Cheon Seong Gyeong: Episode 339
Cheon Seong Gyeong Book 11: Ceremonies and Holy Days
Chapter 2: Church Services
Section 1: Church Service and Prayer, 12-22
(12) Some among you are parents, and some of you are children. Regardless, when coming before God, being punctual is more important than anything else. Again, I underscore that you must be on time. If you are unable to observe the appointed time for worship, you are bound to miss out. God wants a sanctified environment and an utmost pure heart. If you fail to be punctual and then sit in the back, then even though you sing praises, God does not want such praise from you.
(13) When you enter a sanctified, holy place, you should first pray for God's sake. It is the time when you are to meet the Lord, so first, you should pray for God. Next, you should pray for Jesus. Only by praying for God will you come to understand the heart of God, the heart that He experienced throughout history. Only by praying for Jesus will you come to understand the heart of Jesus, the heart that he experienced throughout history. Then you should pray for the multitude of Christians who fought for the Will. Following each and every footstep of the innumerable saints and sages since the Fall of Adam and Eve, you should pray to God, "Please allow me to become an offering to liberate them from their bitter sorrow." Then you should pray to the saints and sages, "Please cooperate with me. I know you have bitter sorrow on account of the work you left unfinished on this earth, but I am living to fulfill it." After that, you can pray for your beloved children and then pray for yourself. That is the way of heavenly law.
(14) Whenever I pray, I pray with a heart that exclaims, "Father! You have always been guiding me!" I pray, feeling responsible, that today I must save even one more life for God. I pray as one standing at a crossroads, where I can either bring a life to the Father or be manipulated by Satan. When I preach, unlike other preachers in the world, I do not pick the topic of the sermon and prepare it in advance. I just try to say what the Father wants me to say, according to what He needs at the time. If I feel I have not met that standard, I pray and pray, investing my whole being and praying desperately with tears. I pray, worrying about the path that each of you must go.
(15) You must offer devotion from the position of conviction, declaring, "I have absolute faith!" You must stand in the position of having absolute faith in God and the Will. Only when you stand in that position will God cooperate with you. When you pray, you must have no doubts that your prayer will be answered. You should be able to pray, "Father! I am the only one who remains. Without me, this nation will be ruined, and this world will be ruined. O, Father! I am the only one who remains at this crucial point, despite Your toiling for six thousand years. I am the only one who is close to fulfilling Your Will. My position is that crucial. Although I am not yet fully prepared, still You have given me the order. Therefore, I will prepare myself with the conditions and foundations that will enable me to follow that order on behalf of my people. Is it not for Your providence of restoration?"
(16) When you pray, you should first pray for your nation, then for the world, for the angels and your ancestors in the spirit world, and then for the liberation of God. Without knowing what you should do and how the fortune of this world is changing, do not just pray, "O Lord, please send me to the kingdom of heaven." That is not what you should do. Today, in order for you to liberate Jesus from his pain and suffering, history must testify of you: "You deserve our sympathy." Your ancestors must testify of you: "Among our descendants, you alone stand tall. You saved all of history," and then go even further: "You accomplished the missions of a son and a parent, of a loyal subject and a filial child, by taking responsibility for your people at this time."
(17) You should pray, "If I cannot become the son or daughter You want me to be, I will walk the path of a servant to save Your sons and daughters. I will lay rocks and boards to build a bridge or place stepping-stones so Your children can cross over." If you pray like that, God will support you. The prayer, "Take care of my sons and daughters," is not a prayer God can support. You must first bless the saints of the world and then pray for yourself, in that order. Otherwise, no matter how many times you pray, your prayers will have no effect. You must know how to pray. Those whose faith is for their own benefit will abandon God after they receive blessings because their goal is to receive blessings. Once they do, and things are going well, they will fall away.
