Faith & Life

Witnesses

When people purchase something, if it is a simple product, they buy it after considering just a couple of factors, without much thought. However, if it is an item of high value, they find it difficult to decide whether to buy it or not. They carefully examine every aspect of the product so that they will not suffer any loss or damage. For this, many of them refer to the customer comments or reviews on the product. When it comes to their health which is much more valuable, they become more cautious. They prick up their ears to hear from those who know well by experience which hospital diagnoses patients precisely and provides appropriate treatment for them. It is the…

Repentance

“Please forgive me for my lack of love for my brothers and sisters.” “Please forgive me for my disobedience to Your words.” There were many times when I could ask God for forgiveness—on the Sabbath day and Third day every week, and the Day of Atonement when we confess all of our sins committed throughout the year. However, I just repeated vague prayers without sincerity. I knew my wrongs, but I just thought God would forgive me and prayed for my wishes rather than for contrition. I really never knew how to repent. Then this one verse changed me: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for,…

Jang Min-gyeong from Seongnam, Korea

The Trap of Habit

Running water purifies itself, but stagnant water, although it may look calm and peaceful, is bound to go rotten sooner or later. It is the same with people. When they behave according to their habits, they may feel comfortable because they are accustomed to them. However, when they try to change their habits, they find it tiresome and difficult to do so. If they become so familiar with their habits and do not try to change themselves or attempt something new for a long time, they fall into lazy habits or routines. Indulging in indolence and lethargy, they just keep themselves from attempting to change their thoughts and behaviors, and eventually they end up confining themselves in their habitual routines,…

Parents’ Joy and Happiness

This happened when we were driving to Wisconsin to see my husband’s mother who had hidden her sickness from us and only had a short time to live. It was not a planned trip but rather an emergency to be with her. Not to speak of worries about her health, it was not an easy trip with three active young girls in their car seats for hours. It was when we were driving through Montana. There was nothing but the sun and an ever stretching road before us. Talking to my husband about his mother, we were tired with mixed emotions. But all of a sudden, all three girls began to laugh aloud! We didn’t even know why they were…

Kristy Burkholder from Seattle, WA, U.S.

A Businessman Full of Vitality

There was a businessman who was always working joyfully, full of vitality. As his business prospered day after day, a journalist came to interview him. “You have such a bright face. Do you always smile like that?” “Yes, I do. I can’t help but smile because I am probably the most blessed person in the world.” “But life doesn’t always go the way you want it to, does it? I think there must have been dark clouds in your life.” “Yes, of course, but how could I expect a rain of blessings if there were no clouds in my life?”

God Does Not Break a Bruised Reed

I met God when I was going through many things. What would have happened to my soul if God had not given me a hand; I don’t even want to think about it. I was grateful that I could smile again after meeting God. However, the human heart is unpredictable. I soon started running out of the new strength I’d gained through the blessings of Heavenly Father and Mother as I was tossed about by temptations and storms of life. It was God’s word of love that saved my dying soul. “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.” Mt 12:20 “Ah! I was a bruised…

Kim Tae-hui from Cheongju, Korea

No Longer Live for Themselves

I had many changes in my life after accepting the truth and realizing the existence of the heavenly family and the Heavenly Parents who give life to my soul. The blessing of eternal life that I’ve received through the Passover skimmed fear off my mind, and the precious teachings of the Bible revived my soul day after day. Now, after more than a decade, I come to realize that the blessings I’ve received in the truth were not free of charge. “And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.” 2 Co 5:15 When my younger brothers and sisters were born in a…

Yun Eun-ju from Goyang, Korea

Advice from Editors

Barry Farber, a successful American consultant, was rejected 26 times until he was able to publish his first book. When he was rejected for the sixth time, he made a phone call to the publishing company. “What should I do to publish my book? Please tell me what I’m lacking in.” From that time forth, whenever he was rejected, he asked the editors what his manuscript was lacking in and took the necessary steps to make up for it. Finally, he received an offer to publish his book, and he said. “This book includes advice from 26 competent editors.”

Families of Great Men

There are people who inspire many people of the world: Those who left great achievements, those who realized their dreams after overcoming difficulties, and those who constantly researched and became successful in their fields. Their words and life stories about overcoming trials are passed down from generation to generation and sometimes become the role models for others. These great men could make such great achievements because they too were positively influenced by some others like their respected teachers and close friends. But most of all, their family members trusted and supported them to the end. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent,” it is no exaggeration…

The Secret of Getting First Place

There was a farmer who always got first place whenever an agricultural exposition was held. He always handed out his best seeds to his neighboring farmers. When people asked him for the reason, he said with a smile, “When wind blows, seeds and pollen are dispersed all over by the wind. If my neighboring farmers grow crops of poor quality, the pollen from the crops will be blown onto my fields and it will lower the quality of my crops. So, my neighbors’ farming is my farming.”

