Perspective from the 19^th Hole is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

The headline on this blog states an amazing truth based on Scripture.

We do not earn our way into the presence of God through achievements, trophies, or success.  We enter only because of what Christ has already accomplished for us.

Just consider this verse, Ephesians 2:8:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith.  And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

So, rest in this reality if you choose to accept it.

And on this Sunday, it is appropriate to emphasize this reality as we rest in it.