minute talk, with hopefully around 10-12 folks there ... bit of food organised also ... Do have that in your prayers. It seems that this is a popular tournament and lots of the players bring their families as everything is very compact in Crans Montana and the course is in the middle of the small ski resort, which lends itself well everyone being in close proximity to one another.
Always aware of the prayers of the Saints, God is moving in this work for His purpose.
Crans Sur Sierre European Masters Aug 30 – Sept 02
I think if the players were asked to choose once place and course that every event would be played on during the season, this would be it …. Stunning scenery, boiling hot, beautiful place, great organisation, and a fine course … The players would have the finances needed to stay in such a venue!
With everyone in a condensed area – you could walk everywhere – it meant you were coming across folks constantly …. The big difference between the Challenge and main tour is the widespread nature of the main tour whereas the Challenge will have one official hotel, the main has a few plus many other players, caddies etc are in lots of other accommodation due to the Euro tour being held in bigger venues
On the Wednesday night we had ten people at the study, made up of players, caddies and coaches … at least half were non-believers … Hennie gave his testimony and I finished off, he spoke really well and the authenticity of his testimony was clear to those there who all knew him from his past …. So it was a powerful evening … Everyone stayed together afterwards with pizza’s ordered in, so that was good to have as a follow up …
I met Louis Oosthuizen [Open champion 2010] for the first time, a believer and good friend of Mark’s …
Two new contacts made, a Christian who lives near Zurich where the Swiss Challenge tour event takes place [I was there last year], he came along to the Wednesday night and was saying that the Zurich event was looking to take a step up to main tour status and so he would look to provide a facility and event for Logos thereAlso on leaving on Friday, the courtesy car driver turned out to be a believer and we had a great chat he has been the courtesy car co-coordinator at Crans for the last five years and is looking forward to next year’s event and will help out with organisation of an event also …. He is also a Hairy Bible Biker, and always has a couple of bibles in his bike to distribute when the Christian bikers have an outreach event So that was terrific meeting both of them …
I mentioned the coach whom I met in the Czech Republic; well he has e-mailed me so that is another step along the way with contact with him.
You can tell it was a good week, and as always many many thanks for all your interest and prayers …. I cannot tell you how valued they are, beyond measure!
“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return to it, without watering the earth, and making it bring forth and flourish, so that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth: it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11
Ken Revie Anecdotes from Amsterdam Dutch Open Sept 6 – 8
I had three people in my mind going off to Holland; Louis Oosthuizen whom I had come across only briefly in Switzerland … Louis doesn’t play so much on the European Tour these days with having won the Open Championship and being well up in the top 50 of the world he would be more of a world player …. An Australian I have been told his wife is a believer and he has been friendly but as yet, I’d not really gotten to dwell with him for any real length of time …. Also a player whom I came across very early in the Challenge Tour last year, he started this season really well and lately has missed a few cuts and needs to play catch up to keep his card for next season …
It can often be the case that we have things in our mind that “we” want to do and God has other plans, but it is joyous to know that just occasionally one can be in touch with the Spirit and I duly had a prolonged time with all three and in each case the opportunities came along without any manipulation from me …. Do please keep these three men in your prayers ….
Regards the Sports Marketing Survey week, the rain is not what’s needed and there was plenty of it, which delayed play [three times]. Also caused missed planes meaning that I had an overnight stay in Amsterdam airport, if you’ve ever had to spend a night in an airport you’ll know the experience, if you haven’t, I can assure you, you’ve missed nothing!
View from Vienna Austrian Open Sept 20-23
Bit of a strange week this one …. At tour events the field would be 156 players with a waiting list as long as your arm hoping to get in, in Austria there were 132 players, and when two dropped out through injury on the Wednesday there was no one to step in as there was no waiting list! Something of a forgotten event … The only household names playing were; Harrington, Jimenez and John Daly [who only lasted one round and a bit before storming off when disagreeing with a decision on rules] …. The quality is still very high; as needless to say whether they are household names or not, they can all play a bit …
A quiet for me regards outreach, one of those, sort of, tick it off weeks where you feel that little happened …. I was able to have a good general chat with a couple of players from the Challenge tour who are down the list for retaining their playing rights, so it was good to give them some encouragement …. Once again I was in the midst of the caddies and I continue to put faces to names and then to players …. Week on week is vital on the tour and the overall familiarity that engenders is really important I’m finding, so although it seemed a week of little progress, who knows what will come from the passing connections however apparently fleeting …. For as I always remind myself and you, they may forget but I won’t … then again they may not either.
