Perspective

Most people don't know the name Ralph Guldahl. He is in the Golf Hall of Fame. You've probably heard the names Johnny Miller or Greg Norman. Mr. Guldahl won more major championships than either of them. He won three majors, as many as Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson currently have. Guhldahl was, from 1936-1939, perhaps the hottest golfer in professional golf - winning two U.S. Opens, a Masters (with another in his grasp until missing a short par putt to lose to Byron Nelson) and three Western Opens - the only player ever to win back-to-back U.S. Opens and Westerns. At the time, the Western was considered on nearly the same level as a major. Known as a cool customer on the course, Sam Snead once said, "If Guldahl gave someone a blood transfusion, the patient would freeze to death." Snead also complimented Guldahl's swing saying he went back on line and through on line "near as perfect as any player I've ever seen."
But his success disappeared seemingly overnight - from being a brilliant ball striker to one who could barely play - mystifying his fellow competitors. Fellow Hall of Famer Paul Runyon (two PGA championships) is quoted saying,  "It's the most ridiculous thing, really. He went from being temporarily the absolute best player in the world to one who couldn't play at all."
Why? While the reason may not be certain, Guldahl may have let a faulty perspective undermine his swing and his confidence. He apparently did an intructional booklet featuring a series of photos that, if they were flipped through, would look like a moving image of his swing (high tech for the time!). He made the mistake of studying his own swing. The problem was one of perspective. You see, the photographer stood slightly forward of Ralph shooting, not straight on, but at a slight angle. Fooled by the perspective of the photos, he tinkered with the ball position in his stance and soon lost not only the correct position but his swing and his successful playing career.
Isn't it the case that a wrong perspective can deeply affect so many things - our relationship with God for example. Do I view myself, my circumstances, my future through the lens of the promises of God's word or my perspective? We must continually be reminded of the undying and unchanging love of God for us in Christ and not yield to a faulty view.
Perhaps if Ralph had a friend or teacher who could have corrected his perspective, things might have turned out differently.