The "god" closest to you is actually everything in your surroundings. Everything you see, hear, touch, feel, and smell is alive. Even furniture is part of God's creation. Feelings are not just found in the emotions which people convey to one another. Emotions arc also projected from people to the universe. In this way, a person does not just see the universe; he experiences it. For example, an individual does not just look at the paintings which are considered masterpieces. One person could sit for hours and even days in front of a great painter's work while another might walk by it, comment that it is a nice painting, but immediately go on to see the next one. The person who sits in front of one painting for a long time does not just examine what effect the strokes of the paintbrush made on the canvas; he experiences the essence of the heart and soul of the artist.

There is one supreme Master: God. His creation is this magnificent universe. When you examine the creation and sense how it relates to you, you don't only see natural surroundings or quaint villages. When you relate to the soul of the universe you relate to God, the master Creator.

A person who looks at a painting for days on end must have a reason for doing so. After all, even a great work of art is only a flat piece of canvas with a little bit of paint on it. But the universe is alive, full of vibrant colors and melodious sounds. The morning may greet you with her dew; flowers can unfold their petals as if stretching out their hands to you. The lifeblood of the Master is evident everywhere in this universe. With your own heart you can relate to its soul, which is the heart of God.

The heart of God existed from the beginning. Before the creation His heart was so full of life and creativity, it was ready to burst. Since His power is limitless, He longed to come forth with tremendous thrust; He put His entire heart into creating the universe. He put in everything He had.

He created the world of minerals first. All the angels praised Him and told Him what a good job He did. Then He said, "You haven't seen anything yet! Just wait until you see what comes next." He flexed His muscles and produced vegetation. They were flabbergasted by that, too. The angels just shook their heads in disbelief. They had glorified God for His work with the minerals but now were awe-stricken. Although He had put His heart into it, He said, "Do you think that's all?" and next came forth with the world of animals. The angels must have been completely dumfounded at this point. But God told them this was all just preparation for something greater yet to come.

God next created His children, Adam and Eve. At this point, the angels were positive y convinced that He could create nothing better and simply surrendered, following and obeying Him. And they continuously glorified Him for His amazing sense of creativity. God told the angels that they should not just be bystanders but actively participate in educating His children. There was such incredible joy throughout all the worlds God had fashioned: God Himself was happy.

His ecstasy increased with every inch Adam and Eve grew; through them God began to experience His own heart vibrating in the universe. But suddenly things were hushed. Then, totally silent. His children were lost and even though God cried out to them, His screams were to no avail. From that moment, all of mankind was cut off from God; but the universe also suffered. It had no way to relate to Him without the intercession of human beings. The harmonizer between God and the universe became spiritually blind, deaf, and dumb and could no longer mediate between God and the universe; in essence, God's children were dead.

This is a monumental tragedy. Up to this point, all creation felt the elation that accompanies the completion of a magnificent masterpiece. It must have seemed like Heaven. But so quickly everyone and everything plummeted to hell. He felt incredible despair being separated from His objects of love.

The fall was the worst catastrophe imaginable; since that happened, humanity has been deprived of the true love of God. And God's situation is just as unfortunate because He has also been robbed of His children's love. Since that time the creation too has been unable to fully glorify God because they cannot go before Him without man's intercession. A museum with billions of dollars worth of artifacts is worthless if no one enters; it can't fulfill its true purpose if no one appreciates it. The same is true of the creation.

We have to learn to appreciate God's handiwork. We should cherish each kingdom God created -- mineral, vegetation, and animals. But we cannot forget that the highest form manifesting God is mankind. We may love to look at the waters, the mountains, and other results of God's creativity, yet how many people really appreciate and treasure each other?

When God was all by Himself, He did not know what it was like to have children. Does that seem like a strange concept? God never had children until Adam and Eve were born and as they matured, He had to learn about parenthood. The master plan was within Him even before He began to create, but it did not manifest tangibly until His children were born.

The same is true with the entire universe. He surveyed things from all the corners of heaven during the birth of the cosmos. God viewed all the developments of this "Big Bang -- the continuous pirouettes and rotations of the planets and stars, and the suns and moons encompassing the entire universe. He looked at the evolution of the planets, adding more spice here and there until He felt the universe was good. And then He let it be.

