Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Philippine Update #1
Hello AGPMA Friends and Family,
On the road again! Kim dropped me off at the Houston airport Tuesday at 1:00pm to catch my 4:50pm flight to Cebu, Philippines (with a few stops along the way). After patiently awaiting my marching orders from above, I finally zeroed in on my next Great Grandmaster Adventure and was lead to make contact with my next teacher in this adventure, Master Henry Jayme. Master Jayme is a well rounded practitioner of Philippino Martial Arts who I will be studying under for the next two weeks. I have asked him to train me as well as to introduce me to the local practitioners where I will witness their training methods and train with them as the opportunity arises. I have been in prayer for this great opportunity for some time now and I know many of you have been praying for me as well.
As I find my seat on the plane, I meet my next answered prayer. Let me introduce to you, Michael Holcomb, President of Keppel Marine Agencies International. Keppel manufactures offshore rigs and Michael is president of the Houston location and in charge of marketing all of Keppel’s locations worldwide. Michael is 56 years old, a father of two, and lives in Missouri City, Texas with his wife. His office is in the Galleria area and he is traveling to Singapore on business. We have a 24 hour flight to get to know each other and, come to find out, we have a lot in common. Michael is a marathon runner with 17 marathons under his belt and a goal to run one in every state. I have four marathons under my belt and (though not quite as ambitious as Michael’s) a goal of running one every five years. As Master Instructor I have asked my black belts to keep a "stretch goal" in their life to keep them growing and always reaching for a new level. I set that goal for myself after running my first marathon at age 35 as a way of leading by example, and God willing, I will run my fifth marathon in 2011 at age 55. It was inspiring to meet someone else who is setting and reaching similar goals.
The first leg of our trip our trip is exactly 12 hours to Moscow and the second leg is 12 more hours to Singapore. Needless to say, we have plenty of time to get acquainted. Being runners gave Mike and I an instant connection and we exchange running war stories and stories of overcoming. We also have time to exchange our work experiences, our family blessings, and I filled him in on my Great Grandmaster Adventure. Michael was interested in how I incorporate Christ into teaching the Martial Arts. Talk about a captive audienceJ! Neither one of us had anywhere to be so… his curiosity was enthusiastically answered with an introduction to some of AGPMA’s core concepts (Jim Collins’ "Principles of Good to Great," Chip Ingram’s "Ten Characteristics of Great Christians," Stephen Covey’s "Eight Habits of Highly Effective People," and AGPMA’s "Core Scriptures"). Michael was quite an interesting guy and he seemed very interested in the introduction that I gave him. He even showed interest in attending one of my Boot Camps! (Mike…If you are reading this, I hope to see you drop in for my next Boot Camp scheduled for February 15!) Pray for Michael and our future time together. I have a feeling our paths will cross again and I know that God has a purpose in our meeting that is way beyond our understanding. I leave his company feeling like I’ve made a new friend who I hope to keep in touch with.
On my final flight, from Singapore to Cebu, I meet seven month old, Marcus, and his mom, Sara. Sara is an intensive care nurse in London who is Philippino. This is a very short flight in comparison to the first two. I read, sleep, talk a little with Sara, and help with Marcos from time to time.
Travel mercies have been granted and I arrive safely at my destination in Cebu, Philippines 30 hours after leaving the Houston airport. I exchange $20 for pesos and begin looking for a taxi cab. I was approached by many cab drivers and their representatives, but I was advised by Master Jayme to find a cab with a meter and with the price posted. Turns out, this was very good advice. I find a cab and I arrive at Fuente Pension House, my home for the next two weeks, around 1:30pm on Thursday. The attendant informs me that there is only internet connection in the lobby and café. As anxious as I was to communicate, having had very little sleep in the last 30 hours, I retire to my room where I quickly crash and burn.
I wake up at around 1:00am (my schedule a little off) and I unpack, shower, and check to see if, by chance, I can get internet access in my room. Bingo…I have access (I must have misunderstood him)! So I sit down to check my email and to write this update to you. I have an email from Master Henry Jayme and I communicate with him, making plans to meet him in the morning for our first training session. I am full of anticipation as to what my training here will bring and to who all God will put in my path along the way!
It has been amazing to watch as God has put together the pieces of this trip from the time that He put it on my heart until now. I want to thank my sponsors who have so generously given to this trip. I, of course, have to mention our accountant and friend, Mr. Joseph Polizzi, who helps keep us in line. I can’t thank him enough for all he does for us and for the community (If you need an accountant, he is your man!) Also, as many of you may have heard, for the last few months, Premier Martial Arts has been home to a church family who was displaced by Hurricane Ike. After the hurricane, our students and friends, Pastors Carter and Laura Ware, were without a place to meet and we offered our school’s facilities. I have in turn been so blessed as I have been a part of the transition and growth at Faith for All Nations. The pastors and church family decided to bless me by supporting this trip with their missions offering and they were overwhelming generous in their contributions. Last Sunday, before I left for the Philippines, I was asked by Pastor Carter to encourage the members of Faith for All Nations and to say thanks for their contribution. That morning as I was studying my Bible, God gave me the encouragement I was looking for, both for myself and for the church, and it was found in the book of Isaiah. The following scriptures were scheduled for my morning reading (no coincidences…just Divine arrangements J).
Isaiah 52:7 How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace And brings good news and happiness, who announces salvation, and says to Zion, "Your God Reigns!"
Application- God says that the feet of those who bring good news are "beautiful". It is a wonderful privilege to be able to share God’s Good News with others, his news of redemption, salvation, and peace. To whom do you need to give the Good News?
Cross Reference- Romans 10:14-15 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
It is truly amazing the way God puts things together for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose! As I mentioned earlier, I have been in prayer for this great moment and I know that many of you have been praying for me as well. I want to thank you for your support and to ask you to keep the prayers coming – for me and for my family and staff as they keep things running while I’m away.
In closing, I want to encourage everyone to walk in the Spirit and to read your Bible first thing in the morning. When we give God the first part of our day, He will bless you and prepare you to be a blessing to others in your day.
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. If you are new to my Great Grandmaster Adventure, I invite you to go to algarza.blogspot.com to read about my trips in 2007 to Thailand, Brazil, and China. (Thank you to Pastor Laura Ware for putting my blogspot on-line for me.)
Al Garza’s
2047 W. Main C-9 League City, TX 77573
(281) 332-KICK www.algarza.com
On the road again! Kim dropped me off at the Houston airport Tuesday at 1:00pm to catch my 4:50pm flight to Cebu, Philippines (with a few stops along the way). After patiently awaiting my marching orders from above, I finally zeroed in on my next Great Grandmaster Adventure and was lead to make contact with my next teacher in this adventure, Master Henry Jayme. Master Jayme is a well rounded practitioner of Philippino Martial Arts who I will be studying under for the next two weeks. I have asked him to train me as well as to introduce me to the local practitioners where I will witness their training methods and train with them as the opportunity arises. I have been in prayer for this great opportunity for some time now and I know many of you have been praying for me as well.
As I find my seat on the plane, I meet my next answered prayer. Let me introduce to you, Michael Holcomb, President of Keppel Marine Agencies International. Keppel manufactures offshore rigs and Michael is president of the Houston location and in charge of marketing all of Keppel’s locations worldwide. Michael is 56 years old, a father of two, and lives in Missouri City, Texas with his wife. His office is in the Galleria area and he is traveling to Singapore on business. We have a 24 hour flight to get to know each other and, come to find out, we have a lot in common. Michael is a marathon runner with 17 marathons under his belt and a goal to run one in every state. I have four marathons under my belt and (though not quite as ambitious as Michael’s) a goal of running one every five years. As Master Instructor I have asked my black belts to keep a "stretch goal" in their life to keep them growing and always reaching for a new level. I set that goal for myself after running my first marathon at age 35 as a way of leading by example, and God willing, I will run my fifth marathon in 2011 at age 55. It was inspiring to meet someone else who is setting and reaching similar goals.
The first leg of our trip our trip is exactly 12 hours to Moscow and the second leg is 12 more hours to Singapore. Needless to say, we have plenty of time to get acquainted. Being runners gave Mike and I an instant connection and we exchange running war stories and stories of overcoming. We also have time to exchange our work experiences, our family blessings, and I filled him in on my Great Grandmaster Adventure. Michael was interested in how I incorporate Christ into teaching the Martial Arts. Talk about a captive audienceJ! Neither one of us had anywhere to be so… his curiosity was enthusiastically answered with an introduction to some of AGPMA’s core concepts (Jim Collins’ "Principles of Good to Great," Chip Ingram’s "Ten Characteristics of Great Christians," Stephen Covey’s "Eight Habits of Highly Effective People," and AGPMA’s "Core Scriptures"). Michael was quite an interesting guy and he seemed very interested in the introduction that I gave him. He even showed interest in attending one of my Boot Camps! (Mike…If you are reading this, I hope to see you drop in for my next Boot Camp scheduled for February 15!) Pray for Michael and our future time together. I have a feeling our paths will cross again and I know that God has a purpose in our meeting that is way beyond our understanding. I leave his company feeling like I’ve made a new friend who I hope to keep in touch with.
On my final flight, from Singapore to Cebu, I meet seven month old, Marcus, and his mom, Sara. Sara is an intensive care nurse in London who is Philippino. This is a very short flight in comparison to the first two. I read, sleep, talk a little with Sara, and help with Marcos from time to time.
Travel mercies have been granted and I arrive safely at my destination in Cebu, Philippines 30 hours after leaving the Houston airport. I exchange $20 for pesos and begin looking for a taxi cab. I was approached by many cab drivers and their representatives, but I was advised by Master Jayme to find a cab with a meter and with the price posted. Turns out, this was very good advice. I find a cab and I arrive at Fuente Pension House, my home for the next two weeks, around 1:30pm on Thursday. The attendant informs me that there is only internet connection in the lobby and café. As anxious as I was to communicate, having had very little sleep in the last 30 hours, I retire to my room where I quickly crash and burn.
I wake up at around 1:00am (my schedule a little off) and I unpack, shower, and check to see if, by chance, I can get internet access in my room. Bingo…I have access (I must have misunderstood him)! So I sit down to check my email and to write this update to you. I have an email from Master Henry Jayme and I communicate with him, making plans to meet him in the morning for our first training session. I am full of anticipation as to what my training here will bring and to who all God will put in my path along the way!
