Enlightenment

A Novice Shepherd’s Realization

I was born and raised in one of the coldest northern states in the U.S. where the temperature went down to -40℃ (-40℉) in winter. It was hot in summer; it reached up to 38℃ (100℉). My closest neighbor was 1.6 km (1 mile) away, and I never really got to know them at all. In North Dakota, my dad had a farm where he sowed grains and raised hogs, cattle, horses, chickens and turkeys. One time, I asked my dad why he didn’t raise any sheep despite rich pasture for grazing and plenty of hay for the long winter. He just said that sheep were not the kind that he would enjoy tending. As I had no first-hand experience…

Alan Sayler from Houston, U.S.

Mother’s Love that I Haven’t Realized

Before I was born, my family had lived in Lima, the capital city of Peru. One day, there was a very strong earthquake in a region in Peru. At that time, my father was working at the Ministry of Home Affairs, and he was in charge of reconstructing the region damaged by the earthquake together with a group of professionals. Owing to this, my family moved to Huaraz, Ancash. After a few years, I was born as the last of six siblings. My oldest brother was thirteen years older than me. All my family took care of me with love. One morning, I got up and looked out the window of my bedroom. Things like white beads were falling from…

Mertty Polack from Lima, Peru

Mother’s Mind

My sister is one year older than me. Since we are similar in age, we often squabbled like friends. On all such occasions, however, my parents scolded me. I couldn’t accept their minds no matter how well they treated me because I thought it was unfair. As I began to work, I moved out from my parents’ and lived by myself. I went to see them once a week. One day, my mother, my sister, and I went shopping to a department store together after a long time. Looking around, here and there, my mother spotted my sister’s old shoes, and went to a shoe store to get a pair of shoes for her. I thought, ‘She will buy my…

Choi Eun-hye from Incheon, South Korea

The Selflessness of a Fire Fighter

“They were part of an elite squad confronting wildfires on the frontline, setting up barriers to stop the spreading of destruction. But in their unpredictable world, it doesn’t take much to turn a situation deadly.” CNN says of the 19 firefighters who are being honored posthumously for giving even their lives to fend the blaze of a wild fire in Arizona. The United States as a whole not only mourns the death of these fearless men, but is conscious of the situation they must’ve had when approaching the wildfire. In the U.S., the sacrifice of a fire fighter is not just the task of confronting disaster; it starts with the training. One who desires to serve must first willingly accept…

Michael Means from Charlotte, NC, USA

The Shepherd & the Sheep

Many of us, Mongolians, engage in stock-farming. In a vast meadow, we raise five kinds of livestock together—cows, horses, sheep, goats, and camels. Among them, we raise sheep the most. One family keeps approximately more than a thousand sheep. Every sheep has different colors—white, black, brown, dappled, and so on. I was born a son of a shepherd. I spent my childhood in Bayanmonkh-som (district), Khentii-aimag (province) until I came to Ulaanbaatar City to enter university. Usually I lived separately from my parents to go to school; during the summer vacation, I came back home in the countryside and tended the sheep in pasture, following my parents who are shepherds. Through such lifestyle and experience, I came to realize the…

B. Jargalsaikhan from Erdenet, Mongolia

Until a Precious Bowl Is Made

I watched a TV show about how a master craftsman, who is designated as intangible cultural asset, makes Bangjja, Korean type of hand-forged glossy brassware with yellowish color. Bangjja of such high quality were used for the king’s table. Bangjja made with traditional techniques has good durability, so it preserves its shape for a long time, doesn’t get discolored easily, and it gets the glossier as you use it more. Recently, it has been attracting more people’s attention because it’s proven that Bangjja neutralizes heavy metal toxicity and eliminate food toxicity and food poisoning bacteria. To make brassware with such outstanding effects, not only highly sophisticated skills but also a fairly complex process is demanded. The first step is melting…

Jo Mun-gyeong from Daejeon, Korea

Mommy Heaven

Recently in our church, we looked at a picture captioned Busy Mommy. The mother is standing at a stove, cooking and holding her child on her hip. A telephone is wedged between the mother’s shoulder and her ear, and the child is trying to grab the phone. At the same time, her other child is standing behind her, watching her. The mother in the picture seemed to be stressed because she was overwhelmed with so much work, but she did her very best by multitasking. Some brothers and sisters said that the mother looked somewhat under pressure and to be in need of some help, but as a mom myself, I saw it differently. In my mind, I captioned the…

Joy Meela Gallant from New Windsor, NY, U.S.

