We are all children of God

I am a Christian. I am a child of God. I am a sinner. I’m sure that this post will be ridiculed by many but pray that you read this with compassion in your heart as a follower of Christ. 

Sunday was a special day in the golf world. Growing up, I watched Tiger play. He dominated the sport of golf. From the time he started, he continued to excel. Year after year he broke more records and set the bar higher for all other golfers. He quickly became the golfer that everyone wanted to be like. Kids were on the golf course portraying themselves as Tiger Woods just as they did Michael Jordan on the basketball court. Tiger became well… Tiger!

Then, the bottom fell out. His world was destroyed. The majority of what occurred over the next decade was due to his own faults and his own mistakes. For the years following public downfall, Tiger started paying for his wrongdoings publicly. He became criticized by many, especially Christians. He was now being treated as an example of a person who you do not want to be. Slowly, Tiger was trying to come back. Event after event, he entered. It was odd but it did not seem that many were watching him try to come back. 

Sunday, 15 years later, the eyes of the world was watching him again. Watching him come back and take the lead at The Masters. They watched as he approached the 18th hole with the lead all while trying to hold all of his emotions in. They watched him as he sank his last putt and the whirlwind of emotions finally taken over. The world watched as Tiger had finally made it back to the top. It was an emotional day for his son, his daughter, and his mother as they got to see their dad (and son) dig himself out of the hole he was in and finally stand tall and proud of himself again. 

Social media started blowing up with so many comments. It was a very positive moment until I realized that many people were condemning Tiger still. Many Christians were disappointed that he had won. Publicly stating that he did not deserve the opportunity to be back in the spotlight. They were mentioning that someone who did what he had done to his family and fans should not be praised for the accomplishment he just completed. I heard comments around while we were out of the same nature. 

Honestly, it took me by surprise to see so many Godly people bashing Tiger Woods for winning the 2019 Masters. What happened to forgiveness?

I am a child of God and I am a sinner. Isn’t Tiger Woods a child of God as well? Isn’t Tiger Woods a sinner as well? 

I am a sinner. Like many, I have done things in my life that I am not proud of. There were years of my life that I did not put Christ first. As a matter of fact, He wasn’t even in the top 20. I knew God. I loved God but I did not follow God as I should have. I was a stumbling block to many. I didn’t try to bring people to Christ. If anything, through my actions, the devil was winning. The devil had a hold of me and was leading me into a direction that would be difficult to get out of. 

Didn’t the same thing happen to Tiger? When one lets sin into their life continuously, it becomes easier to commit those sins. That’s what happened to me. That is also what happened to Tiger. 

But I am a child of God. Tiger is a child of God. 

I climbed out of my hole with the help of an amazing girl. I’ve worked my way back to the person I am today and the person I was before. I have a new look at life and my walk with Christ is closer than it ever has been. I am still a sinner and will be one until the day I die and, if God’s will, enter Heaven with Him. I was forgiven by God for my past mistakes. 

Tiger is a child of God. Everyone is a child of God. 

Christians, it is time that we stand up for other children of God. Instead of publically bashing Tiger for the mistakes of his past, how about forgive Tiger for what he did to his family and to his fans. Years ago, Tiger had a heartfelt apology to the world on national television. It is not my job to judge his heart but it is my job to forgive him if I had any feelings that he hurt me in any way. 

You don’t have to support Tiger but as a Christian, we are to love him and encourage him to always strive to be a better person. We should not want other children of God failing but succeeding in all aspects of their life.

There are many people that we know have been in the same situation as Tiger. Some of these have been our friends, our family, and people that we come in contact with in places around where we live. We don’t need to disown them, condemn them, and wish they would be failures. We need to reach out to them, pull them in, encourage them, and help redirect their life down the correct path. If they have already repented, we can still be an encouragement to them. Love them, involve them, and help keep their life on the right path to eternal life with Christ. 

None of us are perfect but we are all children of God. 

God is Good…