The previous question identifies a few critical issues as a church considers initiating a Golf Ministry; those, plus others offered here, present a sequential process for starting:

•  Endorsement and embracing of the ministry by church leadership (Pastor, Staff, Governing Body)

•  Visionary leader (Specific gifts/talents for this person would include a heart for the lost and a desire to see people grow in their faith, a background and/or familiarity with golf, people skills for the purpose of recruiting, teaching skills in order to train those recruited, and organizational and administrative skills in order to run the programs)
•  Survey the congregation in order to identify areas of interest for participation as well as potential leadership.
•  Observe the community in order to determine the activities, events, and/or golf interest to which people gravitate.
•  Based on the survey and observation, consider the three major determiners for offering an event, league or activity: FINANCES, FACILITIES, PERSONNEL - Leadership and Participants.
•  Construct a program based on the information from #3-5.
•  Develop a strategy for evangelism and discipleship for each program initiated.
•  Promote the ministry and the individual programs.
•  Organize and administrate the programs.
•  Evaluate and modify as needed.

Many churches in America include golf in their recreation programs. Trinity Baptist Church in Southaven, Mississippi was no different. Prior to 1999, the format evolved from playing as a group to a rather informal foursome scramble format that required its teams to complete their rounds by a certain date.

In 1999, the Trinity Baptist Golf League was organized to promote more fellowship by scheduling the entire group to play together on Saturdays. It was a successful church golf league promoting fellowship among its golfing members. In 2002, a new vision for the golf ministry emerged that, not only could provide Christian fellowship, but could include devotionals and evangelistic messages to encourage its members and foster an atmosphere conducive to bringing others to hear the gospel.

In 2003, that vision became a reality when the Trinity Baptist Golf League moved from the local church to become an interdenominational ministry to promote Christian fellowship and evangelism through the game of golf. A new name was required to reflect the new vision and geographical scope of the ministry and we became the United States Christian Golf Association. Our primary outreach has been to the local churches in the metropolitan area of Memphis, Tennessee, including DeSoto County, Mississippi, but the vision is to establish chapters throughout the United States.

Yes, there is a place for all who would like to play with allowances for different levels of ability. The USCGA uses golf rules established by the USGA (United States Golf Association) and is governed and guided by Christian principals.

 

The USCGA can provide a speaker who can explain what the USCGA’s mission is and make suggestions to start a Golf Ministry in your Church. One other way the USCGA can help is through our website that will refer you to other Golf Ministry agencies that could be of assistance.

 

While recognizing different points of view, the word golf (in conjunction with the word ministry) refers to any and all activities within the continuum of simple play to highly organized and competitive professional golf. It would include individual and tournament golf play, Christian fellowship, outdoor activities, fellowship activities, and general participatory contests and/or activities. "Golf Ministry" should be gender inclusive, age inclusive, and ability inclusive as well as intensity varied, and activity varied.

The word ministry has an Old and New Testament understanding of service or serving; therefore, a Sports Ministry is any activity that lends itself to serving God, the church (building up the believer), or the lost. The church should never consider that it has a Golf Ministry merely because there are activities. It is the combination of taking those activities and consciously planning to glorify God, edify the saint, and reach out to the unsaved that constitutes Golf Ministry.

 

If what you mean by appropriate is, does involvement in sports and recreation violate a principle or command of God, the answer is "no." It violates no command of God. Of course to say that means we need to define the word "sin" and, then, to discover if participation in golf and recreation falls into that definition.

The word "sin" in early Greek was actually an archery term; it literally meant to "miss the mark." When an archer shoots at a target, he aims at the "bull's eye" - the center of the target. When the arrow landed anywhere else, the archer "sinned" - he missed the mark. The term began to be used in Christendom when people began to miss the mark - the absolutes of God found in His character or His commands found in Scripture. In other words, when I live my life contrary to the precepts, counsel or commands of God (the center of the target for my life), I have "missed the mark, I have sinned."

When involved in a golfing or recreational event, it is not the event that will determine whether the participant has sinned . . . sin will be the result of my motivation for participation, my actions within participation, or my attitudes after participation. A game is not intrinsically sinful; however, if one participates in order to achieve self-worth, that person has denied the value God places on him through the sacrifice of His Son. That is sinful. If the participant acts out violently or speaks wrathfully during participation, it is not the game that has sinned; the participant has. If the participant becomes haughty and proud because of victory, or despondent over defeat, again it is not the game that has caused this, but an ungodly response to the outcome of the game. The participant has sinned. As long as the participant can maintain his or her Christian witness and bring glory to God through the participation (Colossians 3:23), no Christian is constrained to avoid sports and recreation.

 

Once you have reconciled the issue of the individual being involved in sports and recreation, you can address the issue of the church formally integrating a ministry through these activities. To determine the propriety, you must try to find Scripture that supports or defends the place of the activity in the church.

This creates a difficult proposition in that Scripture is silent about the issue of sports and recreation. The Bible simply does not condone nor condemn Sports Ministry.

Of course the Bible is equally silent about television or movies; however, we can find biblical principles that will guard and guide us regarding which TV shows or movies we ought to watch or how much we ought to watch them. The same is true of Golf Ministry. We have to find principles that give us the latitude or freedom to use this form of ministry.

As one reads the Book of Acts as well as the Pastoral Epistles (I and II Timothy and Titus), it is apparent that God has goals for the local church. While individual ministries may debate what is included and which is the most important, it is apparent that the church is to be involved in three things: WORSHIP, EDIFICATION (the building up of the believer; participating in God's plan for the believer to be conformed to the image of His Son), and EVANGELIZATION.

Based on Paul's "declarations of freedom" in I Corinthians and Galatians, it appears that as long as neither the individual nor the church violates any clear command of the Lord, there is freedom in accomplishing the work God has given the church to do. The key for the local church is to find what activities allow it to be most effective in accomplishing worship, edification and evangelization. Certainly the freedom and latitude that Paul expresses is available to the church for the inclusion of sports and recreation in order to glorify God and extend His kingdom.

 

No, just as every church should not try to develop every ministry that other churches have. The indicators that a church ought to consider a Golf Ministry is when God places a vision for this sort of ministry in the minds and hearts of the leadership, when God has raised up a leader for this ministry, when God has placed gifted people within the congregation who have an interest in sports and understand how that interest can be used to serve the purposes of God within that church, and when certain circumstances lend themselves to the successful launching and maintaining of a Golf Ministry.

 

United States Christian Golf Association.

 

The majority of our league play involves individual play using your own ball where it lies. The league plays at least 15 rounds during each season (from March through September, with rounds played approximately every other week). We also play some post season rounds with varying formats such as match play and scrambles.

League players accumulate scores per round and at the end of each season we have a championship round where we award prizes for league play.

 

To enroll on-line for the current USCGA Tour click here.