God’s True Intention

“Min! Can you come home and stay for a few days?” My mom asked me in a somewhat serious voice. Usually, she hardly mentions anything that could worry my brother and me. So, if she gave us a sudden call like that, it meant that something serious was going on. Sure enough, I found out that she had been taken to the emergency room because her lumbar disc had become worse, but it seemed that she had to stay in the hospital for some time because she was not getting any better. So I took emergency leave and went straight to my parents’ house. My mom was lying on the bed at the hospital, and her condition was worse than…

Park Dong-min from Anyang, South Korea

Mother of Six Children

My mom was a very kind and calm person. She used to read to me with a soft voice, and I liked it so much. I was brought up like a princess until I was five years old, when my little sister was born. She looked like a boy because she had only a few hairs and red chubby cheeks. Since my grandfather and grandmother had been eagerly waiting for the birth of their grandson, they were disappointed when my sister was born. After my sister’s first birthday, my mom’s stomach started to bulge again. When my mom came to an event at my kindergarten, with her belly bulging out and her face swollen, I felt a bit ashamed of…

Eun-jin Jo from Changwon, South Korea

Answer Me

A lady, who was tender with a very warm personality, lived next door. Her baby daughter was also well-behaved probably because she resembled her mom. The baby was not afraid of strangers and made no trouble, so I gave a hearty compliment to her, “You’re a really good girl. How cute!” As I joked that I would be able to bring her up since she was so gentle, her mother waved her hand. She said that I would not know how hard it was to take care of her if I just watched her for a while, but that at moments she felt anger rise in her as she was with her child all day long. One day, I stayed…

Ji-min Yim from Gunpo, South Korea

Parents’ Concern

As I stay in Russia away from home, I send pictures of myself to show my parents how I’m doing. It was on a day when it hailed for the first time last winter. A shower of hail looked marvelous. I took a photo of my hands receiving hailstones. My parents asked me about the hail and if it wasn’t too cold for me. I told them I was fine and healthy. That was it; we had an ordinary conversation. A few days later, however, my mom called me that she would send me some warm gloves. I thought she was saying so because of the cold weather but that wasn’t the reason. She thought my gloves receiving hailstones in…

Kang Yo-na from Chelyabinsk, Russia

Avoid Every Kind of Evil

I was sick for months. I bought all different kinds of medicine from the pharmacy and tried all kinds of treatment, including home remedies, but nothing made me better. When I came to the point that I might have to quit my job, I went to see the doctor whom I got to know through my work. My doctor prescribed me medicine for a week, and she firmly counseled me to avoid sugar during that period of time, because sugar weakens the immune system and slows down recovery. It wasn’t easy to take sugar out of my diet. Most delicious foods had sugar in them, and fruits and juice were no exceptions. It was the hardest on the first three…

Goitseone Thamae from Cape Town, South Africa

Children like Isaac

Just as people say a day without laughter is a day wasted, laughing is the best medicine. Laughing is contagious. If you laugh, many good things happen. However, people don’t laugh very well. Perhaps, there may be nothing to laugh in this competitive modern society where materialism, individualism, and selfishness remain rife. Probably, the time we laugh most in our lifetime must be when we were babies where we had less of those. Sure enough, some sources say babies laugh as instinctive behavior to protect themselves from their newborn days. From about eight weeks after birth, they start smiling by looking at other people’s faces; and at around 52 weeks, they build up their social interactions and laughter is at…

Jo Mun-gyeong from Daejeon, South Korea

Mom’s Half Memory

I have an unforgettable memory. One night when I was in elementary school, I had sharp pain in my lower abdomen. I just thought it was due to indigestion, but my mom noticed that something was wrong with me, and she took me to the emergency room. As she had expected, the result was not good. They said my appendix had become so swollen that it was on the verge of rupture, which could lead to peritonitis if I arrived a few days later. I changed into a patient gown and lay down on the operating table. Everything happened so suddenly. After the surgery, I started groaning as the anesthetic wore off. My groan turned into a scream. The doctor…