Even before He commenced creating Adam and Eve, God had the concept of man and how to build woman for him. But at the same time, He also had the idea of a woman and wanted to build a man to compliment her. Although unknown and invisible to the angelic world, God's entire master plan was predestined, and evolved step by step. I am sure He enjoyed looking at His own children and the beautiful creation around them. Everything was perfect; everything was good. He watched them grow up innocent and pure, in love with Him, in love with life and their home.

He told them to give names to all the animals and to everything in creation. He gave them certain responsibilities and definite instructions. God fully intended Adam and Eve to become the masters of this world. Even when they were children, God wanted them to feel at home and enjoy the universe. He wanted them to be able to relate to it and become true lords over creation.

Reflect upon what God must have felt watching His children. Any parent, when looking at his child develop, cannot help feel a certain sense of pride and happiness. God too was consumed with joy; He loved them so much.

We can understand from the Bible that God planned for Adam and Eve to be marriage partners. He watched them grow; His pride must have steadily welled up as they neared the age when He would engage them. Perhaps God decided to let them grow for a while longer before allowing them to wed. He probably felt that soon enough they would experience the fullness of spiritual and physical love. He was happy because He looked forward to participating in their love experience. God looked forward to the time when He could help them create their family, realizing that then they would also experience the totality of His love.

But all of a sudden the fall happened. God's expectations were dashed; His disappointment was tremendous. He had prepared the whole environment just for them. He watched Adam and Eve develop and in a sense, matured along with them. He Himself evolved to the same level of perfection they did. Previously He had just existed spiritually, but through Adam and Eve He could manifest Himself physically.

Although God is perfect, how can He totally manifest Himself in the universe without an object? When perfected human beings are the center of the universe, the millions and billions of people on earth and in spirit world become God's children.

Without question, the essence of God is within all entities of the universe. In order to be His sons and daughters, we must perceive the heartbeat, not just of God, but also of creation. To do that, we need to understand His will, His master plan. We must understand that all things are made for us and that we are to govern them. God desires to live, experience, and enjoy all entities of the universe through us. He can never fully do that if we are not able to completely perceive all things He created.

Everything in the universe imparts something to us. We assimilate it, even through our skin. Likewise, we can perceive love with all our organs and through each of our senses.

We know little or nothing about either the connection between God and man, or man and the universe. These relationships were severed at the time of the fall, but we are asked to restore them. As we come closer to God, our spiritual eyes will open wider. Our body will even breathe differently, reacting to the levels of love coming from nature.

As pioneers and warriors for God, we must begin to unveil our hearts to God's creation. As we go along in life, we will realize that God has created things we don't yet comprehend. It is just that they are waiting for our response. We will not always have to struggle and fight against Satan in order to survive. One of these days, he will disappear from the picture and we will be able to enjoy life to the fullest. When we no longer need to contend with Satan, everything we do will be total. We will experience total love and see the true beauty of the universe. We can already begin perceiving these things as our spiritual senses open more and more. We have already begun coming closer to God, recognizing His almightiness and radiance, as well as His omnipresence.

When we are able to perceive God's creation in totality, we will then offer Him the kind of praise He has been waiting for. That is why St. Paul said, "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God." The entities of creation cannot come before God on their own. They need a subject of love, and themselves want to be objects of love.

They want each human being to be pure so that perfect man and woman can have give and take with and appreciate the creation. When that respect is shown, the creation is uplifted automatically. When anyone or anything feels esteemed, glorification is the natural response.

We should open our eyes. We should hear and see the creation; we should listen to and behold God. When our senses survey all the beauty of this universe, we should fall on our knees and proclaim, "God, how great Thou art."

God designed the cosmos as a total expression of Himself. Energy is the essence of the physical universe therefore the energy to create the physical universe originally existed within God. If He had created a cosmos with only a spiritual dimension, it would have been only a partial expression of everything within Him. He would have only revealed the spiritual side of His creative nature and neglected the physical aspect. But based on His plan for humanity and fashioning the blueprint for the whole cosmos around that, God wanted to give mankind everything He possibly could. He desired to make His masterpiece as beautiful and fully expressive as possible. If He would have omitted the physical aspect, He would have painted only half the picture. But He desired that when people related to the created world, they be able to receive as much joy from it as possible. God must have felt that the more varied and great it was, the more joyous stimulation it could give His children.

Nature has a great effect on peoples' spirituality. God created nature in such a way that it has an impact upon a person's personality, mentality, and spirituality. He also created weather in such a way that four seasons unfold through the manifestation of nature's contours. The moods of the seasons interact with one another; when we experience the change of seasons, our spirit and body adjust accordingly. It is important to have change in our life, including spiritual and mental change.