Sunshine in St Andrews in September!
Dunhill Links Sept 27-29
Mark did warn me this was a strange type of event with three courses in use covering an area of 40 miles, which means everybody is all over the place for practice rounds and then all playing at the same time on the three different courses each day. So finding who you were looking for was tricky but at least I was able to do it in great weather.
I have asked you to pray for a golfer it was good to meet up with him again, which was instigated by him approaching me. So I'd continue to ask you to remember him in your prayers. I also managed to plan my way around to at least meet up with some of the golfers whom I haven't seen for a few weeks due to them having taken a break from the Tour .. I was also able to visit some of our Logos supporters in the area ..
As I write this out the Norn Iron golfers continue to dominate the world of golf with three of them at the top of the leaderboard, and on local players it was good to be able to meet some other golfers for the first time. Always good to make a new contact.
Although the week was a bit fragmented at least there were a few meaningful contacts made, we never quite know what circumstance in life will have cropped up with those God had brought us across ..
Next week is Madrid and I'll be joined by the Logos chairman, Tim Hansen, who always attends one event in the season .. Hennie will also be back on tour (he won the event in Sth Africa last week) so we'll look forward to the Wednesday meeting ..
1 John 2:6
"Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did."
Getting REAL in MADRID [ack. to NK for this clever title]
A good week was had in Madrid …. It was one of those times when I kept bumping into players/caddies wherever I went and a good evening was had on the Wednesday night with the players and Tim the Logos chairman …. The weather wasn’t bad either [29 degrees each day!] …
There were several little liaisons from bumping into a player in the dark of the Spanish morning when going for the coach at 7am from the hotel to the course, to meeting up with a couple of caddies waiting for coaches, on the coach, roaming around the course etc. On each occasion, they were on their own so it was good to have those 10-15 minutes, which break the ice in a non-threatening situation. That just seemed to go on the whole week, and those that I was hoping to have a congratulatory word with from their performance the previous week or to give an encouraging word to those who are starting to feel the pressure as the end of the season nears …. They just kept appearing at the appropriate time ….
The Wednesday evening was most heartening … We went into the heart of Madrid, which was teeming with people and in the darkness looked very impressive …. It was a fine night with much godly thoughts flying back and forth and I know Tim found the night and the week in general most encouraging …. Things got real and the chat was honest and open ….
Many thanks to you all as ever for your constant prayers and support, there is no doubt these times open through the will of God combined with the prayers of the Saints ….
The week did end with me getting food poisoning, so there was no sleep on the Thursday night/Friday morning, only sickness, hot sweats, cramped stomach and all the rest, followed by three/four days of no food only fluids, and the three hour flight back was well, let’s say, a little unpleasant …. But never mind, it can’t all go smoothly ….
Ponderings from Portugal
The week began with bumping into half a dozen folks from Ballymena who were on their way to Faro for a holiday, and that old question, “what are you doing here?” was answered a plenty, so you just never know who, where and when the opportunity arrives.
Once again the week was dominated by coming across a few more caddies and putting more names to faces and their players. As it tends to be, the best times come when as I walked to the course for the SMS work [thought I’d do that rather than take a car as there is always the chance of a lift along the way] I duly got a lift and met up with one of the caddies for the first time ….
The week was more like a tournament in Britain with so many of the stewards, volunteers etc who were Brits that had settled in this beautiful area, there were Irish, English, Scots and Welsh accents a plenty …. And a few of million pounds of yachts in the marina!
The meeting on Wednesday night was terrific …. David Lewis who is looking to do some events next season on the Challenge and main tour with Logos was here this week and we had one of the physios, who does a lot of work on the US tour there too….. A good open time of sharing in how much we trust God was had... it was good too hear the talk going around to how the intimacy of our relationship with Jesus is of so much more value than the numbers of people who “attend” gatherings, the need to live out our life in Christ daily in the nitty gritty is what is seen by those we are witnessing too.
