On this day in 1971, 16-year-old Laura Baugh won the United States Women’s Amateur Golf tournament.

When Laura Baugh won, she was the youngest winner in the history of the tournament. Golf is a crazy sport, isn’t it? Some people play all their lives, taking lessons, practicing diligently, and buying all the best equipment, but never get very good. Yet along comes someone like Laura who wins a major tournament as a teenager.

Golf, like almost no other sport, tests a person’s honesty. That’s because golfers (except in big tournaments) keep their own scores. Typically after everyone putts out at a hole, the person with the scorecard will ask, “What did you get?” And that’s the test. Will the golfer honestly admit that he or she shot a 7? Or will he or she conveniently forget a swing and say 6? And what about when a golfer is standing behind some trees, swings hard, and moves the ball ahead just a couple feet. None of his or her fellow golfers sees the swing—nobody knows! So does he or she count that swing? That’s the test.

God values honesty. Many times in the Bible we read statements like, “The godly are directed by their honesty” (Proverbs 11:5), and “Lord, you are searching for honesty” (Jeremiah 5:3). So it’s no wonder that David asked God to lead him “along the path of honesty” (today’s verse).

You may not play golf, but your honesty can be tested in other ways. Someone may, for example, give you too much change after a purchase. Do you give it back? Or you may be caught in doing something wrong. Do you admit your guilt? Or perhaps you find something valuable in the park. Do you try to find the owner?

Make the right choice. Walk along the path of honesty.

Teach me how to live, O Lord. Lead me along the path of honesty . . . (Psalm 27:11).

To Do

For the next few days, be alert for tests of your honesty. Every time you notice one, say this brief prayer: “Thank you, God, for this test. It’s an opportunity to choose to do right.”

Also on this day . . .

1912—Arthur R. Eldred became the first American boy to become an Eagle Scout, the highest rank in the Boy Scouts of America.

1959—Hawaii became America’s 50^th state.

1984—Victoria Roche, a reserve outfielder, became the first girl ever to compete in a Little League World Series game.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005).