Faith & Life

Weakness Turned Into Opportunity

Toscanini, a world-famous conductor, was first known as a promising cellist. Because of his poor eyesight, he was unable to read the sheet of music, so he had to memorize the entire score in order to play the cello. Then one day, his conductor was hospitalized right before an important concert. Since Toscanini was the only person in the orchestra who memorized the whole score, he became the conductor that day. Through that concert, his career as a famous conductor took off. If Toscanini had had good eyesight like the other members of the orchestra, would he have been able to gain fame as a conductor?

Mom Never Yields with the Power of Love for Her Children

My phone rang while I was washing dishes. It was Mom. I could guess why she was calling me. Mom must have called me to give me some side dishes. At the thought, ‘I should’ve called her first,’ I was sorry to her. I have four older sisters and one younger brother. Although I’m over forty, in the eyes of Mom I’m still a little girl who causes anxiety to her. The youngest child is my brother, but maybe because he’s a reliable son, Mom treats me like the youngest one. I answered the phone like a kid, “Mommy.” I guessed right. Mom asked me to come and take some fruit and meat because she had too many things left…

Lee Su-ja from Gumi, South Korea

Pinocchio Effect

Why did Pinocchio’s nose grow whenever he lied? Was there a lie detector inside of it? This story is not entirely groundless. Dr. Alan Hirsch, researcher of the Smell and Taste Treatment Research Foundation in Chicago, found out that when a person lies, his or her nose actually grows a little as it secretes the chemical, catecholamines, which enlarges the nose’s blood vessels temporarily. Due to the inflation of blood vessels, nerve tissue at the end of the nose become irritated, and the liar comes to rub or touch his or her nose unconsciously. This is called the “Pinocchio Effect.” In fact, when a person lies, it is not only his or her nose that responds. In anxiety and fear…

Championship Tips

In the Tokyo International Marathon 1984, a little-known Japanese athlete Yamada Motochi unexpectedly won the gold medal, defeating the favorites to win. People said he was just lucky, but two years later, in the Italian International Marathon, Yamada won the championship again. “Before each race, I look around at whole course and check it carefully. I mark some important points; for example, the first point is a bank, the second point is a tree, and the third point is a red house. I break down the whole marathon course into many small goals. When the race begins, I sprint 100 meters towards the first goal – the bank. When I reach the bank, I run towards the second goal–the tree–at…

Unusual Vacation Homework

“Walk on the ground barefoot, watch the sunset, hug a tree in the forest, talk to it, crouch down to a wild flower, whisper to it, clean your bathroom, scrub your toilet, cook food, set the table for your family, visit your parents’ workplace, go camping, and write a letter to your friends or teacher.” This is a list of summer vacation homework assignment at a boys’ middle school in Gangwon Province, Korea. As for vacation homework, we are familiar with keeping a diary, writing a book report, creating art works, etc. So the above homework is very inventive and interesting. The teacher said he wanted to instill emotion into the boy students who are usually lacking in emotions. Hearing…

With Love in Every Word

You have to walk a long way to reach the summit. Although it’s hard to walk up the steep path, if you keep on walking, you can feel the joy of standing on the top of the mountain. My journey of faith has been like climbing the mountain. The path was rough sometimes, but those rough paths made my soul healthier, and helped me enjoy more blessings and joy. My mother believed in Buddhism, but I always liked the word “God” ever since I was young. I believed that heaven where God dwells must exist. So whenever a new school year began, the first thing I did was to find a Christian in the class and go to her church…

Gwon So-young from Suwon, South Korea

The Secret to Success

There was a boy who grew up, listening to his father, a baker, always humming. He came to love music and wanted to learn it. However, he also wanted to study science or become a teacher. The father told his son, who was distressed with the decision of what to do with his life, “If you try to sit on two chairs at the same time, you will fall through the gap. Life is the same.” After much consideration, the son chose to become singer. Twenty years later, Luciano Pavarotti became a world-class singer.

