Keys to Success - Integrity
Integrity is a firm adherence to a code of moral values. Every martial arts instructor has been questioned about how they know they are not teaching someone who will use their teachings in a negative way. One of the answers is integrity. When you are taught martial arts, you are being entrusted with knowledge that the average person does not have. Discipline and self-control are important, but meaningless without integrity. The ability to channel the use of your skills to situations where they are justified means nothing unless you have a moral code and the inclination to abide by it.
This moral code is one of the reasons why we require Bible verse memorization and some type of weekly Bible study. The principles found in the Bible contain everything you need to learn moral values. Note that this knowledge is not enough. You also have to decide that you are going to follow these guidelines and apply them to your life. We are born with a sinful nature, so this is not a natural thing to do. It means you are going to have to overcome your own desires. Aristotle once said ‘I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is the victory over self.’ Adherence to Biblical principles will prevent you from using your martial arts training in a negative way.
Most people outside our Christian Karate Academy will judge our program based on the actions of our students. For good or bad, teachers are judged by the actions of their students and this is particularly true of martial arts instructors. If you live your lives with honor and integrity, we will continue to grow. However, if you use your training in a negative way, our program will be damaged. We would eventually lose our students and our sponsor churches would no longer allow us to use their facilities.
Honesty and integrity are not just qualities we exhibit when the world is watching. If you truly adhere to these qualities, you will hold yourselves to these standards all the time, even when no one is watching. Do you give the same effort to your Karate practice that you give in class? Do you really clean your room or do you simply shove things under the bed or in a closet? Do you give your best effort at work or school or do you do just enough to get by. All of these are issues of integrity.
Rest assured that our Christian Karate Academy is a program built on integrity. We require feedback from parents on how their child is doing at home through the practice reports. If they are giving their child good grades, we assume they are doing well and they will be allowed to test. If they are not getting good grades and not responding to correction, they will not test. We also do not hand out rank simply because you have paid your money or done a certain amount of time. If we did that, our rank would not mean much. In addition to rank, we have instructor requirements that must be met before we award instructor qualifications. We appreciate and recognize the other experience some of you have in other martial arts, but you still must meet the same qualifications as anyone else to achieve rank or instructor qualifications in our organization. Since we are not making money from this program, we are under no pressure to promote anyone unless they are ready. Because we demand a certain level of performance for each rank, you can be proud of every promotion.
Donnie Chaffin,
3rd Dan