It has been amazing to watch as God has put together the pieces of this trip from the time that He put it on my heart until now. I want to thank my sponsors who have so generously given to this trip. I, of course, have to mention our accountant and friend, Mr. Joseph Polizzi, who helps keep us in line. I can’t thank him enough for all he does for us and for the community (If you need an accountant, he is your man!) Also, as many of you may have heard, for the last few months, Premier Martial Arts has been home to a church family who was displaced by Hurricane Ike. After the hurricane, our students and friends, Pastors Carter and Laura Ware, were without a place to meet and we offered our school’s facilities. I have in turn been so blessed as I have been a part of the transition and growth at Faith for All Nations. The pastors and church family decided to bless me by supporting this trip with their missions offering and they were overwhelming generous in their contributions. Last Sunday, before I left for the Philippines, I was asked by Pastor Carter to encourage the members of Faith for All Nations and to say thanks for their contribution. That morning as I was studying my Bible, God gave me the encouragement I was looking for, both for myself and for the church, and it was found in the book of Isaiah. The following scriptures were scheduled for my morning reading (no coincidences…just Divine arrangements J).
Isaiah 52:7 How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace And brings good news and happiness, who announces salvation, and says to Zion, "Your God Reigns!"
Application- God says that the feet of those who bring good news are "beautiful". It is a wonderful privilege to be able to share God’s Good News with others, his news of redemption, salvation, and peace. To whom do you need to give the Good News?
Cross Reference- Romans 10:14-15 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
It is truly amazing the way God puts things together for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose! As I mentioned earlier, I have been in prayer for this great moment and I know that many of you have been praying for me as well. I want to thank you for your support and to ask you to keep the prayers coming – for me and for my family and staff as they keep things running while I’m away.
In closing, I want to encourage everyone to walk in the Spirit and to read your Bible first thing in the morning. When we give God the first part of our day, He will bless you and prepare you to be a blessing to others in your day.
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. If you are new to my Great Grandmaster Adventure, I invite you to go to algarza.blogspot.com to read about my trips in 2007 to Thailand, Brazil, and China. (Thank you to Pastor Laura Ware for putting my blogspot on-line for me.)
Al Garza’s
2047 W. Main C-9 League City, TX 77573
(281) 332-KICK www.algarza.com
Monday, February 2, 2009
Philippine Update #2
Hello AGPMA Friends and Family,
Just completed my final workout/study of week one with Henry, followed by my first burrito here in Cebu (yum!). Wow! It’s been a fun and fulfilling week with so much to tell you about and some exciting Kingdom results to share.
So here we go…Friday I was having breakfast in the café here at the hotel when Henry arrived for our first meeting scheduled for 8:00am. Now let me introduce you to my teacher, Henry Jayme, a well rounded Pilipino Martial Artist with a background in Shaolin Kung Fu. Henry is one month younger than me, so that makes him 28 years and 11 months oldJ! Ok, ok…I know you don’t buy that. Henry is 52 years young and he began studying Balintawak (a style of Pilipino Martial Arts) in the late 70s. Over time he has been able to marry the Balintawak and the Kung Fu styles in his personal training.
After briefly getting acquainted, I go over my objectives and purpose for being here and then we’re off! We catch a cab and…oh boy…flashbacks from China, Brazil, and Thailand (Is my life insurance paid up?) After a few close calls and no time wasted, we arrive safely at Henry’s home/school. I am always impressed and inspired by the simplicity of the environments in the foreign countries that I have visited, and this is no exception. Basically, there is nothing wasted. They make do with very little and they make it work very well. Henry’s training facility is basically a small shed about 8ftx16ft. Nothing fancy…in fact, it makes the first back street Rocky gym look like an uptown training center for the pros. We get right down to business, starting with Lesson 1 of the 16 Balintawak Lessons that he has written on a dry erase board. Lesson 1 is their version of the 12 Basic Strikes with two footwork variations. Then we’re on to the 12 Defenses, followed by the 12 Defenses at random with Pakgang. Lessons 1-3 down and we skip ahead to Lesson 13, Combat Judo. Henry explains that, in this version of Combat Judo, they don’t believe in taking the opponent to the ground. Instead, they use joint locks to control him, then they just kill him while he’s standing (Did he just say "kill him"?). He goes on to explain that they believe it is too risky to take the opponent to the ground, so they just finish him off while standing!
Over the course of Friday through Monday, we had daily review (and correction), and to date we have covered most of the 16 Lessons along with a few disarming techniques and some knight fighting. While the stick training has been fun and interesting, Henry is also teaching me some Tat Kun Tao ("Touch Fist Way/Knowledge") forms. These are Pilipino style inside fighting forms based on boxing fundamentals… very interesting. This has been an unexpected pleasure and it complements my personal fighting style very well. I love it!
My training sessions with Henry are each 4 hours long. They go by fairly quickly most days and I manage to get in some Bible training with him at the beginning or end as well as go over scripture during breaks. It has been fun getting to know Henry. Turns out he’s a very interesting guy – a Pilipino Martial Arts teacher, a treasure hunter, a taxi driver, and a spiritual leader to the locals here (filling the shoes of his late father who had a following of people). I’ll explain more on that when I return from the mountain. On Saturday, I am scheduled to go to Henry’s home in the mountains, where I will meet his mother and some of the people that he leads spiritually.
A quick note to my UFC fans out there…How about St. Pierre? Henry and I watched the fight on the web (St. Pierre v. Penn). The only problem was it kept freezing up so we missed a lot of it. On some fights we didn’t get to see the results. But, I did see enough of the main event to know that Pierre dominated! This was Henry’s first introduction to UFC and he loved it. Oh…and we watched it on my laptop at a Starbucks! I know…diehardJ!
Ok…now back to my training and the real reason that I’m here. During one of our discussions, Henry asked me some questions about Revelation. One question lead to another, so it was time to go to "Revelation School" in God’s Word. God has a way of taking over sometimes and boy am I glad when He does. That night, as I was looking for answers to Henry’s questions, I found a 31 lesson study on Revelation by Keith Krell. After studying a few of the articles in search of answers, I asked Henry if he would like to join me in the study. He said yes, so we moved our workout sessions to my room. To date, we have made it through the first 12 lessons. Though Henry said that he was a Christian, his reasoning was that his father told him he was born a Christian. So yesterday I took him through the plan of salvation and invited him to ask Jesus to be his Lord and Savior. I explained that, if nothing else, this would be a rededication of his life to the Lord. Victory! Now, there is no doubt that Henry is a born again Christian! It’s amazing that God cares so much about each one of His children that He doesn’t want to leave one behind. I truly feel like God brought me all the way here just for Henry and I know that He has a plan to use Henry to lead the people who followed his father into the Kingdom of Heaven. I am excited just thinking about it! And as for me, God is training me in His Word in Revelation like never before.
It’s now 3:40am and I am expecting Henry to arrive soon for week 2 day 1 of our training. We will begin with the 13th lesson in Revelation, "All Heaven Breaks Loose" (what a great titleJ). I am giving you the website below and I want to encourage (or entice) you with this verse:
Revelation 1:3 - Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
Maybe you are like me and at a point where you welcome blessings but, more than anything, you want to understand more so you can be a blessing to others. If so…join me and Henry as we go to "Revelation School."
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. To join me in this GREAT study go to www.bible.org/series.php?series_id=195. You’re going to LOVE it! To read past updates from my travels go to algarza.blogspot.com.
Just completed my final workout/study of week one with Henry, followed by my first burrito here in Cebu (yum!). Wow! It’s been a fun and fulfilling week with so much to tell you about and some exciting Kingdom results to share.
So here we go…Friday I was having breakfast in the café here at the hotel when Henry arrived for our first meeting scheduled for 8:00am. Now let me introduce you to my teacher, Henry Jayme, a well rounded Pilipino Martial Artist with a background in Shaolin Kung Fu. Henry is one month younger than me, so that makes him 28 years and 11 months oldJ! Ok, ok…I know you don’t buy that. Henry is 52 years young and he began studying Balintawak (a style of Pilipino Martial Arts) in the late 70s. Over time he has been able to marry the Balintawak and the Kung Fu styles in his personal training.
After briefly getting acquainted, I go over my objectives and purpose for being here and then we’re off! We catch a cab and…oh boy…flashbacks from China, Brazil, and Thailand (Is my life insurance paid up?) After a few close calls and no time wasted, we arrive safely at Henry’s home/school. I am always impressed and inspired by the simplicity of the environments in the foreign countries that I have visited, and this is no exception. Basically, there is nothing wasted. They make do with very little and they make it work very well. Henry’s training facility is basically a small shed about 8ftx16ft. Nothing fancy…in fact, it makes the first back street Rocky gym look like an uptown training center for the pros. We get right down to business, starting with Lesson 1 of the 16 Balintawak Lessons that he has written on a dry erase board. Lesson 1 is their version of the 12 Basic Strikes with two footwork variations. Then we’re on to the 12 Defenses, followed by the 12 Defenses at random with Pakgang. Lessons 1-3 down and we skip ahead to Lesson 13, Combat Judo. Henry explains that, in this version of Combat Judo, they don’t believe in taking the opponent to the ground. Instead, they use joint locks to control him, then they just kill him while he’s standing (Did he just say "kill him"?). He goes on to explain that they believe it is too risky to take the opponent to the ground, so they just finish him off while standing!
Over the course of Friday through Monday, we had daily review (and correction), and to date we have covered most of the 16 Lessons along with a few disarming techniques and some knight fighting. While the stick training has been fun and interesting, Henry is also teaching me some Tat Kun Tao ("Touch Fist Way/Knowledge") forms. These are Pilipino style inside fighting forms based on boxing fundamentals… very interesting. This has been an unexpected pleasure and it complements my personal fighting style very well. I love it!
My training sessions with Henry are each 4 hours long. They go by fairly quickly most days and I manage to get in some Bible training with him at the beginning or end as well as go over scripture during breaks. It has been fun getting to know Henry. Turns out he’s a very interesting guy – a Pilipino Martial Arts teacher, a treasure hunter, a taxi driver, and a spiritual leader to the locals here (filling the shoes of his late father who had a following of people). I’ll explain more on that when I return from the mountain. On Saturday, I am scheduled to go to Henry’s home in the mountains, where I will meet his mother and some of the people that he leads spiritually.
A quick note to my UFC fans out there…How about St. Pierre? Henry and I watched the fight on the web (St. Pierre v. Penn). The only problem was it kept freezing up so we missed a lot of it. On some fights we didn’t get to see the results. But, I did see enough of the main event to know that Pierre dominated! This was Henry’s first introduction to UFC and he loved it. Oh…and we watched it on my laptop at a Starbucks! I know…diehardJ!
