Golf and Faith

In the year, 2000, a friend Andre Harris, introduced me to the game of golf. The life skills values of golf influenced me so that I wanted to share the new experience of golf to our youth.

Also in that year, I heard a silent voice saying to me, to get prayed up. I realized that this new (golf) world and my youth program that I entered into was not about me, the youth I wanted to reach, but in essence is about God. I have always been spiritual and seeking, but I was seeking spirituality by myself.

In, 2001, I (and the jazz society board), joined forces to start, the Tennessee Valley Youth Golf Development program. From, there we grew into the former The First Tee of Huntsville and now Par Excellence Youth Development program.

I shared with my dear friend, the late Lynn Harris (Andre’s wife) and George Malone, the voice I heard. Lynn suggested that I answer that voice by reading the bible. A good friend George, give me a copy of the one year bible and challenged me to read it. After nine years later, I had read that bible, the entire bible nine times. I wasn’t a member of any church, but I was around good spiritual people. I also knew some people that were full of religion, and God blessed us all.

Through the nine years of reading and now studying the bible, I began to understand seasons. During this season, this verse connected, with me: “Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man”. I was paralyzed because, I was trying to plug into the power of God, but I was trying to do it on my own. I knew the verse “not forsaking the assembling of”, but I was trying to avoid things I heard about church folk. I remember, my dear mother Almeta Bankhead used to tell me,” some of the biggest devils are in church, but go anyway!”

We had great success with the youth golf and life skills developmental programs. But, personally, I wasn’t growing. God knows what he is doing.

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David Washington a young friend, my deacon Mitch Reed and my Pastor Errol Davis realized I was full of faith and power, but I was paralyzed. These three brothers love me and prayed for me.

I remember one day around 2012, I’m paraphrasing here: because the crowd was so large and they couldn’t get me in the door, so they lowered me down from the roof to see Jesus, and Jesus said, “because of David, Mitch and Errol’s faith, Howard Bankhead is no longer paralyzed”. Since then, I joined in fellowship and is a member of New Beginnings Christian Church in Huntsville, and I have the ability to activate the power of God, that is within all of us.

Matthew 9:2 – Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”

Pastor Errol, keep encouraging me to come on with it. My cup is able to Runneth Over, where others can benefit.

Iron sharpening Iron.