Jason Day pulled out his second 2018 tournament win by hanging onto Sunday’s lead at the Wells Fargo Championship. He won by two strokes over Aaron Wise and Nick Watney and appears to be returning to top form.
In 2015, Day had five victories on tour (including the PGA Championship) and then had three wins in 2016 (including the Players Championship). During this run, he climbed all the way up to #1 in the World Golf Ranking, but then fell back after a very disappointing 2017 season.
Winning at Quail Hollow on Sunday was the shift Day needed to reclaim his momentum. Bob Harig wrote an article for ESPN.comwith the headline, “After Losing His Edge, Jason Day Has Found it Again.”
Following the tournament, Day candidly talked about his past struggles: "Last year was a good kick in the butt, not playing great and then seeing a lot of the other guys succeed. There was no jealousy there or envy.
"I know what it takes and feels like to win and be in that position, and it was more disappointing emotion that came over me last year saying that I feel I've got all this talent.
"For me to not work as hard as I should be and to be selfish in that mindset -- well, I'm burned out, it's OK to have an off year. That really bugged me.''
Whether on the golf course or in our own lives, we know what it’s like to “lose our edge.” Unfortunately, this can especially be true in our spiritual lives when we allow selfishness, complacency, or laziness to take over.
Instead of truly growing, we either become tired of serving (and just go through the motions) or stop obeying God altogether. We no longer feel like making the extra effort and convince ourselves “it’s OK to have an off year.”
There's no question we must be careful not to burn ourselves out, but to think we’ve served and read the Bible enough is misguided. We never earn the right to be selfish, complacent, or lazy, so if this happens, we’re placing too much emphasis on our own efforts and strength.
Jesus saves us because of our faith, not our works. In response to His grace and love, we should desire to stay sharp, hungry, and passionate to work hard and serve Him well.
If our focus turns to ourselves and our own accomplishments, we can easily lose our edge and become spiritually dull. When this happens, we must repent and ask God to renew our mindset so we can get back out there and use the gifts He’s given us...for His glory, not our own.
Just like Jason Day missed out on wins when he allowed himself to lose his edge, we are held back when we lose sight of the truth of God’s Word.
Hebrews 5:11-12 (NLT) gives a call to spiritual growth by saying,“There is much more we would like to say about this, but it is difficult to explain, especially since you are spiritually dull and don’t seem to listen.
"You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s Word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food.”
Today, let’s be challenged to continue growing in our faith and knowledge of God, and be willing to teach others all that we’ve learned. If we’ve lost our spiritual edge, let’s find it again as we focus on the cross of Christ.
I’m Bryce Johnson and you can unpack that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I confess there are times I get selfish, complacent, and lazy in my spiritual journey. I pray that I would stay sharp and keep my edge so that I can continue to grow deep and have an impact on others. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.
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