Ok…now back to my training and the real reason that I’m here. During one of our discussions, Henry asked me some questions about Revelation. One question lead to another, so it was time to go to "Revelation School" in God’s Word. God has a way of taking over sometimes and boy am I glad when He does. That night, as I was looking for answers to Henry’s questions, I found a 31 lesson study on Revelation by Keith Krell. After studying a few of the articles in search of answers, I asked Henry if he would like to join me in the study. He said yes, so we moved our workout sessions to my room. To date, we have made it through the first 12 lessons. Though Henry said that he was a Christian, his reasoning was that his father told him he was born a Christian. So yesterday I took him through the plan of salvation and invited him to ask Jesus to be his Lord and Savior. I explained that, if nothing else, this would be a rededication of his life to the Lord. Victory! Now, there is no doubt that Henry is a born again Christian! It’s amazing that God cares so much about each one of His children that He doesn’t want to leave one behind. I truly feel like God brought me all the way here just for Henry and I know that He has a plan to use Henry to lead the people who followed his father into the Kingdom of Heaven. I am excited just thinking about it! And as for me, God is training me in His Word in Revelation like never before.
It’s now 3:40am and I am expecting Henry to arrive soon for week 2 day 1 of our training. We will begin with the 13th lesson in Revelation, "All Heaven Breaks Loose" (what a great titleJ). I am giving you the website below and I want to encourage (or entice) you with this verse:
Revelation 1:3 - Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near.
Maybe you are like me and at a point where you welcome blessings but, more than anything, you want to understand more so you can be a blessing to others. If so…join me and Henry as we go to "Revelation School."
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. To join me in this GREAT study go to www.bible.org/series.php?series_id=195. You’re going to LOVE it! To read past updates from my travels go to algarza.blogspot.com.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Philippine Update #3
Hello PMA Friends and Family,
Well…once again God has divinely arranged this trip beyond my expectations. It is so humbling to be on the receiving end of His grace and peace. Keith Krell, the pastor and author of the Revelation study that Henry and I just finished, says “we must know God’s grace first; then we can know His peace.” I believe this is so true because, with every step of faith I take in my walk with the Lord, I experience another degree of God’s grace and peace as I watch Him orchestrate His will in my life.
Sunday morning, as I was thinking about home…missing Kim and Ashley…dwelling on missing Cody’s first fight in adult men’s division in an AOK tournament (Congratulations Cody…I am very proud of you!)…wishing I was going to be there to help Jacob and Cody build a fence for a friend…missing my friends…my students…my cat (you name it, I missed it)…God put on my spirit this scripture:
Mark 10:29-31 – Jesus said, "Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They'll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! (The Message)
WOW…a promise like that sounds like a win/win to me! God has a way of encouraging us in His Word. While I still missed everyone, it did help me get back to focus on the right thing.
I am here in Cebu for a very specific objective that God has called me for, so I took care of business and didn’t get around much to see the country. What I did find out from my travel guide is that Cebu is a long and narrow island located centrally in a group of islands that form the Visayas, which is central of the three main Philippine island groups. It is geographically unique because of its size, stretching 122 miles long and nowhere exceeding 20 miles across. The island has a population of 3 million. In comparison, Galveston has a population of approximately 57,000 which gives me something to relate to to get a better understanding of its size. Cebuano is the native tongue, but Filipino is commonly understood and spoken. And thanks to God that English is widely used throughout the island. For the most part, I had no problems with communication and, when I did, it was one of those “iron sharpens iron” moments where Henry came through for me. From experience, I can tell you that the food was good, though I wasn’t very adventuresome. I had one traditional Filipino meal and other than that the list consisted of pizza (which made the list twice), mauhi mauhi (also twice), burger, burrito, pasta (a couple of times), and some fasting. Getting around was mostly done by cab and walking, but the streets are filled with colorful “jeepneys” (little buses that remind me of the Art Car Parade in Houston) available for a minimal fare. The U.S. dollar exchanges for 45 pesos which makes for a great deal for us. I also learned that Cebu is known for making world class guitars. I saw some really nice ones and they were very cheap (I would love for my son, Jacob, to see them).
Now for some history on the island (the short version)…I found a couple of interesting personal connections with the following things. The Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan lead a contingent that arrived April 7, 1521 on Cebu island (April 7 just happens to be my birthday). This date is widely considered to be the beginnings of the Philippines. They celebrated with a mass that was lead be Magellan’s chaplain, Father Pedro Valderrama, and a crucifix was planted and still remains there to this day. The crucifix has come to be known as “Magellan’s Cross,” a monument which is synonymous with the island of Cebu. According to Henry, this was the first arrival of Christianity to the Philippines and, a week after their arrival, 800 natives were converted to the faith after witnessing a miracle of some kind. Magellan’s leadership was known as fair and generous and he led the natives to bring their idols for a mass burning.
Throughout my trip I was looking for the opportunity to bless others with the donations given to me by Polizzi Financial and Faith for All Nations Church, so I asked Henry where I could find some hungry moms and kids to take out for a meal. So…just what the doctor ordered…Sunday evening, he took me “uptown” (that’s what he called it) where we found a group of women and children around the corner of Magellan’s Cross and beside the church. We talked to a few mothers and their kids and, before we knew it, we were surrounded by 54 women and children – ranging in age from a few months (with their mothers holding them) to teenagers. I was totally blessed with the opportunity to take 54 hungry mommas and little children to dinner at Jolbee’s (which is basically equivalent to McDonald’s). The managers brought us in the back way and gave us the whole upstairs section. They each ate a burger, fries, a drink, and ice cream for dessert! This was exactly what God had put on my heart to do with the gift that was given to me and it was so amazing how He made the way for it to happen. What a blessing! I’ve never seen such appreciation and love shown in return. I let them know to thank Jesus for the gift and told them how much Jesus loves them. I know God is overjoyed and smiling down on my sponsors.
Proverbs 27:17 says “you use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another” (The Message). Well…Henry and I have experienced two weeks of building a friendship in Christ and in Balintawak. At times, I have felt like I was being sharpened with steel when he hit me! We have trained no less than 4 hours a day for the last 12 days (some days for 6 hours). The last 8 days of our training took place in my hotel room and was interwoven with reading the lessons in the Revelation study. What a great way to stay alert, stretch out, and let go of stress. As the saying goes, “repetition is the mother of mastery.” I was given the opportunity to do the drills, forms, and stick fighting many, many times (so I guess I’m on my way to masteryJ). I have been humbled and built up by my training in Balintawak and have been pleasantly surprised by the bonus of training in Shaolin concepts and exercises. I look forward to sharing these lessons with my students upon my return. The Tat Kun Tao (“Touch Fist Way/Knowledge”) forms are also an important link that I will enjoy introducing into the Premier Martial Arts training methods. I know that Master Robles and Mr. Van Over will love the boxing and inside fighting concepts (as I do). So for the Martial Arts side of this Grandmaster Adventure…I would say “mission accomplished.”
Have you heard the joke about the optimist and and pessimist twins? Well…in case you haven’t, here goes…
A family had twin boys whose only resemblance to each other was their looks. If one felt it was too hot, the other thought it was too cold. If one said the TV was too loud, the other said the volume needed to be turned up. Opposite in every way, one was an eternal optimist, the other a doom & gloom pessimist.Just to see what would happen, on the twins' birthday their father loaded the pessimist's room with every imaginable toy and game. The optimist's room he loaded with horse manure.That night the father passed by the pessimist's room and found him sitting amid his new gifts crying bitterly. "Why are you crying?" the father asked. "Because my friends will be jealous, I'll have to read all these instructions before I can do anything with this stuff, I'll constantly need batteries, and my toys will eventually get broken," answered the pessimist twin.Passing the optimist twin's room, the father found him dancing for joy in the pile of manure. "What are you so happy about?" he asked. To which his optimist twin replied, "With this much manure, there's got to be a pony in here somewhere!"
Yes…God makes us all different! I tend to be like the eternal optimist, for I am always looking for the pony in people and in situations (in spite of all the @#$%...oopsJ)! Zig Ziglar calls this being a “good finder.” My nature is to see the positive, the pure, and the praiseworthy and I realized this is how I see God and Christianity too for the most part. I look at God as a loving Father who filled the void that was in me and freed me from my bad habits. While I am aware of His wrath and I have a healthy fear of Him, my study of Revelation has brought the wrath side of God to light for me like never before. God has given me an assignment to be a voice for him in the Martial Arts and I have been growing in this mission since 1979. I love sharing His Word and helping others to know Him and His love. But, I gotta tell you…God has a side of Him that I don’t ever want to see anyone stand before, unprepared to answer the questions that He has for us. I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking that it all comes without us doing our part to get the Word out and to be there for one another. I love the saying, “if time is short and hell is hot, we need to be telling others about Jesus!” It’s true that Jesus is the gentle Lamb patiently waiting for us to accept Him and not wanting anyone to be left behind. But Revelations brings to light the side of Jesus who is a roaring Lion who will judge the world. Bob Dylan had a song waaaaaay back in the day called “You Gotta Serve Somebody” and I think the lyrics are timeless…”It may be the Devil, it may be the Lord, but you gotta serve somebody!”
Henry and I succeeded in reading the entire 31 Lesson study on Revelation. In our study, I learned that Revelation is the only book of the Bible that promises us a blessing for reading, hearing, and heeding its contents. We are a people built to love and thrive for reward, so this got my attention. This means that Revelation should be thoroughly read and applied and I’ve determined in my heart that I will return to this great book many times. I want to share this book with anyone who will listen. While I am still learning, I know that the Holy Spirit will provide the key to unlock the book of Revelation and continue to lead me divinely. So…on the spiritual side of this Grandmaster Adventure…I would say “mission accomplished.” Plus, the soul of a leader here in Cebu has been saved and will be ready and willing to be used to lead his community to Christ…”major bonus points”!!
