Ep 618 - Expand The Environment For Witnessing Part 3
Expand the Environment for Witnessing - July 5, 2022
PDF Printable Text and Images + Testimony Ayako Heller
Yesterday, did you have a great time with your family during the American Independence Day holiday? I also had a very good time after a very long time.
Look at this photo. I went hiking yesterday with Mr. Chaen, Rev. Seo’s family and Ang’s family at the Hacklebarney State Park in New Jersey.
I felt once again that nature gives us unspeakable rest and healing. Thank you again to Rev. Seo’s family and Dr. Ang’s family. I really had a beautiful time! It has been a long time since I have had this kind of family time. Wow! Dr. Ang’s family prepared so much Korean food! We really enjoyed it.
Today I’d like to talk about “Expand the Environment for Witnessing” from True Mother’s Anthology, Book 1.
You, the second generation members, stand at the center of the Unification community. Hence, you must know your roots and you must also create an environment. Creating an environment, simply put, means witnessing. You have heard that the spiritual world is a place where you breathe love, haven't you? If you go to the spiritual world without fulfilling your responsibility on earth, then the environment you can freely enjoy in the eternal world will be small. Wouldn’t you want to live comfortably in a massively large house if you could? Everyone, without exception, must witness. This is the only way you can avoid accusation. No matter what you take with you to the spiritual world from this world, whether it be honor or something else, it will all be useless if you receive accusations.
Even if you lived without wavering in accordance to God’s Will, you cannot be free in the spiritual world if you left elements of accusation on earth. Hence, you need stimulation. We must think of humanity. Our environment is still narrow. You must truly experience why we must invest our everything at the risk of our lives. Then, what should you do? I heard of a person who cannot sleep at all without witnessing. Are you like that person? There are also people who put work first. I agree that work is also necessary; however, for you to be remembered by your descendants and by Father who is in the eternal world, you must witness. The story of Joshua and Caleb is told in the Bible.
How are they described by history? When others disbelieved, they maintained their faith in Heaven. You must be familiar with the story. However, there's another beautiful aspect to this story. Joshua was from the tribe of Ephraim and Caleb was from the tribe of Judah. Caleb had the disposition of a general and yet, he acted in unity with Joshua. Isn't that beautiful? We all have just one goal regardless of our various positions or titles. Our goal is to make all the people of this world into citizens of Cheon Il Guk. Do not cling to your positions, but live a life of practicing true love. Second generation members, in particular, must do their absolute best in front of Heaven. You must not rest until all the people of the world become citizens of Cheon Il Guk. (2012.12.14, Cheon Jeong Gung)
Through True Parents’ words, we have learned that the spiritual world is a place where we breathe love. The way to become rich in love is loving many people while in the physical world. Going further, it is to love even your enemies.
What are the ways you can truly become rich in love? It is by eternally saving peoples’ spirits. Witnessing is training to love people. Witnessing is training for me to become a true person. Witnessing is training to remove my fallen nature. Witnessing is the best way to practice True Parents’ philosophy of living for the sake of others.
True Mother said, “If you go to the spiritual world without fulfilling your responsibility on earth, then the environment you can freely enjoy in the eternal world will be small. Everyone, without exception, must witness. This is the only way you can avoid accusation.”
And True Father said that if you become so crazy about witnessing that you cannot sleep, spirit world will mobilize you to help. Of course, work is also necessary, but True Mother emphasizes that for you to be remembered by your descendants and by Father, who is in the eternal world, you must prioritize witnessing.
True Mother continues, “We all have just one goal regardless of our various positions or titles. Our goal is to make all the people of this world into citizens of Cheon Il Guk.”
LIVING DIVINE PRINCIPLE: The Principle of Creation 56 - The Position of Human Beings in the Cosmos (Owners of Creation)
• First, God created human beings to be the rulers of the universe.
• The universe does not of itself have internal sensibility toward God. Hence, God does not govern the universe directly. Rather, God endowed human beings with sensibilities to all things in the universe and gave them the mandate to rule over the universe directly.
• Human beings, composed of flesh, which can dominate the corporeal world, and spirit, which can dominate the incorporeal world, likewise have the potential to rule both worlds.
