Welcome to the GMAF Newsletter! We pray it will encourage you in your Martial Arts and Outreach for Christ.
"Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee."
Jesus Christ
"And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness."
The Apostle Paul
"The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly."
Solomon
The Number One question I receive month after month is about Chi , Yin/Yang and Internal Martial Arts. Christians are concerned about what to do with them. I had my own concerns for many years. I thought it might be helpful to share answers to a couple of the questions I've received during the last month. Questions are in red. Answers are in blue. If you agree or disagree, I'd love to hear from you and will share your thoughts as well.
"I was wondering if you can probably explain to me whether qi is some cultic idea, or a scientific, biological or physical reality that resides in the human body. And perhaps you can help me to look out for things to avoid in martial arts today. Thanks!"
"The closest
thing I can find to the Chinese idea of Chi is the Breath of Life
that God gave humans and animals.
We know that breath is necessary for life. We die if we don't
breathe. The Oriental concept of the breath (chi) has some differences
to what we learn about breath and life in God's Word. Christians
don't need to go further than what the Bible supports.
Things to look out for in martial arts is anything that opposes God's Word. Martial arts don't have to be "Christian" to be okay to learn and practice. We buy food and clothing and cars without considering whether it's "Christian" food or "Christian" clothing or "Christian" cars. We don't need to go overboard, but we should be sure that nothing we learn or practice opposes a practice of Christianity."
"I thoroughly
enjoyed the T'ai Chi - it is the concept of Chi and Yin/Yang I
am not sure about ... How does this
reconcile with Christianity? I assume that you are saying it is
possible to learn T'ai Chi without touching on this, provided
you have a Christian teacher?"
"T'ai
Chi as a martial art and healthcare exercise is not in opposition
to Christian principles or values. I have found tremendous insights
to God's plan for our lives inside the art and exercise. What
you should be wary of
is someone of another faith expressing their religious views during
the teaching and practice of T'ai Chi.
T'ai Chi is an exercise and martial art that is steeped in the history and philosophy of China. Many of the people who developed T'ai Chi were Taoists and Bhuddists. They wove their philosophy into the fabric of T'ai Chi.
Anyone who learns T'ai Chi will have to learn something about Chi and Yin/Yang. What I've done is research the Bible to see what God says about these things. Chinese view Chi as the breath of life and internal energy. The Bible speaks often about the breath of life and the energy it gives to sustain life. Chinese view Yin/Yang as the balance of all things in the universe. God also speaks often about the balance of all things in the universe. We can address most issues in T'ai Chi from a Biblical basis.
I'm fortunate that my T'ai Chi instructor is a strong Christian. His teacher was a Chinese Christian (Master Li died 20 years ago). Master Xavier and I teach T'ai Chi from a Christian perspective. If you can find a Christian teacher, it will be easier for you. If you can't, study your Bible carefully and compare all things you learn about T'ai Chi with Scripture. "
If you would like to send questions to Mr. McGee or send your thoughts about Christianity and martial arts for inclusion in the GMAF Newsletter, please send them to mmcgee@gmaf.org.
God gives us many gifts with which we may serve Him. These gifts are from the Holy Spirit within us. They work together with the gifts of other members of the Body of Christ to form a solid representation of Christ. In this way we are interdependent with the family of God to adequately serve Him. If we all had the same gift, we would not be complete as a Body. For example, if everyone in the Body had the gift of healing, but no one had the gift of discernment, we would be raising up a people who were physically healthy but very foolish! Each individual has a particular set of gifts which the Lord imparts to him for a particular reason, and sometimes for a particular season as well.
These gifts are discovered and developed in our walk of faith in Christ, and are experienced simply by releasing Him to do His will through us. They range from the simplicity of serving the Lord by washing the dishes, to miracles like the raising of the dead! Each is valid and vital to the functioning of the whole Body of Christ.
"For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that shewth mercy, with cheerfulness." Romans 12:4-8
Christian service grows out of the experience of being a part of the Body of Christ, as we grow in our relationships with God upwardly, ourselves inwardly and others outwardly.
(Next study: Home Base)
We would love to share your inspirational thoughts with GMAF members. Please send your studies, essays and other writings for publication to mmcgee@gmaf.org. We will include them in future GMAF Newsletters.
You'll find every GMAF newsletter at http://www.gmaf.org/gmaf_newsletters.html . These newsletters are a gold mine of information about Christianity and the Martial Arts.
