Black Belt is Just the Beginning - Life itself is a continued journey. I can remember believing as a kid that anyone who was a black belt in Karate had to register their hands with the police because they were considered a deadly weapon. In fact, since receiving my black belt in 2000 I’ve been asked that question a couple of times. No - I didn’t register my hands, nor does anyone who is a black belt. That is a myth that was started years ago. What I see in this myth though is the belief by most that receiving a black belt is the pinnacle of martial arts. Even today, people find out that you have a black belt and they are usually quite impressed. Not to take anything away from anyone who has ever achieved one as it is quite an accomplishment that often takes years, but something I’ve learned from my instructors and had reinforced by many others that have gone before me in the arts is that receiving your black belt is just the very beginning. Within the arts, black belt students aren’t considered experts. Yes you read that correctly. They teach and often run their own schools, but they have exponentially far more to still learn than they have already. On average, it takes about 4 years to achieve the level of black belt in a martial art, depending on age, frequency of practice and other factors. Along with this rank of black belt comes the title of “Junior Instructor”. In many arts, such as Kempo there are in fact 10 degrees (levels) of black belt and it will take a first-degree black belt an additional 45 years, on average, to achieve the rank of tenth-degree black belt. At that point you receive the title of Senior Master of the Art. When I compare my journey as a martial artist to my journey in Christianity, I find that they are not all that different, in that becoming a Christian is also just the beginning. However long it might have taken someone to come to Christ, that is just the beginning. Just as in Martial Arts, where there is continued transformation and growth from first to tenth-degree black belt, there is continued transformation and growth in the journey for the follower of Christ, and many other areas of our lives. From the day were born right up to the end, we never stop learning.
Posted on: Thu, 29 Aug 2013 07:33:03 +0000
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