Zach and David

   This has been a good week for golf in the Golden Isles.

   Monday Zach Johnson, a former Iowa native that now makes his home here in St. Simons, won the British Open. That win, combined with his 2007 victory in the Masters, put him in a new category of golf professionals.

   The stories that came out of that Open Championship all talked about Zach's faith, his family, his humility, his emotion, and, of course, his golf game.

   We are all proud of Zach. He has made a name for himself in the world of golf, but, more importantly to us, he has made a name that God honors here on our Island.

   And I am proud that we worship together at our Community Church here.

   I think that the whole world of professional golf is made better by a man like Zach. A man that wears his faith, his emotions, and his love of family right there on his sleeve.

   There was another golfer that I followed over the course of the Open. Of course, the TV cameras were not on him as much as Zach because of what the leader board was showing. The contenders always get the bulk of that time on camera, and the others just play.

   A former British Open champion, David Duval, also played in this year's event, and he did pretty well, finishing at minus 4 for the 4 days at St. Andrews.

   I was surprised when one day I saw his name on the leader board. He was a former World's number one golfer back when. He was set to put his stamp on the professional game when all of a sudden, he kind of nosedived into obscurity.

   That name on that leader board made me wonder about this 43 year old. What was his life like? What does it feel like to continue to play, to compete, when you have been on top. Why do it when you know that some people outside the ropes on each of the tournament courses are asking what happened and why.

   So I read stories on the Internet. Stories of his life, his family situation, both growing up and now, his successes, and his falling off. I confess that I do not know all is going on in his mind as he tees his ball up and continues to compete on golf's professional stage.

   For every one of the Zach Johnsons on tour, there are so many more that play under the radar. There are so many stories of men and women who are out there competing, people that do not garner the headlines.

   That reminds me of a saying I read the other day somewhere, speaking of church and the people who are there:

   "The person sitting right down from you on your pew can be in all kinds of turmoil, without you even knowing it"

   And I might add: without me even caring…

   Sunday I may indeed be sitting on the same pew with a British Open champion, a David or a Zach, and God, please convict me to care, realizing that I can't know their inside stories.

   I am proud of Zach and David, too, and I pray that God will bless both, and they might honor the One that gives them the abilities they enjoy.

   As we all need to do...