This trip would not have been possible without the generous donations provided by my sponsors, Polizzi Financial Services and Faith for All Nations Church. If you are ever in need of an accountant or a church home, I pray that you will bless them with your support. I have to also thank my awesome wife and children. A Christian parent’s greatest joy is stated in 3 John 1:4 – “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” I might add my students, friends, and family to this too! To Master Falco and my second to none staff…You Rock! To my fellow Premier Martial Arts school owners and our great president, Mr. Van Over… thanks for sharing the vision and allowing me to be a part of raising the standard through Premier Martial Arts. We are making an impact on the Martial Arts world and we’ve only just begun! To all my friends and family…keep the faith and keep on keeping on!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. As I celebrate another successful adventure, I invite you to join me and be part of Jesus’ “Party Starters Club.” Here are the details in Michael English’s song “Start a Party”…
Starting my day, with big preparationsGoing out strong, with great expectationI want the world, To know that my Jesus lives
I have a clue, that my reputationCould show that God's love, has an open invitationI won’t miss the chance, that someone might call His name
I wanna to start a partyUp in heavenAnd get those angels dancin'For a new heartbeatIt's a righteous celebrationSingin' hallelujahI wanna start a party
Angels rejoice, and the demons all trembleWhen a lost one is found, all of heaven assemblesIf we each do our part, This party could last for years
Great Stuff…huh!!! J
Faith for All Nations Church
Pastors Carter & Laura Ware
http://www.faithforallnations.org/
171 Gulf Fwy South
League City, TX 77573
(281) 316-2332
Al Garza’s
2047 W. Main C-9
Well…once again God has divinely arranged this trip beyond my expectations. It is so humbling to be on the receiving end of His grace and peace. Keith Krell, the pastor and author of the Revelation study that Henry and I just finished, says “we must know God’s grace first; then we can know His peace.” I believe this is so true because, with every step of faith I take in my walk with the Lord, I experience another degree of God’s grace and peace as I watch Him orchestrate His will in my life.
Sunday morning, as I was thinking about home…missing Kim and Ashley…dwelling on missing Cody’s first fight in adult men’s division in an AOK tournament (Congratulations Cody…I am very proud of you!)…wishing I was going to be there to help Jacob and Cody build a fence for a friend…missing my friends…my students…my cat (you name it, I missed it)…God put on my spirit this scripture:
Mark 10:29-31 – Jesus said, "Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They'll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! (The Message)
WOW…a promise like that sounds like a win/win to me! God has a way of encouraging us in His Word. While I still missed everyone, it did help me get back to focus on the right thing.
I am here in Cebu for a very specific objective that God has called me for, so I took care of business and didn’t get around much to see the country. What I did find out from my travel guide is that Cebu is a long and narrow island located centrally in a group of islands that form the Visayas, which is central of the three main Philippine island groups. It is geographically unique because of its size, stretching 122 miles long and nowhere exceeding 20 miles across. The island has a population of 3 million. In comparison, Galveston has a population of approximately 57,000 which gives me something to relate to to get a better understanding of its size. Cebuano is the native tongue, but Filipino is commonly understood and spoken. And thanks to God that English is widely used throughout the island. For the most part, I had no problems with communication and, when I did, it was one of those “iron sharpens iron” moments where Henry came through for me. From experience, I can tell you that the food was good, though I wasn’t very adventuresome. I had one traditional Filipino meal and other than that the list consisted of pizza (which made the list twice), mauhi mauhi (also twice), burger, burrito, pasta (a couple of times), and some fasting. Getting around was mostly done by cab and walking, but the streets are filled with colorful “jeepneys” (little buses that remind me of the Art Car Parade in Houston) available for a minimal fare. The U.S. dollar exchanges for 45 pesos which makes for a great deal for us. I also learned that Cebu is known for making world class guitars. I saw some really nice ones and they were very cheap (I would love for my son, Jacob, to see them).
Now for some history on the island (the short version)…I found a couple of interesting personal connections with the following things. The Spanish explorer Ferdinand Magellan lead a contingent that arrived April 7, 1521 on Cebu island (April 7 just happens to be my birthday). This date is widely considered to be the beginnings of the Philippines. They celebrated with a mass that was lead be Magellan’s chaplain, Father Pedro Valderrama, and a crucifix was planted and still remains there to this day. The crucifix has come to be known as “Magellan’s Cross,” a monument which is synonymous with the island of Cebu. According to Henry, this was the first arrival of Christianity to the Philippines and, a week after their arrival, 800 natives were converted to the faith after witnessing a miracle of some kind. Magellan’s leadership was known as fair and generous and he led the natives to bring their idols for a mass burning.
Throughout my trip I was looking for the opportunity to bless others with the donations given to me by Polizzi Financial and Faith for All Nations Church, so I asked Henry where I could find some hungry moms and kids to take out for a meal. So…just what the doctor ordered…Sunday evening, he took me “uptown” (that’s what he called it) where we found a group of women and children around the corner of Magellan’s Cross and beside the church. We talked to a few mothers and their kids and, before we knew it, we were surrounded by 54 women and children – ranging in age from a few months (with their mothers holding them) to teenagers. I was totally blessed with the opportunity to take 54 hungry mommas and little children to dinner at Jolbee’s (which is basically equivalent to McDonald’s). The managers brought us in the back way and gave us the whole upstairs section. They each ate a burger, fries, a drink, and ice cream for dessert! This was exactly what God had put on my heart to do with the gift that was given to me and it was so amazing how He made the way for it to happen. What a blessing! I’ve never seen such appreciation and love shown in return. I let them know to thank Jesus for the gift and told them how much Jesus loves them. I know God is overjoyed and smiling down on my sponsors.
Proverbs 27:17 says “you use steel to sharpen steel, and one friend sharpens another” (The Message). Well…Henry and I have experienced two weeks of building a friendship in Christ and in Balintawak. At times, I have felt like I was being sharpened with steel when he hit me! We have trained no less than 4 hours a day for the last 12 days (some days for 6 hours). The last 8 days of our training took place in my hotel room and was interwoven with reading the lessons in the Revelation study. What a great way to stay alert, stretch out, and let go of stress. As the saying goes, “repetition is the mother of mastery.” I was given the opportunity to do the drills, forms, and stick fighting many, many times (so I guess I’m on my way to masteryJ). I have been humbled and built up by my training in Balintawak and have been pleasantly surprised by the bonus of training in Shaolin concepts and exercises. I look forward to sharing these lessons with my students upon my return. The Tat Kun Tao (“Touch Fist Way/Knowledge”) forms are also an important link that I will enjoy introducing into the Premier Martial Arts training methods. I know that Master Robles and Mr. Van Over will love the boxing and inside fighting concepts (as I do). So for the Martial Arts side of this Grandmaster Adventure…I would say “mission accomplished.”
Have you heard the joke about the optimist and and pessimist twins? Well…in case you haven’t, here goes…
A family had twin boys whose only resemblance to each other was their looks. If one felt it was too hot, the other thought it was too cold. If one said the TV was too loud, the other said the volume needed to be turned up. Opposite in every way, one was an eternal optimist, the other a doom & gloom pessimist.Just to see what would happen, on the twins' birthday their father loaded the pessimist's room with every imaginable toy and game. The optimist's room he loaded with horse manure.That night the father passed by the pessimist's room and found him sitting amid his new gifts crying bitterly. "Why are you crying?" the father asked. "Because my friends will be jealous, I'll have to read all these instructions before I can do anything with this stuff, I'll constantly need batteries, and my toys will eventually get broken," answered the pessimist twin.Passing the optimist twin's room, the father found him dancing for joy in the pile of manure. "What are you so happy about?" he asked. To which his optimist twin replied, "With this much manure, there's got to be a pony in here somewhere!"
Yes…God makes us all different! I tend to be like the eternal optimist, for I am always looking for the pony in people and in situations (in spite of all the @#$%...oopsJ)! Zig Ziglar calls this being a “good finder.” My nature is to see the positive, the pure, and the praiseworthy and I realized this is how I see God and Christianity too for the most part. I look at God as a loving Father who filled the void that was in me and freed me from my bad habits. While I am aware of His wrath and I have a healthy fear of Him, my study of Revelation has brought the wrath side of God to light for me like never before. God has given me an assignment to be a voice for him in the Martial Arts and I have been growing in this mission since 1979. I love sharing His Word and helping others to know Him and His love. But, I gotta tell you…God has a side of Him that I don’t ever want to see anyone stand before, unprepared to answer the questions that He has for us. I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking that it all comes without us doing our part to get the Word out and to be there for one another. I love the saying, “if time is short and hell is hot, we need to be telling others about Jesus!” It’s true that Jesus is the gentle Lamb patiently waiting for us to accept Him and not wanting anyone to be left behind. But Revelations brings to light the side of Jesus who is a roaring Lion who will judge the world. Bob Dylan had a song waaaaaay back in the day called “You Gotta Serve Somebody” and I think the lyrics are timeless…”It may be the Devil, it may be the Lord, but you gotta serve somebody!”
Henry and I succeeded in reading the entire 31 Lesson study on Revelation. In our study, I learned that Revelation is the only book of the Bible that promises us a blessing for reading, hearing, and heeding its contents. We are a people built to love and thrive for reward, so this got my attention. This means that Revelation should be thoroughly read and applied and I’ve determined in my heart that I will return to this great book many times. I want to share this book with anyone who will listen. While I am still learning, I know that the Holy Spirit will provide the key to unlock the book of Revelation and continue to lead me divinely. So…on the spiritual side of this Grandmaster Adventure…I would say “mission accomplished.” Plus, the soul of a leader here in Cebu has been saved and will be ready and willing to be used to lead his community to Christ…”major bonus points”!!
This trip would not have been possible without the generous donations provided by my sponsors, Polizzi Financial Services and Faith for All Nations Church. If you are ever in need of an accountant or a church home, I pray that you will bless them with your support. I have to also thank my awesome wife and children. A Christian parent’s greatest joy is stated in 3 John 1:4 – “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” I might add my students, friends, and family to this too! To Master Falco and my second to none staff…You Rock! To my fellow Premier Martial Arts school owners and our great president, Mr. Van Over… thanks for sharing the vision and allowing me to be a part of raising the standard through Premier Martial Arts. We are making an impact on the Martial Arts world and we’ve only just begun! To all my friends and family…keep the faith and keep on keeping on!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
P.S. As I celebrate another successful adventure, I invite you to join me and be part of Jesus’ “Party Starters Club.” Here are the details in Michael English’s song “Start a Party”…
Starting my day, with big preparationsGoing out strong, with great expectationI want the world, To know that my Jesus lives
I have a clue, that my reputationCould show that God's love, has an open invitationI won’t miss the chance, that someone might call His name
I wanna to start a partyUp in heavenAnd get those angels dancin'For a new heartbeatIt's a righteous celebrationSingin' hallelujahI wanna start a party
Angels rejoice, and the demons all trembleWhen a lost one is found, all of heaven assemblesIf we each do our part, This party could last for years
Great Stuff…huh!!! J
Faith for All Nations Church
Pastors Carter & Laura Ware
http://www.faithforallnations.org/
171 Gulf Fwy South
League City, TX 77573
(281) 316-2332
Al Garza’s
2047 W. Main C-9
League City, TX 77573
(281) 332-KICK www.algarza.com
(281) 332-KICK www.algarza.com
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
China Update #1
Hello AGPMA Friends and Family,
As many of you know, I have been reading through my Bible, beginning to end, since last March. I am currently in the book of James and if you have ever read James, you probably remember him saying that “when there are trials in life…” (notice he does not say if, but when) we should “…count it all joy” and learn and grow stronger in them. He says that we should not pray for God to remove them, but instead pray that God would give you the strength to endure them. So once again, through His Word, God has pre-framed and prepared me for my “Great Grandmaster Adventure.”
