Let me preface this blog by reminding all of you that I was an English major and teacher NOT a math major and teacher, so if you want to know the deeper math behind this blog, then feel free to look it up. I will attempt to give you the basics, but even that might not be pretty.

On our trip to the Tennessee, we took a side trip up into Kentucky to visit both the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter. Both were fantastic, but one of our “lectures” at the Creation Museum was extremely fascinating. It was on the Italian mathematician Fibonacci’s sequence and the Golden Ratio, both of which I had heard about but only slightly understood.


The Fibonacci sequence is a sequence where the the next number is the sum of the two preceding it. “The Fibonacci sequence is significant because of the so-called golden ratio of 1.618, or its inverse 0.618” (Fibonacci numbers). This ratio of 1 to 1.618 can be found together everywhere in nature, in art, in architecture––everywhere, and it is why these objects that have it are considered beautiful.

After a brief but “over my head” explanation of the ratio, we saw this phenomenon displayed in petals—the distance between the first and second petal, then the second and third, etc. and spirals. Then again on the human body: The ration length of a person’s pinky finger is one, and then from the bottom of the pinky to the wrist is 1.618. From the nose to the chin is one, and from the chin to the top of the head is 1.618. From the belly button to the crown of the head is one, and from the belly button to the sole of the foot is 1.618. This was demonstrated over and over again, with different sizes and genders and ages of people in the group.

Then we went to the Mona Lisa and the Taj Mahal, to photographs where the main object is offset just enough to create that golden ratio. 

Finally, he played the video I have attached below to show how  those same Fibonacci numbers, which produced this golden ratio, also creates beautiful music. 

The takeaway? Our God is a god of precision and order, who created mathematics and angles and ratios, which in turn, produce the beauty within us and around us. ​

I really haven’t done the subject justice and perhaps have been a bit inaccurate in my explanation, but I would encourage you to dig a bit deeper so that you can appreciate even more the awesome precision of our amazing God.

After a year of no real communal golf, restrictions are now being lifted, and the ladies club golfing “tournament” season is once again underway––which means the invitationals are back.

Each club can decide what sort of format and scoring it wants to have. The most common is two best balls out of a team of four. However, the first tournament I attended this year, chose a different format––one that reminded me of one of God’s promises, of His grace, and of our responsibility. That format is the Eclectic.

In an eclectic, everyone plays a round of golf on the first day and records her score. The goal on the second day is to improve her score on as many holes as she can. It is rare, extremely rare, that a golfer will improve on every hole, but on the holes that were poorly played the day before, there is hope. A chance to redeem herself, and move closer to a good score.

Such is the Christian life. God doesn’t expect perfection from us the day we turn our life over to Him. Nor does He expect perfection each day. But He does want us to move toward perfection––toward being more Christlike.

Philippians 2:12 tells us to “. . . continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Our salvation is free and immediate when we accept Christ as our savior, but our struggles with sin and our Christlike qualities are daily work. But not work we have to do on our own.

Paul reminds the Philippians the he is “confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6).

God wants us to reflect Christ. He wants us to move away from sin and to be more righteous, faithful, loving, and godly, and he has sent the Holy Spirit to remind, prod, encourage, and help us in this endeavor.

So let’s not dwell on “poorly played” situations of the day before, but with God’s help, seek to use this day to improve.

There is a plant here in the West that every time I walk by it, I am reminded of God’s definitive involvement in creation and his care for each and every one of his creations. It is the Manzanita.

Whether one describes it as a shrub or a tree, the Manzanita is perfectly suited for its life in hot, water-stingy climes.

Its leathery leaves, which form a protective canopy over the plant, will tilt during the hottest part of the day, thereby reducing overheating and water loss. Those same leaves are equipped to capture any water droplet and send it directly toward its roots.

Both the smooth mature red bark, which peels away easily, and the marble-like surface underneath provide a quick, proficient, and expedient route by which each drop of water reaches the root without loss. Every water droplet gets to the bottom. No drop is wasted.

Likewise, the berries are good to eat fresh, dried, or ground into meal. Native Americans used the leaves to create medicinal poultices and also used them for toothbrushes. Nothing was wasted.

And while the wood itself is difficult to cure, and prone to cracking, when worked with in small pieces, it can produce some beautiful works, such as the vase shown.

Sometimes we take God’s creation for granted and our place in that creation, and don’t realize the specialness of both.

Matthew 6:28-29 reminds us that flowers, without worry or work, are more beautiful than Solomon’s attire.

Matthew 10:29 tells us that not even the smallest of birds falls without God knowing or caring.

And then the clincher: Matthew 10:30-31––“And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Creation shouts God’s involvement and His love.

Two weeks ago, the ladies section of the golf club I belong to held their club championship. This three-day competition is the culmination of the playing season and consists of various smaller competitions so those of us who have zero chance of being club champion, have other prizes to play for.

Regardless, something very interesting happens during these three days. On the whole, people don’t score as well as they have all season. Why? Because there is more pressure as we are playing for prestige and prizes; consequently, we are all hoping for three days of perfect golf. That combination never works out. So when that first errant shot or bad hole surfaces all the pressure to perform better intensifies and perfection flies right out the window––along with our hopes and dreams.

I recently read a book by sports psychologist Dr. Bob Rotella called Golf is Not a Game of Perfect. To paraphrase (and I hope I paraphrase correctly), a person will never play a perfect round of golf.  Some might come close, but weather, wind, bad lies or bounces, bad strokes, bad judgement, all interfere with a perfect round, so a player should not be discouraged if the perfect game never materializes.

Instead golfers should expect that during a round, one, two, or all of the above might occur. Errors and bad luck are not the issue. What you do next is what is important. How do you recover?

The same can be said in other sports. Even in gymnastics and diving, when athletes earn the perfect score, it does not mean the feat was without flaws. Likewise, a perfect 800 on an SAT doesn’t mean the student didn’t miss any questions. Rather in these cases all are being rewarded for being close to perfect.
 
The same can be said of our Christian walk. Yes, we strive for perfection, and perfection is God’s standard: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48), but this side of heaven we will always fall short. That is clear as well: “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (I John 1:8). We will lose our tempers, we will disappoint, we will make mistakes––some small, some pretty big. We will sin. We don’t want any of this to happen; we strive to avoid them, but we need to realize that as humans, they will occur.

So like in golf, it isn’t when or where we stumble or fall short that is the key issue, it’s what we do next that is important. It’s what we do to recover, to get back on track, to repair our relationship with God. Let’s remember His love, grace, and mercy. Let’s remember that each new day, hour, minute, and second is a new start, and like Paul says in Philippians 3:13-14: "I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”