Castello Masters Valencia Oct 18 – 21
Viva Valencia
This was the final European event for this season, in Europe that is … The tour now takes off the far-east and Sth Africa then ending in the middle-east the second week of December …
Getting to Castellon brought back memories of last year on the Challenge tour, the venue was 70 miles from Valencia and with official hotels in two different towns close by, it turned out I was in the wrong place, but as the event returns to this area annually we’ll learn as we go ….
The week went fine and I had a couple of prolonged chats; one at the course, the other on the bus back to the hotel …. As ever I am coming across familiar faces and our settled little gathering on Wednesday evening is always cherished by those who attend weekly ….
The best was saved till last; On leaving to return to the airport on the Thursday night, John and Greg from SMS who had hired a car, were along with myself giving a lift to a psychologist to several players. We sat in the back of the car for that 45 minute drive we had a long chat during which I was able to give him my detailed testimony. He attempted to divert the point away from the Cross with higher-church, lower-church [whatever that is] red herrings, own interpretation philosophy, creationalism etc, but I just returned to Christ on the Cross and so a terrific time to end the week was had. I shall be coming across him again, so please keep him in your prayers … He had plenty questions ….
I’m now home for three weeks and the upcoming schedule is; South Africa from Nov 14-26, then South Africa again Jan 2-14 then there will be a couple of middle-east events in February and three European events in March before the main season gets underway again next May …
I’m looking to do some visiting around the many Logos supporters in Ireland over the winter … I’ll have a round up of the year so far for next weeks blog.
Rev 8:4 “The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God …… “
With the European leg of the tour over until next March I thought I might put a little review together … 22 events since April ….
THANKS for
- The Wednesday evening meeting … it’s just great that this exists now... between 4 – 10 have come along and gives a focal point to the week.
- The amount of chats that have happened in; taxi’s, buses, planes, courtesy cars, hire cars, trains, all those unlikely places, when people can’t get away
- The ongoing familiarity and trust that being at so many events have created.
- SMS; how this has allowed us become an integral part of the tour.
- By and large there has been little in the way of delays, and for safe travel [food poisoning excepted].
ENCOURAGEMENT
- For the amount of times I have been asked what I am doing on the tour … is that an opening!
- The support and interest of so many through texts, e-mails and caring prayers
- The amount of people I’ve been able to leave with you for prayer, knowing you are praying.
The FUTURE
- The ongoing building of the above mentioned trust and a deepening of relationships.
- When at the events I might, “hear” God and “wait” on the Holy Spirit.
PRAYER
- Could you take one of these players/coaches/caddies to pray for over the winter;
- Many thanks to you all for your constant support over this year.......
“God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer” Ps 66:19
Jottings from Johannesburg Nov 14 – 26
My first “long haul” journey took me to two events in South Africa, the first at Kruger National Park just East of Joburg and the second in the city itself at the Serengeti GC.
The good news in a golfing sense was that Hennie [Otto] won the South African Open. As you know it was Hennie and I who first started meeting in Italy and the weekly meeting has followed on from then, so it was good too see him win what is the world’s second oldest national open championship, the Open being the oldest.
The main event on the trip was the gathering we had in the clubhouse at the SA open on the Tuesday prior to the event, and this was aimed at being a launch pad for the starting of a similar weekly meeting on the South African tour [known as the Sunshine tour]. There are quite a number of believers on that tour and the point of the get-together was to relay the build up of what had happened on the European tour this season, the general format, how to go about organizing a weekly gathering etc. There were ten at the meeting and when I return in January for two more co-sanctioned events we shall continue to meet with a view to both the Euro and Sunshine tour. It is good to see the spread from what has developed on the Euro tour acting as a catalyst further afield and satisfying to see that Logos has had some part in this progression, from seed planting to watering, of course it is God who gives the increase [1 Cor 3:6-9].
Being around the courses/hotels/transport for a longer time led to coming across many players, caddies etc and helps to cement another little bit of integration into the tournament scene.
The Weather; 41 degrees the first week, a “cool” 25 the second, jealous? I would be … I return to SA the first two weeks of January, when it’ll be even warmer!
As ever I am eternally grateful for all your prayers and support.