It is Thursday night, September 6th – forty-nine hours, six airports, five flights, and one bag lost and recovered after leaving Bush Intercontinental in Houston – and I am checking in to the Seaman Hotel in Kashgar, China. This will be my home for the next three weeks. As excited as I am about what God has in store for me here in Kashgar, several highlights I have already experienced have been meeting people in my flights and in the airports (lots of airport time), so I will start there…
Because of some miscommunication in arranging my flight schedule, I arrived in Beijing a day late and I guess you could say a Yen short J for my connecting flight to Urumgi. No problem! I had the pleasure of spending the night in the Beijing airport with Li Tao, an English-speaking engineer who is from China but working in Saudi Arabia. We got to know each other pretty well as he seems to have been the only other person in the airport who had a longer layover than me. He turned out to be a big help the next morning when he helped me reschedule my flight to Urumgi and then to Kashgar. Praise the Lord for Li Tao and his graciousness, not to mention his ability to speak English and Chinese (since my excellent English, good Tex-Mex, and few Thai and Portuguese words were of no help)! So far I have gotten by with Nihao (hello), Zaijian, (good bye) Xie-Xie (thank you) coupled with God’s Language of Love.
So after an overnight stay in the Beijing airport I was off to Urumgi then to Kashgar. In route from Urumgi to Kashgar, I sat next to John Chang from Taiwan. John was named “Mr. Taiwan” when he was 20 years old! Now 50, he still looks to be in great shape. He was traveling with his sister and his parents (87 years young). They were a Christian family, on their way to Kashgar to hire employees for their family owned and operated company. The flight went fast as I introduced him to the Newsboys “Go” CD, we shared some scripture, and we exchanged some testimonies about how great God is. I met the rest of his family when we arrived at the airport in Kashgar and left in hopes of meeting up for a Bible study on Sunday.
Now approximately 11:30 on Thursday night, just after unpacking, Mr. John Hu, my contact in Kashgar, called to invite me to come out to his Café. It has been over forty-nine hours since my last shower, so I consented to going, only after a shower and a shave. Unfortunately, by the time I got cleaned up, John was no where to be found. I figured that he had called it a night, so I decided to call it a night also. A soft bed and a good night’s sleep…YES!
Friday morning, I met John Hu and began to get acquainted with him and with the area. John Hu, his wife Chui Xiu Ying, and his 17 year old son Pi Ter are the owners of five John’s Café and Travel locations. They specialize in traveling the Silk Road and this side of China. John and his family are very friendly and have been great hosts so far. Thanks to my good friend Pastor Larry Garza, who put me in touch with John, I am being looked after once again on my adventure.
As a Martial Artist, I seek to add balance to my training and teaching by studying Tai Chi with a focus on the health and healing aspects. I have a desire to service my students both young and “mature” with the Tai Chi principles that I will learn. Mostly, I hope to learn additional training methods to enhance everything that I teach and do. John Hu arranged for me to meet my teacher, Ms. Yu, who is a well regarded Tai Chi instructor here in China. We made plans to meet at 6:00pm at my hotel.
In the meantime, I asked John Hu where I could get dollars exchanged to yin and he offered to drop me off on his way to do some business. As promised, he dropped me off at the nearby bank and gave me directions to walk back to which I thought to myself, “it’s a beautiful day and a little walk will be nice.” Little did he or I know that my pursuit of the almighty yin would lead to my next adventure. After standing in a long slow line, I excitedly reached the cashier only to be told that I needed to go to the Kashgar Bank of China which was just out the door and a few meters to the right. So off I went, on foot, to find some yin. Let’s see, how far is a few meters? All the signs on the businesses were in Chinese and there were many that looked like banks…in fact, they all looked like banks. I entered several businesses and asked for directions to no avail until I found a nice man who put me in a cab and sent me in the opposite direction giving the young smiley cab driver directions. By this time, my three Chinese greetings were exhausted. The cab driver kept repeating something like “banko” and I would answer “yes, banko” while thinking to myself that sounded more Spanish than Chinese. He would smile real big, but something told me that we were not communicating. He eventually pulled over, asked a guy a question, turned the cab around, and took me to my second bank. So once again, I approach a cashier and, in the words of Joe DiMaggio, “déjà vu all over again.” She says that she can’t help me, but the Kashgar Bank of China can. The cashier there spoke enough English and Chinese to tell the cab driver where the infamous Bank of China is located. So off we go, back to where we came from. The meter was running, but by now that was the least of my worries. My smiley cab driver and I finally found the bank that I was looking for. Once again, I found myself in a long line and, when I reached the front, the lady took my Visa card and passport to the back to fulfill my request. After a few minutes, she returns and says “debit card”, points outside toward the front and says “ATM machine, ATM go!” BINGO!! I made it to the ATM machine and experienced sweet success as I got my elusive yin. With yin in hand, I approach my friendly cabbie, who I had asked to wait for me, and I asked him to take me back to the Seaman hotel. He smiles big and says “Seaman.” Again, questioning if we were communicating I said “yes” and began praying. At the end of the ride, I arrived at the Seaman hotel with enough yin to last me a while. Praise the Lord and welcome to Kashgar! Could this experience have been one of those “when’s” that James was talking about? Stronger…Smarter…I certainly hope so!!
At 6:00 that evening, as scheduled, my Tai Chi teacher Ms. Yu rode up on her bike to meet me, go over my training goals, design my workout schedule, and decide on a workout location near my hotel. She spoke no English and, of course, by now you know what my Chinese language capacity is. With the help of John Hu, we discussed my goals for training and scheduled my first workout for that evening at 8:00. Ms. Yu went home to change and returned at 8:00pm. She started me with some exercises and then went right into my first form. Our first workout lasted for one and a half hours and, at the end, I was very pleased with John’s choice of an instructor for me. She was a great teacher and in spite of the language barrier, I was receiving top notch instruction and loving it. She built me up as she relayed to John that I am a good student and a fast learner. So, it appeared that we were mutually satisfied with each other’s performance.
Before coming to China, I had heard stories about the Sunday Market where I could buy almost anything, even a camel! I thought that a camel could be a nice gift to take home to Kim and the kids, but unfortunately the ride home might take even longer than forty-nine hours, so I scratched that idea. Still, I was anxious to see the place that I had heard so much about so, on Sunday, I braved it and took another cab ride to the Sunday Market. It turned out to be a very nice outing and I plan to return again before I go home. It was now time to go back to my hotel and get ready for my evening lesson.
As of Sunday, I had taken four Tai Chi lessons and made it through my first form. After another great workout, she told John Hu that she was ready to move on and begin teaching me something else. I encouraged her to keep fine tuning my footwork and stances. So on Monday, she responded to my request by breaking down the stance work and taking me through a good leg strengthening exercise which made for another great lesson.
So far, the only opportunity to use my Tai Chi skills has been in repeated combat with a gang of Chinese Fighting Black and Yellow Bees. I have been able to defuse the attacks, sacrificing only some of my drink and suffering no bee stings as of yet. I think that they sense my Tai Chi skills improving because tonight I had my first meal without them buzzing around and trying to intimidate me. I will stay alert and continue to train hard just in case. Other than the gang of bees, the environment seems to be very safe.
It is now Monday evening and so far my training experience has been a lot of fun. We have found a quiet place just outside of the Hotel to train. Occasionally, we attract a few spectators who just stand around and watch. The kids come by and giggle as they mimic the moves. One older man actually took it upon himself to help Ms. Yu straighten my stance. He meant well, but I think Ms. Yu was doing fine on her own. We have also had a Japanese fellow who has joined us in doing the form a couple of times. I expect that the training will crank up some this week as I will be introduced to the sword and maybe the steel whip chain. I have attempted to teach Ms. Yu the fruits of the spirit, but it is going slow at best. I asked John Hu to write them down for me in Chinese so that I can use them in teaching her in our next lesson.
In closing, I want to say that I am grateful to have been blessed with the vision of this adventure. God is providing everything that I need through His loving and faithful believers. Thank you to my awesome family – Kim, Ashley, Jacob, and Cody – and my staff for your continued support. Jospeh Polizzi and Natalie King, God bless you for your support and sponsorship. Special thanks to Master Robles and his students and Junior Master Beasley and her students for their contributions. And once again, a big thanks to Mr. Silva and Mr. Van Over for their leadership. I pray that my sponsors are blessed abundantly by others as I have been abundantly blessed by them.
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
“Father, let my light shine before men in such a way that they may see my good works,
and glorify my Father who is in Heaven.”
- Matthew 5:16
As many of you know, I have been reading through my Bible, beginning to end, since last March. I am currently in the book of James and if you have ever read James, you probably remember him saying that “when there are trials in life…” (notice he does not say if, but when) we should “…count it all joy” and learn and grow stronger in them. He says that we should not pray for God to remove them, but instead pray that God would give you the strength to endure them. So once again, through His Word, God has pre-framed and prepared me for my “Great Grandmaster Adventure.”
It is Thursday night, September 6th – forty-nine hours, six airports, five flights, and one bag lost and recovered after leaving Bush Intercontinental in Houston – and I am checking in to the Seaman Hotel in Kashgar, China. This will be my home for the next three weeks. As excited as I am about what God has in store for me here in Kashgar, several highlights I have already experienced have been meeting people in my flights and in the airports (lots of airport time), so I will start there…
Because of some miscommunication in arranging my flight schedule, I arrived in Beijing a day late and I guess you could say a Yen short J for my connecting flight to Urumgi. No problem! I had the pleasure of spending the night in the Beijing airport with Li Tao, an English-speaking engineer who is from China but working in Saudi Arabia. We got to know each other pretty well as he seems to have been the only other person in the airport who had a longer layover than me. He turned out to be a big help the next morning when he helped me reschedule my flight to Urumgi and then to Kashgar. Praise the Lord for Li Tao and his graciousness, not to mention his ability to speak English and Chinese (since my excellent English, good Tex-Mex, and few Thai and Portuguese words were of no help)! So far I have gotten by with Nihao (hello), Zaijian, (good bye) Xie-Xie (thank you) coupled with God’s Language of Love.