Mother’s Teaching No. 1

“As God always gives love, giving love is more blessed than receiving love.”

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There is not a single moment when God does not love us. When we were angels in heaven, God always cherished us with love. Even when we were driven to the earth after committing grievous sins in heaven, God was crucified on behalf of us to forgive our sins, through which He proved His love for us. At this moment, too, God dwells on the land of sinners in appearance as a human like us, taking care of us. Like this, God always gives love and says, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (Jn 13:34). God wants us to give love to others as we receive love from God, and said that it is more…

Mother’s Teaching No. 2

“When we give glory to God, that glory will be ours in the end.”

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When we see a tree with abundant fruit, we tend to focus only on the visible parts—the fruit and the branches—and overlook the roots. However, the role of the roots is absolutely essential; they provide water and nutrients until the tree produce good fruit. Without the roots, the tree cannot exist. Moreover, if the roots do not function properly, the tree cannot sustain itself or bear fruit, no matter how thick and strong the branches are. Likewise, everything we’ve done can seem to be our own achievements, but actually it has been achieved through the power of God who works invisibly like the roots. We must never forget that. ‘I have done it myself’—it’s a very foolish and dangerous thought.…

Mother’s Teaching No. 3

“When we look at things beautifully without hatred in our hearts, we can achieve perfect love.”

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There is no one perfect in the world because we are all sinners. Everyone has his merits and demerits. No matter how good one’s character seems to be, he has demerits in some ways, and no matter how faulty one’s character seems to be, he has merits in some ways. If we have hate, we will only find faults in others, but if we have a beautiful mind, we can find something good and gracious. It is not easy to have a beautiful mind in all circumstances. However, if we try to look at our brothers and sisters with a beautiful mind, relying on the word of God, we can achieve the perfect love and give joy to our God…

Mother’s Teaching No. 4

“As Abraham received more blessings when he yielded for his nephew Lot, we, too, will receive more blessings when we yield for our brothers and sisters.”

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God told Abraham to go to the land of Canaan with his nephew Lot. As their flocks and families grew in number, the land where they lived became too small for both of them. Then dissension grew among their herdsmen. Abraham suggested that Lot go his separate way so that their herdsman wouldn’t fight with each other. Although Abraham could have chosen first and selected the good land for himself, he allowed Lot to choose his land first, and then Abraham received the land that Lot didn’t choose. And quarreling arose between Abram’s herdsmen and the herdsmen of Lot. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time. So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have…

Mother’s Teaching No. 5

“Arrogance is feeling disappointed when our expectations are not met.”

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A man feels disappointed when the treatment or service he receives does not meet his expectations. Such feeling of disappointment comes from a mind that wants others to acknowledge or serve him, which is an arrogant mind. We are sinners who committed grievous sins in Heaven and were cast down to the earth. So we should never be arrogant because sinners do not have the right to be acknowledged or to be served. When we look at the systems in this world, criminals who committed a serious crime are confined in prison and all their rights and freedoms are taken away. However, sometimes we forget that we are spiritual sinners. When we forget this, we come to have an arrogant…

Mother’s Teaching No. 6

“Although others do not work, let us work faithfully without complaining. When we work with the mindset of an owner, we can work with joy and ease.”

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We often face a situation where we have to work alone while others are not working. We may think, ‘Why aren’t they working?’ or ‘Why should I work while everyone else is doing nothing?’ However, God taught us that when we have the spirit of ownership, we can work with joy. Let’s think about an owner and his servants. Servants do not care much about the harvest and make minimum effort. They pretend to work hard only when their master is watching because they receive their wages based on the amount of time they work. However, an owner is different. He is always concerned about the crops in his field and tries to find better ways to take care of…

Mother’s Teaching No. 7

“Arrogance arises from a heart full of complaint. When we always serve God with gratitude, arrogance and complaint disappear, and humility will dwell in our hearts.”