Many GMAF members have told us their favorite part of the monthly newsletter is Fellowship News. It's wonderful to see Christian martial artists praying for each other across the United States and around the world. No distance is too far for Christians. The instant we pray, God hears. We can impact the lives of our brothers and sisters through our prayers. God answers prayer. It is pleasing to Him. Thank you for caring so much for each other!
Here is an urgent prayer request from Marc England.
"My right hand in the ministry is one of my advanced belts. He is also the youth pastor of our church, and one of my best friends. His wife has been diagnosed with one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer. She has already had one of her breasts removed and is now going through chemotherapy. Please, pray for them. The doctors have given her only a slightly higher than fifty percent chance of survival. We know that with God all things are possible. We just pray that it would be His will to heal her. Thanks for your prayers."
Life for Christ
Marc England
Here are two messages from Jeff McLaughlin with INCMA.
It's here! The new website for the INCMA is new online! You can see it by going to incma.com .
* We have our own domain (no
banners).
* We have a new forum.
* We have a new online form that makes it easier for brand new
members to join.
There will be more added to the site very soon, but it's a great start!
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions or comments. Our new e-mail address is info@incma.com .
Blessings & Happy New Year!"
Jeff McLaughlin
International Network of Christian Martial Artists
http://incma.com
Greetings:
We have 4 members who have volunteered to take one day per month to intercede in prayer for the ministry and members of the International Network of Christian Martial Artists. Each member has been assigned a particular day when they will set aside time to pray. It is our goal to fill in each day of the month so that there will be prayer coverage every single day. We need 27 more prayer warriors!
1) If you can set aside some time one day per month to pray for the needs of the INCMA and it's members, please let us know.
2) If you ever have a prayer request, please let us know so we can add your request to our list.
When you have a need, it will be nice to know that there will be a Prayer Warrior from the INCMA that will be praying for you every single day of the month.
Blessings,
Jeff McLaughlin
International Network of Christian Martial Artists
http://incma.com
Here is a note
from Visile
Filat
in Moldova.
Today I arrived in Bucharest for the session at the seminary here. It was a so blessed time the last two weeks during the holidays. We went with all our family to Ribnita and the first week after the Christmas we studied with all the instructors of the Taekwon-Do Club Stolas Leukas I Peter and how to teach this course. Also, we made an evaluation of all the ministry God helped us to do this year and it was so great to see the wonderful way he worked and at this moment there are 23 groups in 19 localities and during last year 119 students received Jesus and many of them were baptized and now are active members of the church. We planned also the ministry for this 2002 year and we pray that Lord will help us to prepare and involve in our ministry other 10 instructors, to start 33 groups in 16 localities with about 500 students.
I am especially glad because at the firs seminar, during our study in i Peter our daughter Nastica, who is 10 years old received Jesus as her personal Savior. She is so eager to study the Word and to tell others the Gospel.
The next week we had the same seminar for English teachers who are doing missions teaching English from the Bible. At this seminar we studied an inductive course on Abraham. Looking at the results which God gave us last year in this ministry we are so thankful. During the year 7 teachers tout to more than 250 students and only at the camp in the summer studied the Bible inductively in English 170 students and as a result many received Jesus and now are active members in the church. We are especially glad for 9 the best students who came in our team of teachers. Felicia and Oxana are now studying in high school but they invited in their houses their school colleagues and are studying the Bible in English. They are so inspired and so glad for having such a good tool as English to reach people with the Gospel. We are grateful for the evangelistic Grammar Book "English for a New Life" based on Gospel of John which God helped us to write and print last year and now it is so effective in our ministry. This year we will work on the next level grammar book and it will be based on the book of Acts, so that our students will learn not only English grammar but how to do missions also. We plan to have 2 English camps next summer for about 400 students and there we want to teach them the courses Marriage without Regrets and Covenant. There are so many good students who want to be at this camp and we pray for it.
We thank you for your prayer support and please continue to pray with us for the needs of the ministry in Moldova: books for Inductive Bible study, sponsorship for camps, sponsorship for printing the English grammar book, computer.
May God bless you abundantly!
With love in Christ,
Vasile Filat
Our friends at Rhode Island Shotokan notified us that Master Larry Martin has been awarded a Grandmastership from the International Sunja-Do Association headed by Grandmaster George Patrotta. Master Martin now holds the rank of 8th Dan. He is Soke of Shojukempo and is Chief Instructor of the Nathan Bishop Middle School Shotokan Karate Club in Providence, Rhode Island, St. Peter's Catholic School Shotokan Karate Club in Warwick, R.I., and the Rhode Island Shotokan Karate Dojo in Cranston.