People who are exposed to varied climates are usually more spiritual. People who live in an environment with mountains, valleys, and bodies of water are often more intuitive. The majority of great thinkers, musicians, and artists developed where this variety in geography and climate exist.

God manifested and revealed Himself from the lowest to the highest stages in both the physical and spiritual worlds. There is an absolute connection. Everything comes from the same source and in turn ends up where it originated -- within the heart of God.

There is one line that threads together the worlds of minerals, vegetation, animals, and even the interpersonal relationships between human beings. It is one big circle; one line connects Father God with Father God.

When we talk to God in prayer, we absolutely talk to the whole universe at the same time. In fact, that is one way we connect the whole universe to Him. As we grow toward perfection, we will also elevate all the masculine and feminine positions in creation from the stage of minerals to the highest form of spirituality.

When we are really deep in devotion, praying and glorifying Him, the whole universe rejoices along with us and joins us in exalting Him because we represent both the physical and spiritual universes. This is the state of fulfillment Paul mentioned: the creation does wait for the revealing of the sons of God in order that all entities will finally be linked with Him. Presently all things of the creation are still cut off from God. We are the ones chosen to start the process of reconnecting the whole universe to Him. When we do, its purpose will be fulfilled.

We are to unite the whole universe with God for the mutual benefit of God and the universe. If we don't do that, the universe will continue to be cut off from God. The Principle shows us that man is the mediator between the spiritual and physical worlds, between God and the universe. Man is meant to be the harmonizer but if we do not fulfill this role, we deprive the universe of the love of God as well as deprive God glorification from the universe.

In order to become mediators, we must become pure and perfect our hearts. We have to comprehend the predicament of the universe as well as realize the will of God and fulfill it.

The motivation for all of the creation is love; God is that love incarnate. God manifested Himself in total harmony. He appears by projecting Himself into visible existence. The highest form of God's visible existence is the spiritual and physical union between husband and wife. In that relationship, the meaning of creation is returned to Him.

Did you ever lie on the beach and feel the sand on your body? It is such a beautiful experience to lie on the grass; when you do, you may even feel you are being cradled in a mother's lap. You can return the feeling of love and embrace the grass or hug the ground. It is so pleasant to stand on a hill and feel the wind enfold you. It is as if God is calling to you, "Here I am."

Did you ever hear a whole forest of silver birch or pine trees speak? They have a beautiful secret which they may want to share with you. Ask them to tell you their perception of God.

One of the most precious gifts God bestowed upon us was the ability to create. He made us in His image and gave us this talent in order that we would become co-creators and thereby become His children. The fact that we have both a spiritual and physical body is no accident; it is part of His plan. If we just had a mind with which to think of things and formulate pictures and plans but didn't have the means to fulfill them, we would naturally have to forfeit a large part of our creative ability. Our physical body allows us to be able to express our creativity in the fullest possible way. For instance, we have been endowed with the ability to conceive children. That is one aspect of creation God never misses; He is present during the conception of every child.

Self-denial and celibacy have been advocated by many Christian denominations. People were even urged never to marry. Those who practiced celibacy drew close to God and could envision something about the spiritual world and their Heavenly Parent, but could never be totally joyful. People who abstain throughout their lives and never unite physically with a mate or create a family will never know the joy of that union or about co-creatorship. Yet those things are also an integral part of God's creation.

The supreme element of God is His heart. The Bible talks about Eve being formed from the rib of Adam; the study of anatomy teaches us that the rib covers the heart. Therefore, woman is closest to the heart of Adam and in a very real way, they are inseparable. The Principle explains that God has both masculine and feminine characteristics within Himself. He therefore had to incarnate into both man and woman in order to fully express Himself.

The creation of man and woman took place when God breathed His spirit into them. God did this when the plus and minus within Himself were in absolute harmony, and then He incarnated into their bodies. God remained God, but part of Him went into Adam, part into Eve. Yet God could only fully manifest Himself through them after they matured. Since Adam and Eve were not perfected beings at birth, the full potential of God had not been realized; they had to grow toward perfection. He lived within Adam and Eve more with each passing day. Yet only when they fully matured could God totally manifest Himself within them.

