WELC08/Frank Bauer's Devotion

Frank Bauer -- Devotional, What Can We Learn From Karate?
Want to speak a word on karate! I'm not a karate person however. Living a good Christian life on the right foundation. Matthew 7 parable about 2 houses. One house stands the other falls. The difference? Why does one house stand and the other fall? It is in the foundation. One is built on rock, the other on sand. But even more, what makes the foundation is that one hears and does the word and hence builds the foundation.

The rain came down but the tower did not fall because it had its foundations on a rock. Both heard the word of God and the preaching of Jesus. The difference was that one put it into practice, lived out the word of God and the house stood. It did not fall because the person, the builder, heard the word of God and did it, lived it out. Both heard the word, listened to the teaching of Jesus. When the wind came and the waters rose the house fell because the foundations were weak. If you only hear and don't do, you endanger your life, your house. It is significant and simple that in both cases the storm came, and that's life. We do face challenges and struggles, but if we listen and put into practice the word of God we will stand.

The karate part. We had a consultation for the school of Biblical Christian Worldview and the founder Walter Duerr came and spoke about karate -- to be a master you need to master three basic laws.

The first basic law is to repeat the basics. No matter what level you reach, you must always practice the basics.

The second law is to always be learning more.

The third law is to go into appropriate conflict. Don't start on a black belt but with someone of your own level. Always practice, always go into combat. We want to look at how that could translate into good Christian life.


 * 1) Repeat the basics? What is that? Quiet time, enter into worship, read the Bible, have your devotion, listen to the voice of God. Those are the basics, repeat them if you want to become a master. Don't get to the point where you think you are there and can just flow. Need to repeat the basics, need to read the Bible. Sometimes I am so busy and so free and yet in meetings when I haven't done my quiet times, I don't connect to God. If we want more authority and to go to the next level we must do the basics.
 * 2) Train in new moves. New inspiring teaching, reading and learning. I think we are doing OK but each of us needs to evaluate and expand our mind and heart and train. Learn new things, wrestle with new issues and expand.
 * 3) Go into appropriate combat. Evangelise and witness, interact with people, reach out, go on outreach, take your stand in society, write letters to newspaper editors and politicians to bring back more Christian values into society. Go into appropriate outreach. DTS graduates don't normally do TV interviews on homosexuality.

When I heard that I felt challenged in my heart. Am I only hearing the word of God and not doing it. Where do I NOT repeat the basics. Spend a couple of minutes before the Lord and ask Him, where am I wrong? Where am I engaging at the wrong level in outreach. Where am I not repeating my basics. And then we just need to do it. No matter what level you are at, repeat the basics, read your Bible, listen to God. Where am I in a routine and need to expand and grow -- study, read some books....

WELC08