Here is an announcement from Master Joseph Lumpkin of Karate for Christ.
KARATE FOR CHRIST
presents
Albany, GA Camp 3/30/02
Seminar Info...
Location: Sherwood Baptist Church Gymnasium
2201 Whispering Pines Rd. Albany, Ga. 31707
Date: March 30, 2002 Time: 10:00 a.m. (eastern)
We will go until 4:00 or 5:00 with a 1 hour lunch break.
Cost: $10.00 per person or donation to cover expenses. If you
can not pay come anyway. Everyone who comes will work out.
Call for reservations or additional info Home: 229-439-7383, Cell:
229-894-1035 Or email
Michael Lee by clicking here. <mailto:mlee95@msn.com>
Here is a note from a parent looking for Christian martial arts training in the Kansas City area. Please let us know of anyone you would recommend.
"We live in Lee's Summit, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. We are very interested in a Christian Martial Arts center for our oldest son ... Are there any organizations like yours in our area?"
(I know you will join us in praying for each of these Christian martial artists and their ministries.)
Please let us know if you have moved, changed jobs, received a belt promotion, started studying a new martial art, started a Christian martial arts ministry, etc. We want to be sure your listing in the GMAF Internet Directory is all you want it to be.
We welcome Tony Clark to the fellowship. He is a Christian martial artist from Australia.
We welcome James McGee into GMAF. He has been a Christian for 18 years. James started training in Judo in 1972 and Moo Duk Kwan Tae Kwon Do in 1973. He also studied Wing Chun, Aikido, Jun Fan Gung-Fu, Kenpo, Filipino Martial Arts and boxing. James is married and has four children who are also involved in martial arts. I know you'll pray for his new martial arts ministry, CMAA, in Wichita, Kansas.
We welcome Josh Wilson to the fellowship. He is a Christian martial artist from Juneau, Alaska with 15 years experience. His main disciplines are Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido. James has also studied Yudo, Kwon Bop and Hwa Rang Do.
We welcome Lucas Jung to GMAF. He is a green belt in Shotokan Karate. Lucas will graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy in May and will move to Pensacola, Florida for flight training. He is looking for a Christian dojo in the Pensacola area.
We welcome
Sensei
Mildred Auty
to the fellowship. She is a 3rd Degree Black Belt in Shotokan/Kempo
and Founder/Director of the Martial Arts Women Against Domestic
Violence of Rhode Island. Mildred is the Girls
Asst. Instructor for Nathan Bishop Middle School Shotokan Kempo
Karate Club, R.I.Shotokan Karate Hombu Dojo, and Public Relations
Director for the World Tora-do Ryu Karate Association.
We welcome
Jeramy
E. Devlin Martin
to GMAF. He is a 4th Degree Black Belt in Shojukempo tora-do
ryu system, Shotokan, Kempo / Kenpo and lives in Rhode Island.
We welcome Joey Potter to the fellowship. He is a student at Central Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. Joey hopes to begin a Christian martial arts ministry.
We welcome Mike Lee to GMAF. He is a 3rd Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo and a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Shinsei Jujitsu under Master Joseph Lumpkin. Mike lives in Leesburg, Georgia and plans to start a Christian martial arts club at his church.
We welcome Corey Piazza to GMAF. He is a student of Wah Lum Praying Mantis Kung Fu.
We welcome Jon Teninty to GMAF. He is a 1st Dan in Judo and has been studying for 15 years. Jon teaches a children's class in Hillsboro, Oregon. He wrote that his hope is for God to show His Glory through him and the Judo class to the students.
We welcome Josh Wilson to GMAF. He has 15 years of experience in martial arts. His main disciplines have been Tae Kwon Do and Hapkido.
We welcome Kelly Bartodej to GMAF. Kelly is a missionary to Brazil and a new student of martial arts. Kelly's home is in Williamston, South Carolina.
I know you join me in welcoming all of these new members of Grace Martial Arts Fellowship. Please send them a note of welcome and remember all GMAF members in your prayers.
We appreciate your Fellowship in the Gospel of the Grace of God. We are praying for you and your opportunities to serve Christ. Please let us know about ways GMAF can help you in your service. If you know of anyone who might be interested in receiving this monthly newsletter, please ask them to e-mail Mark McGee. We'll be glad to put them on our monthly mailing list.
You are invited to read previous GMAF Newsletters.
If you would like to join Grace Martial Arts Fellowship ©, contact Mark McGee.
Grace Martial Arts Fellowship is a service of GraceLife Ministries.
Taking God's Grace to the World!