So after an overnight stay in the Beijing airport I was off to Urumgi then to Kashgar. In route from Urumgi to Kashgar, I sat next to John Chang from Taiwan. John was named “Mr. Taiwan” when he was 20 years old! Now 50, he still looks to be in great shape. He was traveling with his sister and his parents (87 years young). They were a Christian family, on their way to Kashgar to hire employees for their family owned and operated company. The flight went fast as I introduced him to the Newsboys “Go” CD, we shared some scripture, and we exchanged some testimonies about how great God is. I met the rest of his family when we arrived at the airport in Kashgar and left in hopes of meeting up for a Bible study on Sunday.
Now approximately 11:30 on Thursday night, just after unpacking, Mr. John Hu, my contact in Kashgar, called to invite me to come out to his Café. It has been over forty-nine hours since my last shower, so I consented to going, only after a shower and a shave. Unfortunately, by the time I got cleaned up, John was no where to be found. I figured that he had called it a night, so I decided to call it a night also. A soft bed and a good night’s sleep…YES!
Friday morning, I met John Hu and began to get acquainted with him and with the area. John Hu, his wife Chui Xiu Ying, and his 17 year old son Pi Ter are the owners of five John’s Café and Travel locations. They specialize in traveling the Silk Road and this side of China. John and his family are very friendly and have been great hosts so far. Thanks to my good friend Pastor Larry Garza, who put me in touch with John, I am being looked after once again on my adventure.
As a Martial Artist, I seek to add balance to my training and teaching by studying Tai Chi with a focus on the health and healing aspects. I have a desire to service my students both young and “mature” with the Tai Chi principles that I will learn. Mostly, I hope to learn additional training methods to enhance everything that I teach and do. John Hu arranged for me to meet my teacher, Ms. Yu, who is a well regarded Tai Chi instructor here in China. We made plans to meet at 6:00pm at my hotel.
In the meantime, I asked John Hu where I could get dollars exchanged to yin and he offered to drop me off on his way to do some business. As promised, he dropped me off at the nearby bank and gave me directions to walk back to which I thought to myself, “it’s a beautiful day and a little walk will be nice.” Little did he or I know that my pursuit of the almighty yin would lead to my next adventure. After standing in a long slow line, I excitedly reached the cashier only to be told that I needed to go to the Kashgar Bank of China which was just out the door and a few meters to the right. So off I went, on foot, to find some yin. Let’s see, how far is a few meters? All the signs on the businesses were in Chinese and there were many that looked like banks…in fact, they all looked like banks. I entered several businesses and asked for directions to no avail until I found a nice man who put me in a cab and sent me in the opposite direction giving the young smiley cab driver directions. By this time, my three Chinese greetings were exhausted. The cab driver kept repeating something like “banko” and I would answer “yes, banko” while thinking to myself that sounded more Spanish than Chinese. He would smile real big, but something told me that we were not communicating. He eventually pulled over, asked a guy a question, turned the cab around, and took me to my second bank. So once again, I approach a cashier and, in the words of Joe DiMaggio, “déjà vu all over again.” She says that she can’t help me, but the Kashgar Bank of China can. The cashier there spoke enough English and Chinese to tell the cab driver where the infamous Bank of China is located. So off we go, back to where we came from. The meter was running, but by now that was the least of my worries. My smiley cab driver and I finally found the bank that I was looking for. Once again, I found myself in a long line and, when I reached the front, the lady took my Visa card and passport to the back to fulfill my request. After a few minutes, she returns and says “debit card”, points outside toward the front and says “ATM machine, ATM go!” BINGO!! I made it to the ATM machine and experienced sweet success as I got my elusive yin. With yin in hand, I approach my friendly cabbie, who I had asked to wait for me, and I asked him to take me back to the Seaman hotel. He smiles big and says “Seaman.” Again, questioning if we were communicating I said “yes” and began praying. At the end of the ride, I arrived at the Seaman hotel with enough yin to last me a while. Praise the Lord and welcome to Kashgar! Could this experience have been one of those “when’s” that James was talking about? Stronger…Smarter…I certainly hope so!!
At 6:00 that evening, as scheduled, my Tai Chi teacher Ms. Yu rode up on her bike to meet me, go over my training goals, design my workout schedule, and decide on a workout location near my hotel. She spoke no English and, of course, by now you know what my Chinese language capacity is. With the help of John Hu, we discussed my goals for training and scheduled my first workout for that evening at 8:00. Ms. Yu went home to change and returned at 8:00pm. She started me with some exercises and then went right into my first form. Our first workout lasted for one and a half hours and, at the end, I was very pleased with John’s choice of an instructor for me. She was a great teacher and in spite of the language barrier, I was receiving top notch instruction and loving it. She built me up as she relayed to John that I am a good student and a fast learner. So, it appeared that we were mutually satisfied with each other’s performance.
Before coming to China, I had heard stories about the Sunday Market where I could buy almost anything, even a camel! I thought that a camel could be a nice gift to take home to Kim and the kids, but unfortunately the ride home might take even longer than forty-nine hours, so I scratched that idea. Still, I was anxious to see the place that I had heard so much about so, on Sunday, I braved it and took another cab ride to the Sunday Market. It turned out to be a very nice outing and I plan to return again before I go home. It was now time to go back to my hotel and get ready for my evening lesson.
As of Sunday, I had taken four Tai Chi lessons and made it through my first form. After another great workout, she told John Hu that she was ready to move on and begin teaching me something else. I encouraged her to keep fine tuning my footwork and stances. So on Monday, she responded to my request by breaking down the stance work and taking me through a good leg strengthening exercise which made for another great lesson.
So far, the only opportunity to use my Tai Chi skills has been in repeated combat with a gang of Chinese Fighting Black and Yellow Bees. I have been able to defuse the attacks, sacrificing only some of my drink and suffering no bee stings as of yet. I think that they sense my Tai Chi skills improving because tonight I had my first meal without them buzzing around and trying to intimidate me. I will stay alert and continue to train hard just in case. Other than the gang of bees, the environment seems to be very safe.
It is now Monday evening and so far my training experience has been a lot of fun. We have found a quiet place just outside of the Hotel to train. Occasionally, we attract a few spectators who just stand around and watch. The kids come by and giggle as they mimic the moves. One older man actually took it upon himself to help Ms. Yu straighten my stance. He meant well, but I think Ms. Yu was doing fine on her own. We have also had a Japanese fellow who has joined us in doing the form a couple of times. I expect that the training will crank up some this week as I will be introduced to the sword and maybe the steel whip chain. I have attempted to teach Ms. Yu the fruits of the spirit, but it is going slow at best. I asked John Hu to write them down for me in Chinese so that I can use them in teaching her in our next lesson.
In closing, I want to say that I am grateful to have been blessed with the vision of this adventure. God is providing everything that I need through His loving and faithful believers. Thank you to my awesome family – Kim, Ashley, Jacob, and Cody – and my staff for your continued support. Jospeh Polizzi and Natalie King, God bless you for your support and sponsorship. Special thanks to Master Robles and his students and Junior Master Beasley and her students for their contributions. And once again, a big thanks to Mr. Silva and Mr. Van Over for their leadership. I pray that my sponsors are blessed abundantly by others as I have been abundantly blessed by them.
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
“Father, let my light shine before men in such a way that they may see my good works,
and glorify my Father who is in Heaven.”
- Matthew 5:16
Monday, January 12, 2009
China Update #2
Hello AGPMA Friends and Family,
One thing that I have learned in my study of God’s Word is that he always gives it to us straight. For example, in Revelations he warns…
“I know your deeds, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish you were either one or the other! So because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Revelations 3:15-16 (NIV)
Can’t get to the point much better than that! When I started thinking about that verse, I began to compare being “lukewarm” to being a “pocket of greatness.” (As I have mentioned in some of my previous letters, one of my goals in my travels has been to find pockets of greatness and to be a pocket of greatness.) I would venture to say that someone who is lukewarm would not be a pocket of greatness in God’s eyes. That said…I decided that I do not want to be lukewarm. My goal is to be on fire, fully alive, stepping up and stepping out of my comfort zone to be used by God in a great way. I’d say that would be a pretty good example of a “pocket of greatness”! I am excited to look for opportunities to be that person and I am continually blessed as I find that greatness in others.
One “pocket of greatness” I would like to recognize is my new friend and gracious host, Mr. John Hu. As I mentioned before, John and his family own five separate John’s Café and Travel locations on the East Side of China. His hospitality has definitely been a blessing on this trip as he has helped make arrangements for my flights, my room and board, my meals, my training, and even my communication with my wife and family. God’s Word tells us that what we do to the “unto the least of these” we do unto the Lord. Well…John Hu has definitely taken care of “the least of these” as he has looked after me while I am all alone in a land that is foreign to me. It is apparent that God’s Love is in him as he continually shows that love to me.
Week two highlights are many…
First, to update you on my battle with the bees…The Chinese Fighting Bees have discovered my training area. I think they have observed my technique and I have to admit that I no longer intimidate them with my Tai Chi skills. They have realized that I am just a beginner and they now come at me like bananas in bunches. I have reverted to practicing Mr. Mireles’ dance defense against them (Aaron, you know the oneJ). As aggressive as they are, I’m sure they are harmless. Just the same, please pray for me to make it out without a sting!
Ms. Wong joined Ms. Yu and I in our training last week to make for some interesting workout sessions. Ms. Wong is a middle school teacher who came to her first lesson as ready to practice her English as she was to learn Tai Chi. With her help, we made it through the first six Fruits of the Spirit – Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, and Goodness…and the rest are to follow. We had a lot of fun as I taught them the words in English and they taught me the Chinese translations. Ms. Wong has trained with us twice now and she has brought a lot of fun and energy to the lessons.
Another highlight was being introduced to Tai Chi Softball…very interesting! It reminds me of hacky sack (which I have no personal experience with, but have watched my talented young staff members play). The only difference is that Tai Chi Softball is played with a racket. It starts out very basic, but it can get pretty fancy pretty quickly. Ms. Yu demonstrated it for me first and I thought to myself “that looks pretty simple.” Then I got the racket in my hand and gained a whole new respect for Ms. Yu and for the art of Tai Chi Softball as I realized the control and the finesse that was involved. I have made some progress since my first attempt at it. We have been using it as a warm up and a cool down and I have learned that it is a great way to practice Tai Chi through disguised repetition.
As of now, I have experienced (learned would be an exaggeration) two Tai Chi forms, Tai Chi balance and flexibility exercises, Tai Chi Softball and today I was introduced to the Tai Chi Sword (something that I have been looking forward to). At best, I have been moving slowJ! Get it? Tai Chi=Slow! (Oh well…couldn’t resist)! The slow movements ofTai Chi are a definite contrast to my Tae Kwon Do base and the Premier Martial Arts and Krav Maga that I practice at home, as well as the Muay Thai training I experienced in Thailand and the Jujitsu training that I experienced in Brazil. In short, it is not what I am used to! However, the body control, mental concentration, and deep breathing is exactly what I was looking for. As I mentioned before, my goal here has been to add balance to my training and my teaching. I’ve heard it said that seeking balance is like “being in a state of constant negotiation” and this experience has proven that statement to be true.
