While we may never face the type of physical adversity that Daniel LaRusso faces in this clip from Karate Kid III, as Christians we will all face adversity. In fact, chances are that at some point in our lives we will experience his pain and agony, at least emotionally or spiritually. The death of a loved one, divorce, health problems, the loss of a job, the betrayal of a close friend, and the list goes on and on. How we respond in these defining moments of our lives, when we are lying on the mat of life writhing in pain from its blows, charts the course of our lives.
There is a lot that we as Christians can take away from this video. First of all, are we surrounding ourselves with the right people? I can’t say enough about the important role that encouragers have in our lives. Sometimes we need a Mr. Miyagi, who will look us in our eyes and tell us to get up because through Christ we can, and we will, make it. Proverbs 13:20 tells us that if we walk with the wise that we will become wise but if we are a companion of fools that we will suffer harm. We need to surround ourselves with encouragers who will hold us accountable. Second of all, what is our focus? Are we focused on the pain in our lives, or are we focused on pleasing our Lord Jesus and accomplishing the work that He has called us to do? Finally, just as Daniel’s opponent mocked and ridiculed Daniel as he laid on mat, our enemy, the devil will do anything he can to discourage us as Christians. He will try to intimidate us and make us afraid. He will tell us that we are a failure, and that we will never win. However, if we will get up and fight the good fight of faith, Christ will be with us. He wants us to look to Him in every situation (Hebrews 12:2) and realize that “greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4). When we do this God will do amazing things with our lives.
Please feel free to share your thoughts as well as any movie clips that you have found inspirational.
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