Park Su-bin from Seoul, South Korea

A Mother’s Heart That Seems to Understand the Heart of Heavenly Parents

I prepared pork ribs for dinner as a special side dish for my children, who had worked hard studying during their exam period. From draining the blood, removing the fat, boiling the ribs, then simmering them in seasoning with large chunks of potatoes, onions, and carrots—it took time and effort. Still, when I thought about how much my children would enjoy eating them, it didn’t feel troublesome at all. As soon as they came home, my hungry children clamored for food, and I proudly set a plate full of ribs before them. “Wow!” Hearing their delighted reaction made me happy. Because of my children’s picky eating—choosing only the ribs—what was left for me were the potatoes and carrots. Yet, simply…

Park Hye-young from Gimhae, Korea

The Reason the Employees Are Unkind

When I first arrived in India, I was overwhelmed by the chaotic traffic and the constant blaring of horns. The weather and customs also felt strange and unfamiliar. But now, we’ve adapted. In many ways, India is quite similar to Korea. Families are close-knit, and when neighbors exchange food, they always return the dish with something inside—just like in Korea. Above all, what makes this place truly familiar is that there are heavenly brothers and sisters here, all working together toward the completion of the gospel of heaven. Recently, I came to a small realization. We usually shop at three different supermarkets. While we buy fresh vegetables at local markets, we go to supermarkets for packaged goods, snacks, or refrigerated…

Park Jung-hwan from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India

The Prophet of the Nations Who Walks With God

By the grace of God, I am preaching the gospel in Japan. There are moments of deep joy, but also many moments of sorrow while sharing the gospel. It is not because of those who refuse to listen or try to hinder the work, but because I am not yet fluent in Japanese. If only I could speak a little better, this person might come to God. What if my poor Japanese prevents the truth from being delivered properly? While giving thanks to Heavenly Father and Mother for granting me the precious opportunity to preach the gospel abroad, I also felt sorry and inadequate because of my shortcomings. One day, while reading the Bible to strengthen my heart, a passage…

Baek Su-yeon from Sendai, Japan

The More We Love Our Heavenly Family

“So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well. If I love you more, will you love me less?” 2 Co 12:15 This verse beautifully reflects the spirit of sacrifice that Apostle Paul had—his willingness to give up even himself for the sake of the people of God. Sometimes, loving our heavenly family requires sacrifice, patience, and endurance. Yet in the end, when all members come to understand that love and share it with one another, our hearts overflow with joy and gratitude. Remembering the love of Heavenly Mother, who gladly sacrificed everything for us, I will strive each day to serve and embrace my brothers and sisters in Zion.

Juhee Lee from Chennai, TN, India

God’s Providence and Love

“Mom, my tooth is coming in!” My nine-year-old daughter opened her mouth wide to show me a tiny new white tooth sprouting from her gums. Babies usually begin teething around six to eight months old, and by the age of five to eight, their baby teeth fall out and permanent teeth start to come in. As my daughter proudly showed me her new tooth, I suddenly felt God’s love. Though the tooth had pierced through the tender flesh of her gums, there was no bleeding, and she hardly felt any pain. When baby teeth grow, children often feel only a slight itchiness, causing them to rub their gums with their tongues or drool a little. I was amazed. Even in…

Choi Hyeong-sun from Cheongju, Korea

Not Getting Distracted

One day, I saw a young girl, probably in the lower grades of elementary school, walking along the street when she bumped her head against a roadside tree. Since the tree stood right next to the road, it could have easily led to a serious accident. The girl was holding a cell phone in her hand—she had been so absorbed in the screen that she didn’t even notice the tree before her. Watching her made my heart sink, especially as a mother raising a daughter. The walk of faith is much the same. We are meant to fix our eyes on heaven as our goal, yet I often find myself reflecting on whether I have ever been distracted by the…

Kim Hyun-im from Suncheon, Korea