Special / Column
Through the ways and events of the visible world, you come to deeply think about the invisible world and the will of God.
My Family Is My Strength
“Though others said I couldn’t make it, my family believed me.” “The secret of my victory? It’s my family’s support!” “Without my family, I couldn’t have achieved a great success that people admire.” These comments are from the interviews with athletes who did a better job than expected even in poor surroundings, or successful figures in society. They say that they could overcome difficult times and reap the fruits of their efforts because they had their families beside them. Their stories bring smiles to our lips. Support From Family In February 2014, the Winter Olympic Games was held in Sochi, Russia. At that time, South Korean women's short track speed skaters brought joyful news to their country by winning gold…
Making the Best Use of Our Good Mind
In a hospital room, two aged men are writing down something on a piece of paper. ‘Skydiving, helping strangers, climbing the Himalayas . . .’ It is so-called a bucket list—things to do before you die. While doing things that they haven’t experienced all their life, they look back upon the past. Life is but a dream The movie The Bucket List is a story about how two terminally-ill cancer patients find the meaning of their lives. As they don’t have many days to live, even a trifle thing seem to have a special meaning to them. People usually take pity on a terminally-ill patient like the two men in the movie. Technically, however, every single person in the world…
People in Search of Mothers
Children’s short story, “Heart” (Italian: “Cuore”), published by an Italian author, Edmondo De Amicis, in the late 19th century, is evaluated as one of the world masterpieces. The beautiful story became the basis of the animation series, “3,000 Leagues in Search of Mother”: A nine-year-old boy Marco, who travelled about 12,000 ㎞ [7,500 miles] from Genoa, Italy, to Argentina in South America in search of his mother who went to work far away, moved many viewers to tears. It is thanks to the empathy of all time that the novel, which might be regarded as an old classic story, still touches our hearts. Marco is not the only one who needs a mother. All the people of the world, who…
Communication with Consideration for Others—A Quick Way to Complete the Gospel Work
Newborn infants burst out crying at first. Air goes into their lungs as soon as they cry, so they can breathe for the first time. The first cry is the first breath, and at the same time it is the first communication with the world. A baby makes his or her presence clear with a loud cry. From the first breath until the day when we breathe our last breath, we communicate with our family, friends, colleagues and neighbors throughout our lifetime. Communication with others can be called the mental breath. Just as good breath is essential for good health, good communication is the foundation of a happy life. Humans are beings that communicate The film Cast Away depicts the…
Journey to the Holy Land, the Heavenly Jerusalem, for the True Peace
All Christians, at least once, dream about a journey to the holy land. Bethlehem where Jesus was born, Nazareth where He grew up, the Lake of Galilee where He met His disciples and preached the gospel . . . To feel the footsteps of Jesus, travelling back over a period of 2,000 years, would be the greatest delight in one’s life which cannot be compared with anything else. Sincere Christians leave on a journey to the holy land, being overwhelmed with joy, without hesitating to endure the long distance, the high costs and the inconvenience of waiting in line among so many pilgrims, just so that they can have a monumental and spiritual experience. A holy land which they cannot…
Global Leaders Who Save the World
We can watch the World Cup held in Africa live on TV at home. With just one click of a button, we can access real-time news from every part of the world. One sneeze from an infected person can spread a virus to people on the opposite side of the world. If a powerful nation’s financial markets are unstable, it can cause chaos in global financial markets. The 21st century we are living in is truly a global age. National borders are gradually becoming meaningless, and people all around the world are easily able to get together. At this point in time, the world is looking for a supranational leader who is suitable for the global age. A narrow world,…
Before It Gets Too Late
The Four Things That Matter Most is a book written by Ira Byock, who has been in hospice care (a type of health care that helps terminally ill patients to spend their last moments of their lives in peace) for over four decades. In his book, he gives suggestion to terminally ill patients and their families. It is to say four phrases: “Please forgive me,” “I forgive you,” “Thank you,” and “I love you.” He came up with this after witnessing many cases that the patients and their family members regret later for not having confessed what was in their hearts. In fact, a man, who had not talked to his father for twenty years, let go of old hurts…
Beautiful Trace
If you cut the trunk of a tree and look at the cross section of the tree, you can see a pattern of concentric tree rings. Tree rings form when there are differences in growth speed as the weather changes. Between spring and summer, when cell division is vigorous, the wood texture inside the tree is soft and the color is bright, while cell division is slow starting from late summer or autumn, resulting in a hardened texture and a darker color. As such process repeats, a distinct pattern of tree rings is formed in the trunk of a tree. If you look at tree rings, you can tell not only the tree’s age but also what had happened during…
Together
This is as harmful to the body as smoking fifteen cigarettes a day. This increases the chance of getting certain diseases. People who suffer from this have 30% higher chance to suffer from a stroke, 40% higher chance to suffer from dementia, and twice the chance to suffer from a heart disease, compared with healthy people. What is this? It is loneliness. Vivek H. Murthy, who is a former Vice Admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, pointed out that loneliness is a factor that causes issues of modern society such as depression and drug addiction. He stated that the diseases that break out from loneliness can be more harmful to the body than general physical diseases. He…
How to Not Repeat the Same Mistakes That Lead to Regrets
In September 2019, a bus suddenly stopped in downtown Seoul. The driver who stopped the bus asked the passengers to excuse him, and ran outside. It was to save a woman in her 60s who had fallen in the street. The woman had not recovered her consciousness although some other passersby had been trying to help her. The bus driver immediately started CPR on her. After a few minutes, she recovered her consciousness and started breathing again. Then the bus driver asked one of the passersby there to stay with her until the ambulance arrived, and he returned to his bus. The passengers were moved by the act of the driver who saved the woman’s life with quick thinking. The…
Letters from Prison
Jawaharlal Nehru fought for India’s independence together with Mahatma Gandhi, and later became India’s first prime minister. During the time when India was under British rule, he was imprisoned many times for resisting the colonial rule. Since he was imprisoned in Naini Prison, he wrote letters to his only daughter, Indira. He sent her about 190 letters for three years. Then what did he desperately want to say to his beloved daughter? “On your birthday you have been in the habit of receiving presents and good wishes. Good wishes you will still have in full measure, but what present can I send you from Naini Prison? My presents cannot be very material or solid.” Nehru made every endeavor in the…
What We Need to Save Lives
Mack Horton, who won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, received an email from one of his fans. According to the e-mail, skin cancer was suspected because a mole on his upper chest had become larger and darker than before. Horton went to the hospital immediately, and the doctor said that the mole could develop into melanoma. Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that develops when melanocytes start to grow out of control. It is a deadly disease but has no symptoms, so you cannot accurately detect the disease unless you pay close attention to your skin. Thanks to his fan who sent him the e-mail with concern and care for him, he…