A faithful testimony: Frank Rautenbach at New Life Church
After his pivotal roles in several movies that have amassed international audiences, including Faith Like Potatoes and Hansie, it was with great appreciation that a crowd of men welcomed Frank Rautenbach to Witbank on Saturday, 13 June when he provided an insightful talk at New Life Church.
To see a man that can be recognized in several countries throughout the world, talk about his own journey with God and the lessons he needed to learn was an eye-opener to many in the crowd of over 200 men.
Frank gave a raw account from his experience regarding the destructive nature of idols. After having had many successes in his life, Frank too came to experience some of his greatest fears being realized. He had been through the devastation of three miscarriages and one baby that was terminated due to a medical problem.
So he came to the gut-wrenching realization in his 40’s that he was at the point in his life that he could not longer have children and his career had almost come to a halt.
“It feels like all my fears had been realized,” He said at the men’s breakfast. “Like it is written in the Bible, we had lost our wealth, our estate and our reputation.”
“It seems difficult to believe when looking at my life from the outside, what was really going on in my head. I had a panic attack at the realization of what my future held. It was bleak and I was angry with the world and angry with God.”
Feeling so much anger toward God, he explains that he knows looking back he had the heart and mind of a selfish child.
“I want, I want, I want… Its the motto of today.”
“I know the plans I have for you declares The Lord, plans to prosper you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11),” Frank quotes from The Bible.
From this he highlights that God has a plan for each person, and unless we submit to God’s plan, we run the risk of having all OUR plans fail.
Frank tells of the paths he walked out of accordance with God and the pain it brought him. Only after reading the book Counterfeit Gods by Timothy Keller, did Frank start to understand where he had faltered in his faith.
As pain as day it is written in the ten commandments, “You shall have no other Gods / idols before Me.”
“An idol is anything that you hold with higher value in your life than God, and can include money, power, sex, cars and even a wife and children. Take a minute to look at your life and if you are deathly afraid of losing that thing in your life, that is an idol.”
The biggest problem with idols is that they cannot provide the fulfillment your expect from them. More often than not, they are simply empty promises.
One of the hardest challenges Frank had to face was shaking off his pride and sense of entitlement. He was in the prime of his career, walking down the red carpet at the Toronto Film Festival as Hansie was chosen to be one of 30 films selected out of hundreds submitted, and only a few months later he was the person driving the renowned celebrities around… a journey from celebrity to chauffeur.
“I needed the money and it was a job,” Frank says and it humbled him for three years whilst living in America. On one occurrence, he saw a leading lady he had shared a role aside, “Oh what are you doing here Frank?” she asked.”
In that moment, he could have given any number of reason to be at the event, but simply said, “I am the driver,” and felt no shame.
“I cannot describe the feeling of freedom that comes from not placing my self worth on the opinions of others.”
Frank concluded his talk by saying that there is nothing wrong with having a deep appreciation for the blessings that God provides, but it should never take preference to God or become an obsession.
Follow Frank’s journey across South Africa by joining the facebook page: Life After “Faith Like Potatoes”
Feel free to say a prayer that he continues to reach as many people as possible with his powerful message.
Article by: Stacey Venter