(18) As you receive grace and experience the spirit world, you will naturally know what to include in your prayers. Then if you study the contents of your prayers and compile statistics of their results, you will notice that the method and content of your prayers are improving, becoming more public. Fallen human beings would fall flat on their backs if they tried to pray for world-level issues at the beginning stage of their prayer life. They first pray for the salvation of those who are closest to them—their beloved parents, sons and daughters, and spouse. However, as time passes and their prayers develop, the content of their prayers changes. What do people who know about God's Will pray for? They do not pray for their families; they pray for the world. Also, they know where they are, what kind of situation they are in, and where God wants them to be, and they are determined to pioneer through paying indemnity at the position where God wants them to be. Such people are wise.
(19) When you pray, pray for the specific people or the particular matter that is on your mind. Do not just pray in general; you need to keep those people or that matter in mind. Then you establish a relationship of subject and object partners, and the law of giving and receiving begins to unfold. A subject partner and an object partner give and receive, and by praying diligently and offering full devotion, you create a place where that reciprocal action can take place. Also, you should pray with a sincere heart that reaches beyond the thousands of years of human history. It is sacred and marvelous to call out to God, offering devotion with a heart beyond the thousands of years of history and in total oneness with Him inside and out. When you do, you will become substantially one with God. Then the single word "Father" that you call out will carry the greatest beauty within it.
(20) People whose prayers are the same today as they were yesterday are not really leading a life of faith. Even though you see the same thing every day, you should notice something different about it. Then you can enter the mysterious world of faith. Once you enter the incredible world of faith, you can discover a new world. Although you do the same thing, praying every day, because you have come to like it and find it enriching, you will grow in your faith as you continue doing it.
(13) When you enter a sanctified, holy place, you should first pray for God's sake. It is the time when you are to meet the Lord, so first, you should pray for God. Next, you should pray for Jesus. Only by praying for God will you come to understand the heart of God, the heart that He experienced throughout history. Only by praying for Jesus will you come to understand the heart of Jesus, the heart that he experienced throughout history. Then you should pray for the multitude of Christians who fought for the Will. Following each and every footstep of the innumerable saints and sages since the Fall of Adam and Eve, you should pray to God, "Please allow me to become an offering to liberate them from their bitter sorrow." Then you should pray to the saints and sages, "Please cooperate with me. I know you have bitter sorrow on account of the work you left unfinished on this earth, but I am living to fulfill it." After that, you can pray for your beloved children and then pray for yourself. That is the way of heavenly law.
(14) Whenever I pray, I pray with a heart that exclaims, "Father! You have always been guiding me!" I pray, feeling responsible, that today I must save even one more life for God. I pray as one standing at a crossroads, where I can either bring a life to the Father or be manipulated by Satan. When I preach, unlike other preachers in the world, I do not pick the topic of the sermon and prepare it in advance. I just try to say what the Father wants me to say, according to what He needs at the time. If I feel I have not met that standard, I pray and pray, investing my whole being and praying desperately with tears. I pray, worrying about the path that each of you must go.
(15) You must offer devotion from the position of conviction, declaring, "I have absolute faith!" You must stand in the position of having absolute faith in God and the Will. Only when you stand in that position will God cooperate with you. When you pray, you must have no doubts that your prayer will be answered. You should be able to pray, "Father! I am the only one who remains. Without me, this nation will be ruined, and this world will be ruined. O, Father! I am the only one who remains at this crucial point, despite Your toiling for six thousand years. I am the only one who is close to fulfilling Your Will. My position is that crucial. Although I am not yet fully prepared, still You have given me the order. Therefore, I will prepare myself with the conditions and foundations that will enable me to follow that order on behalf of my people. Is it not for Your providence of restoration?"
(16) When you pray, you should first pray for your nation, then for the world, for the angels and your ancestors in the spirit world, and then for the liberation of God. Without knowing what you should do and how the fortune of this world is changing, do not just pray, "O Lord, please send me to the kingdom of heaven." That is not what you should do. Today, in order for you to liberate Jesus from his pain and suffering, history must testify of you: "You deserve our sympathy." Your ancestors must testify of you: "Among our descendants, you alone stand tall. You saved all of history," and then go even further: "You accomplished the missions of a son and a parent, of a loyal subject and a filial child, by taking responsibility for your people at this time."
