fore!

i do not personally know tiger woods. i am not a golf fan. even so, i have somewhere along the way developed an idea of who i thought tiger woods was/is. i have seen interviews he has given. i have heard others talk about him. he seemed to me to be a nice guy, a hard worker. i know that many consider him a master athlete. he is regarded as a role model to many. then his car hits a tree and his life hits the fan.

women claiming to have had immoral relationships with tiger are speaking out left and right. various media outlets are covering woods' infidelity as if all wars are over and this is the biggest news around. i can't shake thoughts about this man's wife and children, about this man's eternal soul.

i am disappointed by tiger's infidelities. of course! i have yet to figure out why men stray from their wives. my heart aches for tiger's wife. the pain she must be feeling. the feelings of doubt she must have about herself and if this is her fault. i hurt for their children. this situation is hard enough on children of "regular" parents let alone on children of celebrity parents. and my heart is a bit tender toward tiger himself. hold on! don't get upset that i am not bashing him. i will explain.

tiger woods is human. what he has done is absolutely, without any doubt wrong. but we can not put all hope and faith in a human being. we will always be disappointed. the flesh will always fail us. there is but One that we should put on a pedestal - Jesus Christ. this is not the first time a public figure, a "role model" has transgressed and proven himself to be less than what we have thought. i am not trying to excuse tiger's actions and behavior, but i am trying to say that further humiliating him or dragging out more and more dirt about his relationships will do no good.

i would argue that we need to view tiger woods as a man that is in need of a personal relationship with Jesus. how do i know he doesn't have one? i don't. only God knows our hearts. based on what has been going on in his life, though, i would say if he does know Jesus he isn't walking very closely to Him right now. can we not see him as a broken man who makes mistakes but who was created for so much more?

we are pretty fortunate. when we fail it is between us, those we've failed, and the Lord. unfortunately, his failures are not simply between himself, his family, and God. due to his public status tiger's failures are between the world as well. i dare say this is none of our business. any negative talk, inappropriate text messages, private voicemails, etc being swirled around in the media isn't only hurting tiger woods. how is the public knowing every single detail going to help a broken marriage, hurting children, and other players in this situation?

my disappointment is not only targeted at tiger's infidelity - it is extended to these women who are revealing the information. are these women proud of having an affair with a married father of 2? is their lust for money and celebrity so overwhelming that they don't care who they hurt on their quest? these women, too, are broken and in need of the only One that will fulfill all of their desires. flings with celebrities, 15 minutes of fame, and money will never fill the hearts of these women. they are searching for something, whether they would admit that or not. the media is no better when it comes to these women. the media is simply using them - they don't care who these women are or what their stories or hurts or joys are - the media wants a story and they will use these women for just that.

it would be easy to bash tiger woods for cheating on his wife. it may even be tempting to do so. but wouldn't it take more character to pray for this man and his hurting family - to see this man as a child of God who needs Him - to forgive his indiscretions and hope that he is able to heal and rebuild his marriage and relationship with his children? wouldn't our pursuing of Christlikeness be stretched if we prayed for the women involved in these affairs? if we prayed that the Lord opens their eyes to His love and His gift to them in Jesus? if we prayed that these women recognize their worth and beauty in the Kingdom and not just as sex objects for men to use when they feel like it? i do pray that God will use these horrible circumstances in the woods' household to make Himself known to them. that the Lord will make Himself known to the women involved. that all glory will go to the Father and that hearts and lives will be restored.