Human Beings Must Have Dominion Over all Things
<23-330>In this satanic world, creation has been governed by Satan under the name of Satan’s children. This is the reason for God’s lament and for the grief of creation. This is why we must indemnify, liberate, and restore everything back to God’s side. In order to do this, God’s sons and daughters must put God as the center and have dominion over creation. Not only Adam but also Eve must govern the creation that desires to be in God’s dominion. In addition, Adam and Eve’s descendants must become one and have dominion over creation.
In order to have the qualification to have dominion over creation, you need the qualification to become the owners of love. For human beings to become better than creation, we must know how to control our body as representatives of creation.
If our bodies are controlled by some temptations or cannot be controlled by our mind, creation accuses us since we cannot stand in the position of the subject that can have dominion over creation.
Therefore, until we receive the Blessing, we must become pure men and women who protect our bodies, the representatives of creation, from sexual temptations. People who cannot overcome sexual temptations can never have the qualifications to have dominion over creation.
Next, after receiving the Blessing, we are given the qualification to have dominion over creation only when Adam and Eve become a husband and wife of love and become a model centered on the true couple in front of creation, which is built on the pair system.
In other words, in order to have dominion over creation, first, mind and body must be united, and next, the husband and wife must be united.
In conclusion, the dominion of all things is (in) the control of the body and (in) the couple becoming one.
How can we dominate all things? By controlling our body because the body represents all things. If we can really subjugate and dominate our body, that means we already have dominion over all things.
Without controlling our body, we are not qualified to have dominion over all things.
At the same time in order to dominate all things, all things consist of the pair system. So the husband and wife need to unite together, showing (this unity?) as the representative of the true couple. Then you have the qualification to have dominion over all things. How much do you understand?
Our body represents all things. That is why if you control your body, you have the qualification to become the owner of love. Then husband and wife need to unite together.
The Expansion of the Dominion Over Creation
<23-330>Therefore, families who have received the Blessing, allowing them to have dominion over creation, must place those children as the center and have them become one with God. This is not something that ends with the family; rather, it must expand to the Unification family centered on the Unification Church, that is, the Unification tribe. In addition, we must not think that the various things of creation belong only to members of the Unification Church. We must expand the dominion over creation to the nation that the Unification Church desires and ultimately to the world that the Unification Church desires.
Our Unification movement members must expand the authority to have dominion from the individual to the family, from the family to the tribe, from the tribe to the nation, and from the nation to the world. Such (an) expanded world is the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
On a personal basis, dominion over all things is to control the body. The domination of all things (by) the family standard is the work of a blessed couple becoming one. In the tribal realm, dominion over all things is the victory of the Heavenly Tribal Messiah. The domination of all things in the national sphere is to restore one nation. In the world sphere, the domination of all things is the restoration of the whole world and humankind.
That is why when Father talks here about the extension of dominion over creation, we need to expand from the individual level to the tribal level, the tribal level to the national level, the national level to the world level, and the world level to the cosmos.
TODAY’S YOUTH MINISTRY: Anything Bound Must be Loosed From Where it was Bound
This is very important content. I think many religious leaders do not understand this content.
1. When God’s han and my han meet, God's and my han harmonize and become a driving force to overcome any difficult situation. However, self-centered han will cause you to have conflicts in relationships with people, suffer loss, and waste time. Conflict in relationships causes us a lot of suffering and sometimes, we do not know how miserable it makes us. Conflict with people causes a lot of heartistic damage. Therefore, a person who always feels conflict in human relationships should always have heart to raise the other person. If you cannot raise others up, you must at least have compassion. In relationships, disagreements and conflicts occur, but you must always show compassion to the other person and have patience.
My han can never be released by myself. The reason my han exists is in order to meet with God’s han. Therefore, I must deal with my han positively. Do not complain about your han or try to avoid it.
Many fallen, outside people do not know how to handle their own han.
When our han meets God’s han, that is a way to settle down. When I meet God’s han through my han, it becomes an opportunity to become closer to God and it becomes the driving force of strength to overcome any difficult situation.
Love is experience. Without experience we don’t know what love is. Without becoming a father and mother, we do not understand parental heart....
In order to understand God’s han, we need to have our own han. My own han needs to meet God’s han. Otherwise, how can we understand God’s han?
Individual han that does not meet with God’s han will cause you to have conflicts in relationships with people, suffer loss and waste time. It will cause suffering in relationships and make us very miserable.
That is why we should not be resentful and think, “My han is very miserable.” My han is an opportunity to understand and meet God’s sorrowful han. You need to think (in a) positive way. This is a way to be close to Heavenly Parent.