(17) You should pray, "If I cannot become the son or daughter You want me to be, I will walk the path of a servant to save Your sons and daughters. I will lay rocks and boards to build a bridge or place stepping-stones so Your children can cross over." If you pray like that, God will support you. The prayer, "Take care of my sons and daughters," is not a prayer God can support. You must first bless the saints of the world and then pray for yourself, in that order. Otherwise, no matter how many times you pray, your prayers will have no effect. You must know how to pray. Those whose faith is for their own benefit will abandon God after they receive blessings because their goal is to receive blessings. Once they do, and things are going well, they will fall away.
(18) As you receive grace and experience the spirit world, you will naturally know what to include in your prayers. Then if you study the contents of your prayers and compile statistics of their results, you will notice that the method and content of your prayers are improving, becoming more public. Fallen human beings would fall flat on their backs if they tried to pray for world-level issues at the beginning stage of their prayer life. They first pray for the salvation of those who are closest to them—their beloved parents, sons and daughters, and spouse. However, as time passes and their prayers develop, the content of their prayers changes. What do people who know about God's Will pray for? They do not pray for their families; they pray for the world. Also, they know where they are, what kind of situation they are in, and where God wants them to be, and they are determined to pioneer through paying indemnity at the position where God wants them to be. Such people are wise.
(19) When you pray, pray for the specific people or the particular matter that is on your mind. Do not just pray in general; you need to keep those people or that matter in mind. Then you establish a relationship of subject and object partners, and the law of giving and receiving begins to unfold. A subject partner and an object partner give and receive, and by praying diligently and offering full devotion, you create a place where that reciprocal action can take place. Also, you should pray with a sincere heart that reaches beyond the thousands of years of human history. It is sacred and marvelous to call out to God, offering devotion with a heart beyond the thousands of years of history and in total oneness with Him inside and out. When you do, you will become substantially one with God. Then the single word "Father" that you call out will carry the greatest beauty within it.
(20) People whose prayers are the same today as they were yesterday are not really leading a life of faith. Even though you see the same thing every day, you should notice something different about it. Then you can enter the mysterious world of faith. Once you enter the incredible world of faith, you can discover a new world. Although you do the same thing, praying every day, because you have come to like it and find it enriching, you will grow in your faith as you continue doing it.
Pledge service and the Family Pledge
(21) When we share rice cakes in the presence of True Parents, this act of sharing means that we become one with God in spirit. That is, we become one body with Him. Eating rice cakes together means to influence the parents to become one, the family to become one, relatives to become one, the world to become one, and those whose mind and body are divided to become one. Unification Church members should offer pledge service every week. The day to offer pledge service is a holy day, and on a holy day, we partake of holy food. The reason we share this precious holy food is to alleviate the bitter sorrow of God, who did not have a chance to experience that in Adam's family due to the Fall. Pledge service is conducted in this format, with the heart of offering congratulations and best wishes to God and True Parents, in order to relieve God's pain.
(22) Unification Church members are expanding the pledge service from the level of Adam's family to the levels of tribe, people, nation, and world. By expanding it so, it becomes a ritual to support the world to become one by attending God. Therefore, all week long, you should eagerly await the time for eating the holy food as if it were all you wished for. Offering and sharing the holy food is a time to attend God; it is a time when you can relate directly to God. Therefore, blessed families throughout the world should honor this time and keep it as a tradition.
(22) Unification Church members are expanding the pledge service from the level of Adam's family to the levels of tribe, people, nation, and world. By expanding it so, it becomes a ritual to support the world to become one by attending God. Therefore, all week long, you should eagerly await the time for eating the holy food as if it were all you wished for. Offering and sharing the holy food is a time to attend God; it is a time when you can relate directly to God. Therefore, blessed families throughout the world should honor this time and keep it as a tradition.
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