We Are Not Here For The 100 Meter Sprint, So Let's Keep Learning

Simon Cooper
February 5, 2010

One of my focused moments

I am forcing myself to get round to reviewing the content of the Original Divine Principle workshop. How many times have I been to a seminar and then not looked back at the content, forgetting there is a process to learning. How much learning have I missed in my life, I don't even want to start calculating it.

Well, if I decided to spend 50 hours sitting in Rev Yue's lectures, I better get some value for money and time and allow some of that investment (by him speaking and me listening) to bare some fruit. Here goes:

As I go through the lecture guide, I get pretty stumped; the slides are sometimes not well developed, in places you get the feeling they have been thrown together at great speed.

And I realize that a lot of what grabbed me was to do with how Rev Yue poured out all his heart and soul. He made you feel like True Father was really in the room. The first lecture was on the theme of 'the family' and how the family pledge is the core and source of order for our family.

Here is a mix of some of my notes and thoughts:

We should check ourselves daily by reciting the pledge, and find ways to make it a substantial reality in our daily life, step by step of course. To recite effectively needs our family to be able to stand together one in heart. So, getting each family member (in your family) onto the same page -- holding the same page -- could be seen as one big first step in making it real and meaning. Need to be on loving terms as a family. Perhaps as Jesus taught his Jewish audience that before you go to the temple to make your offering to God, resolve any arguments or conflicts with your brother. Sometimes the foundation of substance needs to come first.

Each of the pledges starts with a reference to being an owner. This is to encourage us to take genuine interest (because I am the owner!), to feel responsible, to want to protect and raise up my family and community.

In the first verse there is a reference to Cheon Il Guk, which is another way of talking about the Kingdom of Heaven, and the Korean expression describes a country built upon two people becoming one. That gives us a lot to reflect on. Who do I feel 'one' with?

Also in verse one it speaks of our homeland. Our homeland is where we find true love, that is what we seek.

It then mentions the original ideal of creation: a reference to be fruitful, multiply and have dominion -- the 3 blessings.

There is a lot to reflect on here, but to be pragmatic, what do I actually decide to take away as an action step from studying about the family pledge?

Get our wild bunch into a 'place' where we can recite it all together, at the same time each morning. Accept that this will take time, and allow some jumping off sofas and other gymnastics to occur in the process. Be patient and generous as we move towards the calm straight synchronized line of all of us pledging together. Start with the big guys. Make time to talk to the little ones when they haven't eaten any sweets, when they are not playing games on the computer, Wii, or my iphone, and when they are not tired and grumpy.

Bringing heaven down to earth needs a fair bit of dedication and focus, but there is nothing more beautiful than when you see God's tradition being planted in your family so it's worth way more than 50 hours of lectures, it's worth a daily lifelong commitment. Remember we are not running a 100 meter sprint, this spiritual journey we are on is more of the London marathon, like in the movie: Run, Fat boy, Run.