Loyalty during Times of Great Difficulty

Steven Matthew Goldberg
September 18, 2012

People waiting in line to view Father's body outside the Cheongshim Peace World Center.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

In the mid-1960s, a very popular group by the name of The Kingston Trio recorded a song called, "Road to Freedom". The words are a beautiful tribute eliciting the spirit of liberty. They speak of the unquenchable yearning in the hearts of all people for true freedom.

The first verse goes like this:

"I'm gonna walk that road, that we walked along before many years ago; And we'll walk a hundred more. Yes, were coming one by one, you can see us two by two. Every time you turn around, there's another coming through. And we'll sing it loud and strong, so everyone will know, that the road to freedom is a long hard, way to go."

Young people in the 60's such as myself, were idealistic and hopeful for a world of freedom, searching for the roots of what we could believe in and stand for proudly. Our music reflected that hope. Those of us who were lucky found True Parents and the Divine Principle.

Perhaps you would agree that we are living in challenging times. Our world is changing before our very eyes, yet we barely understand what is happening about us. Sometimes it is hard to discern what is up and what is down. There's an old saying that, if you can keep your head while everyone else is losing theirs, then you just don't understand how serious the situation is!

Have you felt a little bit of that lately? I must admit that I have. Yet, in the midst of all the chaos, with embassies burning and tempers exploding, icons falling and things appalling, there is a beautiful chord that rings in my heart with all the power and harmony of this marvelous Universe made by God.

Jesus said to his disciples, "Consider how the lilies grow. The do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. And a little later he spoke these words, "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom."

In 1961, on February 12 in Cheong Pa Dong, Seoul, Korea, True Father said these words,

"God warned humankind that there would be seven years of great chaos in the Last Days. During this time of great difficulty, the faithful will collide with the sorrowful circumstances of Heaven over the course of the six thousand years of history. They will be faced with circumstances in which the bonds between human beings will be severed completely, and they will be unable to trust anything. It will be a time when you will not be able to insist that you are following your course of life based on your conscience, no matter how much you have lived faithfully according to your conscience. It will be a time when you cannot insist that the course of your life is based on faith or on some ideology. Anybody who embraces God's will and is awake will feel pain whenever he beholds what is around him. When such a time comes, that will be within the seven years of great chaos in the Last Days. That will be a time when hope is shaken. That will be a time when the center of the faith that we believe in is shaken. That will be a time when leaders who had followed in faith will waiver. Everything will be shaken. It will be a time when everything-- ideologies, religion, conscience and the parental heart--will be shaken.

Why, then, was God compelled to bring about such a world? It was so that He can bestow value on us for our having participated with the God who has worked so hard throughout history, with the true God. God has seen countless tragedies in the course of six thousand years and has endured numerous situations. In the Last Days, people will face a situation where they will be unable to establish their center with their conscience or ideology or faith. Such a time will come when God will seek true sons and daughters who can love God despite such chaos, who are ready to live with God even amidst such difficult circumstances.

That is why, do not be sorrowful if you see the church sway; do not be sorrowful if you see an ideology create disturbance; do not be sorrowful if you see a sovereign collapse; do not be sorrowful if you see your parents change; do not be sorrowful if you see your brothers change and fall away. Even if even if everything in the world that you have relied on and trusted should sway, your hearts should be composed. You must know that God is unswayed, and even at this very minute He is coming to you. You must understand that He gives us pain because it is part of a great promise to connect us with that day, which He treasures, and with the pain that He had gone through. Such a time is needed in the world in order to find a person who can grasp onto Heaven in such circumstances and call out to others saying, 'Let's go together. Let's fight together. Let's take action together.'

Therefore, do not be discouraged if you see that the path ahead is blocked. Do not lose heart if you see your nation falling into disorder. God is not dead. Do not lose hope even if the world is in uproar. God is not dead. He will surely come to us. Even if everything is in chaos, do not waver in your single- mindedness toward Heaven. Your heart of depending on Heaven and looking toward Heaven with hope must never change. Even if God should place you in a painful position to change that heart, you must remain fervent and be able to call upon the Father in such circumstances. No matter what kind of situation you find yourself in, you must make effort to hold on to God's heart as a lifeline and climb up from that position. Even if you have to undergo the pain of falling into hell, if you can stand in a position of being with the Father, knowing the Father's pain, believing that the Father will recognize your pain, and move forward, fully understanding your responsibility and duty, with the determination to go into such circumstances, you will not perish."

Brothers and Sisters, I still want to walk that road. Will you come along with me?

God bless you.

Pastor Matthew Goldberg