We Share Warmth

When it comes to a university campus, you may think of a clean space where future leaders and intellectuals stay. But in reality, you can see everywhere disposable cups, overflowing garbage bins, and dirty restrooms. You’ll often frown. Strangely though, it becomes clean when the morning comes. It is thanks to those who clean the campus from early in the morning. Our club members decided to express our gratitude to those who work hard on the campus for us to study under pleasant conditions. When we delivered cards and snacks, and gave ear to their stories, they were thankful. It was much more worthwhile than I had thought to share warmth with others. With a sense of ownership, we’ll take…

Lee Eun-ji from Seoul, Korea

I Will Be Joyful in God

I once struggled financially as my company went bankrupt. I tried many things, but I couldn’t find the answer. I felt like walking a long, dark tunnel alone. Thinking that I needed to pull myself together in times like this, I focused on listening to sermons, reading the Truth Books, the Bible more diligently. Among the verses I read, there was one verse that comforted me greatly. “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God…

Park Min-gun from San Miguel, Argentina

The Difference in Words

A horse rancher had a problem: A school bus stopped at his ranch and kids gave cookies to his horses, which made the horses gain weight day after day. “Do not feed the horses!” He put up a sign, but it didn’t work. One day, a person who studied positive psychology heard about his problem and made a new sign for him. After he put it up, his horses returned to their previous shape—agile with fine, shiny hair. The sign standing at the ranch read: “We only eat apples and carrots.”

God Who Protects Me All My Life

I first came to study the Bible at the Church of God. I was so excited by the amazing and marvelous words that I could not help reading the Bible every night. “Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since you were conceived, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” Isa 46:3–4 The impression I get after reading the above verses before going to bed doesn’t fade for a long time.…

Lee Chang-seob from Namyangju, Korea

Be Calm like Water, Not like Cola!

Have you ever opened a bottle of coke thoughtlessly which spewed carbonated bubbles out of control? There are times when people act like a cola. It is when they cannot tolerate irritation, anger, or rage and let it out as they feel. For any reason, if you lose your temper, you feel down and uncomfortable. But others will feel worse. There are many things that do not come up to your expectation, and sometimes you may feel frustrated due to communication problems with others, but you cannot get angry every time. Wouldn’t it be better to control your anger wisely than to get angry and regret? Let’s promise not to burst into sudden anger this month just as water keeps…

A Parachute That Was Packed by Someone Else

Charlie Plumb, a veteran American fighter pilot, escaped his fighter and managed to survive by using his parachute when the fighter was shot down in the Vietnam War. Although he was taken captive and imprisoned for six years, he came back safely and reunited with his family. One day, he was sitting at a restaurant and a man from another table came over and said, “You’re Plumb, aren’t you? You flew jet fighters in Vietnam from aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. I heard that you survived the day the fighter was shot down.” The man, who knew about his incident in detail, turned out to be a soldier who was on the same aircraft carrier. “I folded your parachute and put…

My Son’s Finding the Way Back Home

In the late afternoon when the sunlight came through the curtain, I became drowsy. Suddenly, my cell phone rang. It was my second son who went out with his friends to ride scooters. “Mom, I don’t know where I am.” When I heard that, my body got up instantly. ‘He had said he was going to a nearby park, but how come he doesn’t know where he is now?’ My son said he was riding scooters in the park, and then he went out of the park and rode it around the alleys with his friends. As the evening time was approaching, his friends went back home one by one, and he was left alone. Looking around, he could not…

Jeon Eun-ok from Seongnam, Korea

What to Grow in a Greenhouse

“If you criticize an idea whenever you come up with it, whether it is a good or a bad one, you will never get a good result.” Tom Monahan, Think Different, 2009, Magellan Press This is very fragile. It is sensitive to mocking or criticism, and even just seeing a frowning face, it will die from worrying too much. However, if you grow it well, amazing things will happen. Something new comes to exist in the world, and sometimes it makes what was already going well even better. What is it? It is idea. A world famous design company has a rule. If someone says something negative to discourage creativity, such as “That won’t work” or “I’ve already done that,…

Please Let Me Always Have Hope in God

After I graduated from university, I worked as an administrative assistant at the school immediately. At first, I was grateful to God for allowing me to accomplish the workplace mission at the school where I had been working for the campus mission until then. As time went by, however, I lost my commitment to the gospel mission. As the new semester began, things got tougher. I was not familiar with the administrative work, but while dealing with freshmen all at once and carrying out professors’ instructions, I lost track of time. I thought, ‘Do I have to work so hard like this?’ Wanting to be comforted by someone, I pulled out my cell phone and our church app caught my…

Lee Jin-gyeong from Suwon, Korea

How Is Your Life Going?

David Brooks, a New York Times columnist, said in his book that one should ask the following four questions for the assessments of his life. First, have I spent time on important things, developing my most consequential talents? Second, have I contributed to the river of knowledge, left a legacy for future generations? Third, have I transcended this earthly realm? Fourth, have I loved? How is your life going?