Then, how can we resolve the conflict we feel in relationships with others? First, we must understand God’s han and think about how God views the person I am having conflict with.
Second, the horizontal way to overcome conflict in relationships is to always have a heart to raise (respect) the other person.
To raise another person means what? You need to respect that guy. It does not matter what position (he has) or how old he is. This is very important. Whenever you feel conflict, it is very easy to ignore your object partner. You need to be careful. Whenever you criticize someone, whenever you don’t have any concern about someone, you will lose your faith(?). That is why, in any situation, do not criticize anyone. When you find someone’s weak points, treat his weak points as your (own) weak points. In any situation you need to have the heart to raise the other person. You need to respect that person. You need to find some good points. If you really do find his weak points, treat them as your own weak points.
If you cannot raise (respect) others up, you must at least have compassion. If you always have a heart of compassion and patience toward the other person, you will have a tolerant heart towards them.
This is very important for resolving our conflicts in human relationships. Our fallen nature makes it really easy to ignore, to criticize, to have a (distant) relationship.
In order to keep our life of faith, always reflect centering on myself, (I should) treat his sin as my sin. At least you have to have a heart of compassion. If you cannot have a heart of compassion and patience, you really need to repent: “I am such a small guy. I cannot embrace anyone. I cannot have tolerance or compassion or patience. What kind of a person am I?”
Finally you can recover your heart.
If your only criticize and blame and see (people’s) weak points, you will lose your faith. Even if you are right, if you criticize someone, you will lose something. That is why our original mind is so sensitive. You need to handle your heart very well.
2. Then what is compassion? It is the heart of valuing someone even when people usually see them as unworthy. Compassion is the heart of regarding them as the Lord although they are a little one. In the Bible, even when you give a cup of cold water to a little one, you should treat them with all your heart. It says that a person who ignores the little ones or is neglectful in treating them is the same as not treating the Lord. In Matthew 10:42, it says that as you did it to the little ones, you did it to the Lord, and if you do not do it, it is the same as not doing it to the Lord. The Bible focuses on interpersonal relationships. It says that those who have good relationships and are in good, heartistic harmony are those who release the Lord’s han.
Compassion is the heart that values and treats even a little one that everyone can’t help but ignore as better than myself. Compassion is the heart of regarding them as the Lord although they are a little one.
That is why the Bible says even when you give a cup of cold water to a little one, you should treat them (well) with all your heart and mind.
If you look at Matthew 10:42, it says, “And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.”
It says that what you did to the little ones, you did to the Lord. The Bible focuses on interpersonal relationships. Those who have good relationships and are in good, heartistic harmony are those who release the Lord’s han.
3. When there is han bound in interpersonal relations, there is no other way to release it. Han that is bound in relationships must be released in relationships. If there is something bound in relationships, it must be released in relationships. You must go out and release it between brothers and sisters, between friends, and everything must be resolved within your life. This cannot be done with theory. And this cannot be done with just words. It also cannot be done with faith alone, and just because you go through the spirit word, what is bound in relationships cannot be released. There is no way for things that are bound to be released unless they are released in the relationship between people. Therefore, what is bound in the parent-child relationship must be released in the parent-child relationship, what is bound between husband and wife must be released between husband and wife, and what is bound between siblings must be released between siblings.
If there is something bound in relationships, it must be released in relationships. If there is something bound between parent and child, brothers and sisters, husband and wife, it must released in the relationship in which it was bound.
This is the restoration course, right?
Releasing it from where it was bound is to release God’s han. Most figures in the providence of restoration established the Foundation of Faith, but most failed in the Foundation of Substance centered on the Cain and Abel relationship. In the end, it would not be an exaggeration to say that everyone failed in human relationships.
Releasing what was bound never happens with theory. And this cannot be done with just words. It also cannot be done with faith alone. Just because you go through the spirit world, what is bound in relationships cannot be released.
Even if you establish the Foundation of Faith between God and yourself, what is the Foundation of Substance? The human relationship between Cain and Abel. Even though you (may have) established the Foundation of Faith, in the second stage, which is the Foundation of Substance – a different level – you really need to overcome in relationships (with others).
In order to release what was bound in relationships, you must first release it from the relationship between God and me. We didn’t know much about God until now. We have lived, neglecting our relationship with God so much.
Therefore, God and I must reconcile. And by really repenting, I need to restore the parent-child relationship between God and me. And based on this foundation, we need to release it in the relationships formed horizontally.
