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A Game Plan for the Athletically Inclined


Sports create an environment for relationships to be forged and for Christ to be shared.
—Greg Asimakoupoulos

Jerry Philpott never attended our church. To the best of my knowledge, he never responded to an altar call. But he did to a telephone call inviting him to play eighteen holes.

A retired cop named Jim who loved golf had started attending our church. One Sunday I suggested we tee it up sometime. That afternoon we set a tee time for Tuesday morning.

On the course, Jim introduced me to two of his friends with whom we would be playing, Jerry and Rod. Before we had finished the front nine, Jim told me that Jerry had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer, though I wouldn't have guessed it by the way he swung a golf club. Jerry didn't say much that day, but I drove back to church that morning determined to stay close to him. Tuesdays became our day for golf.

After our second outing, Jerry broke his silence about his death sentence; he was scared. I sent him a greeting card along with ...

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March
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