I will learn all that I can during my last week here in Kashgar and I will look forward to coming home and passing on what I have learned to my students. I don’t mean to whine…but I miss everyone tremendously! I am very excited about coming home on Tuesday and I am ready to hit the ground running!!
Before closing, I would like to take a minute to congratulate my awesome AGPMA team back home for the great job they are doing while I am away. Daily reports from Kim have been outstanding and it’s is exciting to know that my students are being taken care of in my absence. In November, we will celebrate our 31st Anniversary in the Martial Arts business and October will mark 2 years of being a Premier Martial Arts school. I am very proud of both of these accomplishments. I know that the Premier systems have so much to do with the team’s success while I am away and I am so happy that I was inspired to join the Premier Team!
Once again, I’d like to say a special thanks to my good friends – Joseph Polizzi (of Polizzi Financial Services) and Natalie King (of Meineke Car Care Centers). And thanks to the rest of my friends, family, staff, and students who have supported me with your thoughts and prayers!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
One thing that I have learned in my study of God’s Word is that he always gives it to us straight. For example, in Revelations he warns…
“I know your deeds, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish you were either one or the other! So because you are lukewarm – neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”
Revelations 3:15-16 (NIV)
Can’t get to the point much better than that! When I started thinking about that verse, I began to compare being “lukewarm” to being a “pocket of greatness.” (As I have mentioned in some of my previous letters, one of my goals in my travels has been to find pockets of greatness and to be a pocket of greatness.) I would venture to say that someone who is lukewarm would not be a pocket of greatness in God’s eyes. That said…I decided that I do not want to be lukewarm. My goal is to be on fire, fully alive, stepping up and stepping out of my comfort zone to be used by God in a great way. I’d say that would be a pretty good example of a “pocket of greatness”! I am excited to look for opportunities to be that person and I am continually blessed as I find that greatness in others.
One “pocket of greatness” I would like to recognize is my new friend and gracious host, Mr. John Hu. As I mentioned before, John and his family own five separate John’s Café and Travel locations on the East Side of China. His hospitality has definitely been a blessing on this trip as he has helped make arrangements for my flights, my room and board, my meals, my training, and even my communication with my wife and family. God’s Word tells us that what we do to the “unto the least of these” we do unto the Lord. Well…John Hu has definitely taken care of “the least of these” as he has looked after me while I am all alone in a land that is foreign to me. It is apparent that God’s Love is in him as he continually shows that love to me.
Week two highlights are many…
First, to update you on my battle with the bees…The Chinese Fighting Bees have discovered my training area. I think they have observed my technique and I have to admit that I no longer intimidate them with my Tai Chi skills. They have realized that I am just a beginner and they now come at me like bananas in bunches. I have reverted to practicing Mr. Mireles’ dance defense against them (Aaron, you know the oneJ). As aggressive as they are, I’m sure they are harmless. Just the same, please pray for me to make it out without a sting!
Ms. Wong joined Ms. Yu and I in our training last week to make for some interesting workout sessions. Ms. Wong is a middle school teacher who came to her first lesson as ready to practice her English as she was to learn Tai Chi. With her help, we made it through the first six Fruits of the Spirit – Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, and Goodness…and the rest are to follow. We had a lot of fun as I taught them the words in English and they taught me the Chinese translations. Ms. Wong has trained with us twice now and she has brought a lot of fun and energy to the lessons.
Another highlight was being introduced to Tai Chi Softball…very interesting! It reminds me of hacky sack (which I have no personal experience with, but have watched my talented young staff members play). The only difference is that Tai Chi Softball is played with a racket. It starts out very basic, but it can get pretty fancy pretty quickly. Ms. Yu demonstrated it for me first and I thought to myself “that looks pretty simple.” Then I got the racket in my hand and gained a whole new respect for Ms. Yu and for the art of Tai Chi Softball as I realized the control and the finesse that was involved. I have made some progress since my first attempt at it. We have been using it as a warm up and a cool down and I have learned that it is a great way to practice Tai Chi through disguised repetition.
As of now, I have experienced (learned would be an exaggeration) two Tai Chi forms, Tai Chi balance and flexibility exercises, Tai Chi Softball and today I was introduced to the Tai Chi Sword (something that I have been looking forward to). At best, I have been moving slowJ! Get it? Tai Chi=Slow! (Oh well…couldn’t resist)! The slow movements ofTai Chi are a definite contrast to my Tae Kwon Do base and the Premier Martial Arts and Krav Maga that I practice at home, as well as the Muay Thai training I experienced in Thailand and the Jujitsu training that I experienced in Brazil. In short, it is not what I am used to! However, the body control, mental concentration, and deep breathing is exactly what I was looking for. As I mentioned before, my goal here has been to add balance to my training and my teaching. I’ve heard it said that seeking balance is like “being in a state of constant negotiation” and this experience has proven that statement to be true.
I will learn all that I can during my last week here in Kashgar and I will look forward to coming home and passing on what I have learned to my students. I don’t mean to whine…but I miss everyone tremendously! I am very excited about coming home on Tuesday and I am ready to hit the ground running!!
Before closing, I would like to take a minute to congratulate my awesome AGPMA team back home for the great job they are doing while I am away. Daily reports from Kim have been outstanding and it’s is exciting to know that my students are being taken care of in my absence. In November, we will celebrate our 31st Anniversary in the Martial Arts business and October will mark 2 years of being a Premier Martial Arts school. I am very proud of both of these accomplishments. I know that the Premier systems have so much to do with the team’s success while I am away and I am so happy that I was inspired to join the Premier Team!
Once again, I’d like to say a special thanks to my good friends – Joseph Polizzi (of Polizzi Financial Services) and Natalie King (of Meineke Car Care Centers). And thanks to the rest of my friends, family, staff, and students who have supported me with your thoughts and prayers!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
Sunday, January 11, 2009
China Update #3
Hello AGPMA Friends and Family,
It is now Sunday morning here in Kashgar and I just finished reading the book of Revelations – 19 months after beginning the Book of Genesis in March of 2006! Wow…what insight my Life-Application Bible has brought me over the past months. Even though this was not my first time to read it, God’s Word has a way of being new and fresh every time I revisit it. It’s so alive and relevant to today!
Way back in April of 2006 when I was in the Book of Joshua, I was comforted with the same words that God used to comfort Joshua. He said, “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will never leave you or forsake you” – Joshua 1:5. These words came to me as I was preparing to make the plans for my traveling more public and putting the team together to make it possible. I was in deep prayer for the words to express what God had put on my heart to do and I found guidance when I looked at the application to this verse…
Every job is a new challenge. Without God, it can be frightening. With God, It can be a
GREAT Adventure. Just as God was with Joshua, he is with us as we face our new challenges. (taken from my Life-Application Bible)
I had been playing around with these very words as I had been studying and speaking on Jim Collins’ book Good to GREAT and Pastor Chip Ingram’s sermon Good to GREAT in God’s Eyes. So I just inserted “Grandmaster” into the name and made it official. I must humbly give the glory to God and the reading of His Word for everything GREAT in this “Great Grandmaster Adventure.” As I think about what is so GREAT about it, two things stand out above anything else – God and the people. I have been surrounded by both everywhere I have been. It is reassuring to know that wherever I go God’s got my back. Yes, there is evil everywhere, but I am a firm believer that “you get what you look for.” So I choose to look for the good in people and to show them God’s goodness in me.
As I read my Bible back in April of 2006, I also focused on Joshua 1:8. This verse has been a personal favorite since my friend and former Pastor, Cliff Poe, taught it in a sermon to our congregation. He introduced it as “God’s formula for success” and it says, “Do not let this Book of the law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.” Then you will be prosperous and successful” – Joshua 1:8. I gained even more insight when I looked at the application…
So many people think that prosperity and success come from having power, influential personal contacts, and a relentless desire to get ahead. But the strategy for gaining prosperity that God taught Joshua goes against such criteria. He said that to succeed Joshua must do three things. 1) be strong and courageous because the task ahead would not be easy, 2) obey God’s law, and 3) constantly read and study the Book of the Law—God’s Word. To be successful, follow God’s words to Joshua. You may not succeed by the world’s standards, but you will be a success in God’s eyes—and his opinion lasts forever. (also taken from my Life-Application Bible)
Being disciplined to read God’s Word daily has been the single most important thing that I could have committed to to get me to this point in my adventure and, more importantly, to this point in my life. My concerns and fears have been replaced with a deep faith in the Lord. He has unfolded His plan and purpose for my Great Grandmaster Adventure one day at a time through His Word and through all his faithful followers who have contributed through their encouragement, prayers, and contributions. To my family, friends, students, staff, and PMA associates, a BIG thanks for all your support. I want to thank you for the love you have showed me. I don’t know where you are in your faith today, but I encourage you commit to building daily spiritual disciplines into your life. Make it the most important thing on your to do list. You will be blessed and you will be a blessing to others. I am inspired to stay committed to this daily discipline so that I can continue to grow in Christ.
Speaking of growing…I just returned from my next to the last Tai Chi lesson with Ms. Yu. It was heaven out there, which was surprising because last night a cold front came through bringing with it lots of wind. I was alarmed as I was sitting in John’s Café (which is an open Café) and the wind blew in a heavy sand storm. I got my coffee to go and came back up to my room as quickly as I could. But this morning showed no signs of last night’s storm. Instead, I was blessed with a sunny, crisp, and quiet morning for my next to the last lesson. I gotta tell you that Ms. Yu had her work cut out for her in training this Texas point fighter/kick boxer, self protection instructor, marathon runner, and type-A personality to learn the slow and gentle way of Tai Chi. Every now and then I just wanted to throw a side kick, put someone in a submission hold, or just hit somethingJ! But I resisted the urge and managed to keep myself under control. And I finally achieved sweet victory! Yes…I achieved success in my lesson today as I performed my two forms for the first time to the music with perfect timing. It has been challenging just to learn the forms and, up until now, I have been more concerned with learning them than with the music or the timing. But it all came together in this morning’s lesson. I could almost see Ms. Yu’s feeling of triumph as I closed the form on cue with the final note. I considered telling her that this would be a good lesson to end with, but I kept my thoughts to myself and finished on a high note with plans to come back this evening for my final lesson.