God created the environment, paying attention to the most intricate of details. He even made sure the sunshine was not too bright or the sun's heat too hot. God created this world to be like a cradle for His children. He made sure that there was enough to eat and that the environment was just right for their birth. God provided everything before He created mankind.

We should think deeply about the various stages of universal development -- the purpose for each being and how it interrelates with the whole universe. Everything forms a pyramid which meets with God at the peak. At the pinnacle total satisfaction, joy, and fulfillment are mutually felt by God and humanity. If there is one entity which is uncooperative or imperfect, total joy can never be experienced. This is presently the situation of the creation. Because of the imperfection of humanity, nothing can experience complete fulfillment.

God always invested Himself totally in whatever He did. Looking back on the development of the world, we can recognize that humanity has advanced to an amazing degree. We now have knowledge about the elements of nature and how they function. But do we recognize that God Himself is present in the creation? God is the stone and the minerals; God is the grass and the trees, the water and the air. He exists in the valleys and the mountains. God is the world of animals. And God lives within human beings. Who gave us the ability to feel love and emotions? God. He existed at the beginning and manifested His heart through the world of minerals, vegetation, and animals but designed the human body to contain His spirit and the essence of His love. Once we are restored, we will truly embody Him. Without a physical body, there is no way man can perceive the love of God in the fullest sense. Therefore, God could not have created man with only a spiritual dimension.

We know that the lower purpose should always serve the higher. The minerals are constantly drawn out of the ground and fulfill their purpose being absorbed by the world of vegetation. Vegetation either goes directly into the human blood by being eaten or into the body of animals which are then eaten by man. Vegetation and animals fulfill their purpose by becoming one with the human body. Once the whole creation symbolically becomes one with our flesh, the entire universe comes together.

A husband represents all the pluses of the universe, a wife represents all the minuses. Through their harmony, the elements of the universe unite. When husband and wife are totally supported by the whole universe, God is present within them.

We know the five physical senses play a role in the physical union between husband and wife. The entire body -- including the nervous system, the emotions, as well as the physical and spiritual aspects of both husband and wife-unites in a love relationship. Assuming that everything is right, supreme love results. This love actually originates in the spirit and is manifested through the physical body. The plus and minus bodies unite and God, being present in the spirit of man and woman, then participates in the act of love making. What derives from this total and creative union is that plus and minus of love totally unite and bring forth untouchable, supreme love. The physical result may be a child. Yet even if no child is conceived or husband and wife don't realize that God is with them, the love they share is the absolute fulfillment of love in the universe. This was part of God's master plan even before He began creating the universe.

We should be thankful to the whole universe, not forgetting Mother Earth who is actually our first parent. Until we die physically, Mother Earth continues to take care of our bodies. She supplies us with food and the minerals we need to survive.

Finally our physical bodies are given back to Mother Earth, back to God; they do not just rot away. They have value because they come from God and return to this Mother Earth aspect of Him after they have fulfilled their purpose. We should therefore give respect to the physical body even after it is dead and buried.

The environment has tremendous impact upon a person's spirit; we can see how magnificently God provided for us. Out of His deep love, He created such a beautiful universe that responds to us just as we may respond to it. All nature is like a big orchestra -- not only do birds sing, but when the wind comes, even the trees whisper. The wind is just a different form of the voice of God. Did you ever hear tall and majestic trees when the wind blows? They sing so gloriously. If you lie on your back in the beauty of nature, you can see ribbons of sunlight streaming from the blue sky through the clouds. If you want to feel dynamic, you can march straight into the ocean and feel the power of the white sea-spray pounding on your legs. If you walk in a little further, God will wrap Himself around you. Beautiful!

It is God that you see -- nothing more, nothing less. The trees and the warmth of the sun are parts of Him, too. Have you sensed His soft and His strong sides? They completely surround you; you have only to take notice.

The mineral kingdom is the lowest, most lifeless of the three worlds. Nevertheless it too is alive. Stones and jewels seem more alive when the sun sparkles on them. Yet more dynamic life can be found in the world of vegetation because it is a higher state, involving a greater experience and response. Set against a background of earth tones, everything in creation formed a tapestry of brilliant hues. The animals show even more of the nature of God -- the shapes and sizes and kinds comprise such an infinite and astonishing variety.

At one point the animals were considered as God's crowning achievement, but the creation of humanity was His masterstroke. Hayden's musical composition, The Creation, conveys the feeling that after God created the angelic world, all of heaven happily anticipated what was yet to come.