That is the course of the Foundation of Faith and the Foundation of Substance, right?
In Adam’s family, Noah’s family, most central figures established the Foundation of Faith. But most of them failed in the Foundation of Substance – in human relationships. Where is God’s han? In the relationship between Cain and Abel, especially in the family.
4. There is no other way to go and release what is bound in human relationships. Religions up to now have been very vague in their view of atonement. They thought that everything would just be resolved through a vertical relationship with God, but in reality, it is not. Then where should we start to solve the problem? It must be resolved from the subordinates who work under me. In other words, for me, I have to resolve it starting with the people in Cain's position. That is why Jesus told us to love our enemies first. When I say an enemy, it does not specifically mean those I hate. Even one brother whom I am not harmonious with can be an enemy.
Religions up to now have been very vague in their view of atonement. They thought that everything would just be resolved through a vertical relationship with God, but in reality, it is not.
That is why the Divine Principle shares very clearly what the Foundation of Faith and Foundation of Substance are.
Then where should we start to solve the problem? The problem must first be resolved between God and me. We must restore the parent-child relationship between God and me. This is the foundation of faith.
We need to overcome the ignorance between God and me, and also to resolve misunderstandings and reconcile. Secondly, we must resolve it horizontally in relationships with others. This is the foundation of substance. That is resolving it from the subordinates who work under me. In other words, for me, I have to resolve it starting with the people in Cain's position.
That is why Jesus told us to love our enemies first. If you say you love God but you cannot love your enemies, that is not loving God. Loving God should ultimately appear as releasing and resolving (issues) with each other horizontally in human relationships.
5. The body and mind should become one with each other, but aren’t they enemies that fight each other and cause side effects? Aren’t they enemies to not harmonize with each other even though we are within the environment that should be harmonious with each other? In other words, harmony should be achieved between brothers and sisters, husband and wife, and parent and child, but it is very difficult. Sometimes we give up, not knowing what to do. That is why the Bible says that your enemies are not somewhere else, but they will be the members of your own family. This means that the relationships that should be harmonized are not harmonized.
What is an enemy? It is the position where we must become one, yet we fight each other and cause side effects. The mind and body must become one, brothers and sisters must become one, parents and children must become one, and husband and wife must become one, but they fight each other and cause side effects.
In other words, harmony should be achieved between brothers and sisters, husband and wife, and parent and child, and Cain and Abel, but it is very difficult. That is why the Bible says that your worst enemies are not somewhere else, but they will be the members of your own family. This means that the relationships that should be harmonized are not harmonized.
If you look at the central figures of the providence of restoration, where were they all bound? They were all bound in the family. Adam’s family was also bound in the family. Adam’s family was established in the relationship between husband and wife, parent and child, and brothers and sisters.
Noah’s family was also bound in the family. Both Abraham’s family and Jesus’ family were bound in the family. They were not bound in some distant place. Today, all of our blessed families are bound in the family. What is bound must be resolved from where it was bound.
To resolve what was bound in my family is to release the entanglements of the providence of restoration. That is also the way to release God’s han. Therefore, brothers and sisters, what you must all do well in the family (is to) have good relationships and to release God’s han.
That’s why our family is the front line. Where do we fail? In the family. Where can we find God? In the family. Where can we solve problems? In the family. Where is God’s han? In the family. How can we restore our relationships? In the family. Oh, my God! This is fundamental guidance from True Parents.
LIVING TESTIMONY: I’m a Living Testimony for Whom Anything is Possible
(Testimony of Ayako Heller)♦
NOTE: This lightly edited transcription may contain errors and omissions. Indecipherable or uncertain words and guesses are tagged with a “(?)” and indecipherable phrases, with an ellipsis “...”. First, second and third person pronouns have been left as spoken if the meaning is clear, and other apparently Korean English expressions have been preserved. Some repeated phrases have been eliminated. This text and the PowerPoint slides from this speech are available as PDF files at the top of this text. Audio only is available at anchor.morndev.com, spotify.morndev.com & audio.morndev.com. Notes or transcripts of Dr. Yong’s Morning Devotion speeches from November 11, 2020 through March 29, 2022 are available as six paperback books at cost at Lulu.com/Shop -- search for Dr. Chung Sik Yong -- and as PDF downloads free of charge at MDBooks.Hoondok.com.♦