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Complaint is having dissatisfaction in our heart. Those who don’t know how to be content come to complain. No matter how much God prepares favorable situations, rather than giving thanks to God, they always see negative points first. Mother said, “Arrogance comes from a mind full of complaint.” We complain when we think, ‘That is not the way,’ ‘My way is much better than that,’ or ‘He shouldn’t treat me like this.’ From these complains, arrogance forms in our heart and we think, ‘I am better than everybody.’ Since arrogance leads our soul into destruction, we should make every effort not to complain in any situation. Then, what should we do to avoid complaining? We should always serve God with…

Mother’s Teaching No. 8

“When we compliment our brothers and sisters, compliments will return to us.”

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Words have great power and are like an echo. When we compliment others, compliments return to us. When we blame others, they blame us as well. This is the reason Mother taught us, “When we compliment our brothers and sisters, compliments return to us.” When we remember this teaching and compliment and encourage one another even in small things, the compliments and encouragement will return to us. In addition, God, who remembers everything, will compliment us and give us blessings. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Mt 7:12 We should also remember that God is pleased when brothers and sisters are united in…

Mother’s Teaching No. 9

“As the sea receives all the dirt and purifies it, we should have a broad and beautiful heart to embrace the faults of our brothers and sisters.”

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Heavenly Mother has told us that a broad mind like the sea is a beautiful mind. A broad mind like the sea covers the faults of brothers and sisters. It is not easily angered, but rather understands and tolerates others with humility and kindness. Heavenly Mother regards such a mind as beautiful. Then how can we have a broad mind like the sea? It is by thinking about God who forgave our grievous sins. We are sinners who came down to the earth after committing unforgivable sins. However, God became the atoning sacrifice for our sins and forgave us. When we think about such great love and grace of God, we can willingly cover up all the faults of our…

Mother’s Teaching No. 10

“Whoever wants to be led by the Lamb should become a lamb smaller than the Lamb.”

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Heavenly Mother said that whoever wants to be led by the Lamb must become a lamb smaller than the Lamb. It is because we cannot follow wherever the Lamb leads us if we do not become smaller than the Lamb. As long as we are bigger than the Lamb, we may follow the Lamb for some time when His lead is in accordance with our thoughts. However, we will begin to act on our own initiative when His lead is no longer aligned with our thoughts. We must become smaller lambs by getting rid of our thoughts and follow wherever the Lamb leads us. To be led by God who is the Lamb and enter the Kingdom of Heaven, we…

Mother’s Teaching No. 11

“Sacrifice is needed in the process of becoming a greater vessel.”

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God likened us to vessels. We cannot hold many fruits in a small vessel. Likewise, no matter how much we want to receive blessings and serve as great Gospel workers, we cannot receive such blessings if we are a small vessel. Only when we have a large vessel can we embrace many souls and receive great blessings of the Holy Spirit. However, the process to make vessels wider and deeper requires much suffering and refinement. There are many souls in Zion; sacrifice is needed to tolerate and embrace many souls. Some have just begun their life of faith, so we have to consider and care for them; and some have a rough and unrefined character. We need to sacrifice ourselves…

Mother’s Teaching No. 12

“Even God came to serve, not to be served. When we serve one another without wanting to be served, God will be pleased.”

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Our God Himself set us an example of faith by showing us what we should do. One example is serving others. God is the most honorable and holy One who deserves to be served by all creatures in the entire universe. However, He served us. We must follow such an example set by God and serve our brothers and sisters. Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one…

Mother’s Teaching No. 13

“We should endure present sufferings for the Kingdom of Heaven will be ours.”

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While living a life of faith, we face rough and painstaking moments. Sometimes we are persecuted for the truth or tempted by Satan; we have troubles with brothers and sisters in Zion; or we encounter problems in our daily life. Each and every member walks the path of faith, bearing suffering and hardship. God told us to endure all suffering by thinking of Heaven that is to come. God is preparing unimaginable blessings for us in Heaven. There will be no more suffering, pain, or sorrow. It will only be full of eternal joy and happiness. Although our life on the earth may be difficult and painful, when we think of the glory of Heaven, we will never give up.…