It was a beautiful experience for God to see His first son and daughter. In fact, this was His greatest pleasure. He watched how they dealt with the environment, how they played with the animals, what they did with the flowers -- He observed their every relationship. At that moment they were innocent brother and sister. If they would have grown to perfection, God would have had the greatest joy. Through His children, He would have experienced total unification between Himself and all of His creation. That would have been the supreme experience of His creation. It would have brought so much joy that no doubt the whole universe would have vibrated.

Our spirits receive certain vitality elements from our physical bodies. When they return life elements to our physical bodies, we feel physically healthy. Our spirit receives the result of our physical behavior. When we eat good food, it ultimately enters our bloodstream and fulfills its purpose. When our spirit unites with the spirit of God, all that we have received is given back to Him, we then become one with Him and glorify Him. That is the process by which everything fulfills its purpose and glorifies the Creator.

All things are definitely created for man and fulfill their purpose once utilized by the human body. Entities of the creation don't die; rather they are elevated. An animal dies in order to be absorbed by a higher level of existence-the physical body of man. We do not die when we leave this world, but rather are elevated into a higher state of existence. Our purpose is fulfilled when we return to God and remain with Him eternally

Before the dawn of time, God was all by Himself, He felt lonesome. He had creative powers within Himself and then began to exercise them. He designed a Kingdom in which He wanted to reign over His children with perfect, true love. But He first had to create the environment.

How often do we stop to listen to the sounds of nature? Do we hear how beautifully the orchestra of creation plays? Are we careful not to harm or damage nature? Whether or not we realize it, the worlds of animals and vegetation depend on us. We must recognize that we also need them and should treat them correctly. We must be careful not to destroy nature.

The whole universe resounds in glory to God. Nature blooms to honor Him. How can we really appreciate nature if we do not understand all these magnificent things, and do not perceive the tunes and colors. Because all things of the creation respond to the vibrations our emotions and intellect emanate, we must become more keen and sensitive to them. We should acknowledge certain impressions from nature which in turn nourish our spirit. When our spirit becomes elevated, we should not fail to praise God for all those beautiful things that helped create us.

It is the love of God which stimulated the creation. Eventually the original purpose of each creation will be fulfilled and come back to God. He did not want anyone to interrupt the process or destroy the connection between the physical and spiritual worlds, yet the evil force assisted in cutting off mankind from God and stopped this circular motion. Although we consumed the elements of minerals, vegetation, and animals, the cycle stopped with us. Because mankind never reached perfection, we never returned those elements to God and He has never fully received the fruit of His own labor.

Each of us actually possesses three sets of parents; one of them is the earth, one our physical parents, and God is our Heavenly Parent. We are composed of essentially all the minerals found within the earth. When we consume vegetation and animals, they also become part of our body. Therefore, it is a natural feeling to defend our Father and Mother Earth -- the land on which we stand, from which we originate, and from which we live. Our parent, Earth, helped us grow to maturity. Therefore, we owe our loyalty to the land that bore us.

We must defend our fatherland, defend the millions of people who came from the land as well as all ingredients contained in her soil. By protecting our fellow human beings, we automatically safeguard our Father and Mother Earth. All these elements are interrelated. If we want to understand the character of each creation and its interrelationships, we must think universally. We will come to understand our duties and responsibilities in order to fulfill our part in the ecological chain. And we will come to understand that in order to fulfill those obligations, we cannot be individualistic.

If we investigate the Universal Prime Force, we will discover it to be the master plan or model by which this universe was designed. Such insight will allow us to experience God in a much greater way than the universe ever did. We must climb ever higher, expanding our heart, vision, and cognition. We must work hard in order to comprehend the inner meaning of this cosmos. Humanity -- so many souls, so many hearts, so many intellects involved in countless endeavors; creativity is sparked in a myriad of different fields. Our God reveals Himself through music, art, literature, and science, pouring His ingenuity into many patterns; when they are unfolded, these masterpieces awe and overwhelm us, flooding the chambers of our hearts and minds.

Do you think God created nuclear energy to annihilate mankind? Compare its power to that of fire. Why did God instill the idea of fire in the minds of men? Human beings started a fire by hitting stones against each other. Through many developments, we now even have propane lighters. Fire can either aid or destroy. If you were to light a match and hold it under a curtain, a house could be consumed in flames in a very short time. Fire has that kind of capacity, but did God create matches in order to burn down a house or be used in a way that would heat the house?