Oh…I want to let you know that your prayers have been answered and I will be returning home without a single bee sting! Those Chinese Fighting Bees had me worried a few times, but we made it through without any casualties (on either side). We did have a few close calls though during one of my Tai Chi Softball lessons when I was forced to use my racket to scare them away. I cranked up the speed and used some Aaron Mireles fancy footwork during that lesson!
Before sharing my next story, I just want to say that it is not meant to offend any of my older students or friends. I just found this a bit humorous and wanted to share…Over the last three weeks Ms. Yu has consistently built me up to Mr. and Mrs. Hu in each of our interpretation sessions. She has said many good things in reference to how fast I learn, how well I perform, and how much better I was than her other students. Well…last week I had the opportunity to go with her to a morning workout in the shopping mall square. This is where many people gather for early morning Tai Chi workouts. At this workout, I had the pleasure of meeting many of the students who she had been referring to in her comparisons. I found it both humorous and humbling when I realized that the students that she was comparing me to ranged in age from 65 to 80 plus! This helped me understand where she was coming from and it brought me back down to earth. Oh well…I guess I am getting older too. At 51, I have made it to what I have heard called the “best side of 50” (I don’t know about that yet, the other side was pretty good). I have met some great role models in my life that have reached this side of 50 and continued to inspire me with their health and youthfulness. I hope to be like them and continue to live a passionate life…only time will tell!
Well…it is now Sunday evening and I just finished my last lesson and said my good bye’s to Ms. Yu. After 18 days and 72 hours of private instruction, I will be bringing home two Tai Chi empty hand forms (to music), a Tai Chi sword form (also to music), twelve Tai Chi softball exercises, and a few more Chinese words like hao which means “good.” Hao was one of my favorite things to hear from Ms. Yu once a move started to come together. Our communication gap was overcome by my desire to learn and her desire to teach. I will miss our daily workouts which consisted of very few words and lots of action.
My China experience has been just what I had prayed for – a time to slow down, to learn the principles of Tai Chi, to spend time in God’s Word, and to seek the opportunity to share His Word with others. I have been challenged in my Martial Arts training in exciting new ways. And I have been called to endure in my faith through some trials. I did make it through all nine Fruits of the Spirit with Ms. Yu and Ms. Wong! I also had some interesting times sharing with other travelers in John’s Café. As the Disney tune goes, “It’s a small world after all.” My first day here I met and exchanged stories with Matt who was from Texarkana, Texas and, throughout my stay, I have enjoyed meeting and sharing with people from all over the world. Like I said before, it is all about God and the people.
It is now Monday morning and I am preparing for my journey home. I have prayed for safe travels, for the people who will sit next to me on my four flights, and for my time in the airport during transitions. I’ve prayed for my team and for my contributors at home to receive blessings from God’s abundance. I have prayed for those of you reading this update, that you will be inspired to make your faith a priority in your lives. I have good news to share from God’s Word for anyone who wants or needs to hear it! Oh…about the end of The Book…Revelations is a book of hope. It teaches that no matter what happens on earth, God is in control!!
To my family…I am coming home! And to my students…I’ll be back on the mat this week! Looking forward to seeing and sharing with you all!!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
http://www.algarza.com/
It is now Sunday morning here in Kashgar and I just finished reading the book of Revelations – 19 months after beginning the Book of Genesis in March of 2006! Wow…what insight my Life-Application Bible has brought me over the past months. Even though this was not my first time to read it, God’s Word has a way of being new and fresh every time I revisit it. It’s so alive and relevant to today!
Way back in April of 2006 when I was in the Book of Joshua, I was comforted with the same words that God used to comfort Joshua. He said, “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will never leave you or forsake you” – Joshua 1:5. These words came to me as I was preparing to make the plans for my traveling more public and putting the team together to make it possible. I was in deep prayer for the words to express what God had put on my heart to do and I found guidance when I looked at the application to this verse…
Every job is a new challenge. Without God, it can be frightening. With God, It can be a
GREAT Adventure. Just as God was with Joshua, he is with us as we face our new challenges. (taken from my Life-Application Bible)
I had been playing around with these very words as I had been studying and speaking on Jim Collins’ book Good to GREAT and Pastor Chip Ingram’s sermon Good to GREAT in God’s Eyes. So I just inserted “Grandmaster” into the name and made it official. I must humbly give the glory to God and the reading of His Word for everything GREAT in this “Great Grandmaster Adventure.” As I think about what is so GREAT about it, two things stand out above anything else – God and the people. I have been surrounded by both everywhere I have been. It is reassuring to know that wherever I go God’s got my back. Yes, there is evil everywhere, but I am a firm believer that “you get what you look for.” So I choose to look for the good in people and to show them God’s goodness in me.
As I read my Bible back in April of 2006, I also focused on Joshua 1:8. This verse has been a personal favorite since my friend and former Pastor, Cliff Poe, taught it in a sermon to our congregation. He introduced it as “God’s formula for success” and it says, “Do not let this Book of the law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.” Then you will be prosperous and successful” – Joshua 1:8. I gained even more insight when I looked at the application…
So many people think that prosperity and success come from having power, influential personal contacts, and a relentless desire to get ahead. But the strategy for gaining prosperity that God taught Joshua goes against such criteria. He said that to succeed Joshua must do three things. 1) be strong and courageous because the task ahead would not be easy, 2) obey God’s law, and 3) constantly read and study the Book of the Law—God’s Word. To be successful, follow God’s words to Joshua. You may not succeed by the world’s standards, but you will be a success in God’s eyes—and his opinion lasts forever. (also taken from my Life-Application Bible)
Being disciplined to read God’s Word daily has been the single most important thing that I could have committed to to get me to this point in my adventure and, more importantly, to this point in my life. My concerns and fears have been replaced with a deep faith in the Lord. He has unfolded His plan and purpose for my Great Grandmaster Adventure one day at a time through His Word and through all his faithful followers who have contributed through their encouragement, prayers, and contributions. To my family, friends, students, staff, and PMA associates, a BIG thanks for all your support. I want to thank you for the love you have showed me. I don’t know where you are in your faith today, but I encourage you commit to building daily spiritual disciplines into your life. Make it the most important thing on your to do list. You will be blessed and you will be a blessing to others. I am inspired to stay committed to this daily discipline so that I can continue to grow in Christ.
Speaking of growing…I just returned from my next to the last Tai Chi lesson with Ms. Yu. It was heaven out there, which was surprising because last night a cold front came through bringing with it lots of wind. I was alarmed as I was sitting in John’s Café (which is an open Café) and the wind blew in a heavy sand storm. I got my coffee to go and came back up to my room as quickly as I could. But this morning showed no signs of last night’s storm. Instead, I was blessed with a sunny, crisp, and quiet morning for my next to the last lesson. I gotta tell you that Ms. Yu had her work cut out for her in training this Texas point fighter/kick boxer, self protection instructor, marathon runner, and type-A personality to learn the slow and gentle way of Tai Chi. Every now and then I just wanted to throw a side kick, put someone in a submission hold, or just hit somethingJ! But I resisted the urge and managed to keep myself under control. And I finally achieved sweet victory! Yes…I achieved success in my lesson today as I performed my two forms for the first time to the music with perfect timing. It has been challenging just to learn the forms and, up until now, I have been more concerned with learning them than with the music or the timing. But it all came together in this morning’s lesson. I could almost see Ms. Yu’s feeling of triumph as I closed the form on cue with the final note. I considered telling her that this would be a good lesson to end with, but I kept my thoughts to myself and finished on a high note with plans to come back this evening for my final lesson.
Oh…I want to let you know that your prayers have been answered and I will be returning home without a single bee sting! Those Chinese Fighting Bees had me worried a few times, but we made it through without any casualties (on either side). We did have a few close calls though during one of my Tai Chi Softball lessons when I was forced to use my racket to scare them away. I cranked up the speed and used some Aaron Mireles fancy footwork during that lesson!
Before sharing my next story, I just want to say that it is not meant to offend any of my older students or friends. I just found this a bit humorous and wanted to share…Over the last three weeks Ms. Yu has consistently built me up to Mr. and Mrs. Hu in each of our interpretation sessions. She has said many good things in reference to how fast I learn, how well I perform, and how much better I was than her other students. Well…last week I had the opportunity to go with her to a morning workout in the shopping mall square. This is where many people gather for early morning Tai Chi workouts. At this workout, I had the pleasure of meeting many of the students who she had been referring to in her comparisons. I found it both humorous and humbling when I realized that the students that she was comparing me to ranged in age from 65 to 80 plus! This helped me understand where she was coming from and it brought me back down to earth. Oh well…I guess I am getting older too. At 51, I have made it to what I have heard called the “best side of 50” (I don’t know about that yet, the other side was pretty good). I have met some great role models in my life that have reached this side of 50 and continued to inspire me with their health and youthfulness. I hope to be like them and continue to live a passionate life…only time will tell!
Well…it is now Sunday evening and I just finished my last lesson and said my good bye’s to Ms. Yu. After 18 days and 72 hours of private instruction, I will be bringing home two Tai Chi empty hand forms (to music), a Tai Chi sword form (also to music), twelve Tai Chi softball exercises, and a few more Chinese words like hao which means “good.” Hao was one of my favorite things to hear from Ms. Yu once a move started to come together. Our communication gap was overcome by my desire to learn and her desire to teach. I will miss our daily workouts which consisted of very few words and lots of action.
My China experience has been just what I had prayed for – a time to slow down, to learn the principles of Tai Chi, to spend time in God’s Word, and to seek the opportunity to share His Word with others. I have been challenged in my Martial Arts training in exciting new ways. And I have been called to endure in my faith through some trials. I did make it through all nine Fruits of the Spirit with Ms. Yu and Ms. Wong! I also had some interesting times sharing with other travelers in John’s Café. As the Disney tune goes, “It’s a small world after all.” My first day here I met and exchanged stories with Matt who was from Texarkana, Texas and, throughout my stay, I have enjoyed meeting and sharing with people from all over the world. Like I said before, it is all about God and the people.
It is now Monday morning and I am preparing for my journey home. I have prayed for safe travels, for the people who will sit next to me on my four flights, and for my time in the airport during transitions. I’ve prayed for my team and for my contributors at home to receive blessings from God’s abundance. I have prayed for those of you reading this update, that you will be inspired to make your faith a priority in your lives. I have good news to share from God’s Word for anyone who wants or needs to hear it! Oh…about the end of The Book…Revelations is a book of hope. It teaches that no matter what happens on earth, God is in control!!
To my family…I am coming home! And to my students…I’ll be back on the mat this week! Looking forward to seeing and sharing with you all!!
God’s Love and Peace,
Al Garza
http://www.algarza.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