Fire and love are parallel in nature. If you use love in the wrong way, you could end up destroying a person. Yet love utilized in a divine way will build up a person's ego as well as fulfill certain other purposes. It is the same with any energy in the universe. Nuclear energy exists to accomplish a higher purpose, not destroy the world. Substances must be controlled. Technology has advanced to such a degree that unless the spiritual aspect of man takes over, progress will get out of control, ruining people and nations.

All of mankind therefore must receive the revelation to turn to God and discover their purpose. They must discover what reason prompted God to create the universe and humanity. They must come to realize that it is not His intention that man destroy or misuse the creation. Nor is it His ambition that mankind exist seething with resentment and hatred. Rather, He desires that humanity live in unison and interrelationship with each other and the creation in order that every entity and purpose may be fulfilled. That is God's ideal of creation. Let it become ours, too!

God has such a wonderful master plan. Long before He began to create, He thought and planned out everything, including the tiniest of details. He took special pains to create our physical and spiritual existence because He intended to incarnate into our bodies. It is easy to determine how much God desired to do this by taking even a brief look at the intricacies of the human body. Many people deny God's existence yet even the Bible says, "Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's spirit dwells in you?"

God was not able to see what He had created before He experienced things through True Parents. For the first time in His existence, through the physical senses of True Parents He was able to sense all the vibrations and see the vivid colors and landscapes of the universe. This could only be done through the body of a perfected human being. Through the physical senses of True Parents, God could finally perceive the wonders of the flowers, trees, seas, clouds, the wind, and the lightning. Before that point, He never knew what His creation felt like. Through both male and female bodies, He was finally able to encounter the majesty of His masterpiece. Up to that point, one may say that God had not manifested Himself fully. He never knew what He should feel or what He had to offer.

It is not necessary to delve into medicine or science to discover what a great intelligence is to be found in God. Meditate on how He created everything. This world is filled with amazing wonders; He invested such detail and care in all creatures -- from the gigantic elephant to the tiny sparrow. Think about the genius behind the workings of human reproduction -- the union of the sperm and the egg, the implantation in the womb, and the different stages in the development of brain cells and fingertips. How can we dare doubt this greatest of creators? How is it possible to question His intelligence or boast that a human being can match His accomplishments? It is utterly impossible.

Even if we look at things from the intellectual standpoint, we can only exclaim the greatness of the Creator and bow before Him. Even an atheist has to bow before this highest intelligence. It is impossible for any of us to re-create a fingernail, grow hair, or the like. We are as dust before the Creator; what right do we have to rebel?

Certain talents are endowed to specific people. Be creative with whatever talent God has given you. Perhaps you have an extraordinary voice, or the ability to paint or sculpt, play a musical instrument, or even design a city. Whatever talents you have been given, use every chance to develop those special skills. Become the best person you possibly can!

Even though many of you may not have reached the point of cultivating your abilities because you have been solely involved in winning souls and creating a financial base, I can envision your great potential and capabilities. When the time comes, you will be afforded the chance to receive the necessary education to develop them. Yet even at this time, be resourceful and use your imagination in developing all your faculties within the framework of the fulfillment of the will of God.

You should free your spiritual creativity during the moments you connect with God, the Creator. Prayer is a wonderful vehicle to help you spiritually unleash your heart. However, you can share your heart when you answer someone's question by creating and then projecting certain ideas. Even a sentence is a creation.

In order to be creative, it is important to create an atmosphere through new circumstances, environments, and situations. In some respect, we are all leaders of people. All leaders should become creative and spiritually tap all resources available to them. Being creative means doing something different or unusual. Creativity implies newness. By bringing each other to a new height or level, you create some new aspect of your relationship each time you meet one of your friends. Whatever it takes to initiate new awareness -- a word, a sentence -- may elevate you into a new dimension. Even a thought is a kind of genesis.

If someone says something which forms an image in your mind, you may desire to develop a new creation. Even from the few words you hear, a big idea, concept, or picture may emerge in your mind. Every thought can be creative. But new creations often do not flow from us without someone or something starting us off in a certain direction.

For instance if you were an art student, your teacher might instruct your whole class to paint a landscape, but outline certain required points you had to include: a mountain in the background, a bush on both the right and left, a lake in the foreground, several trees on the waterline, and a church in the background. No doubt each one of you would produce unique drawings. Your imagination would take over and if you were dynamically infused with the verbal image given by your teacher, you might hear the organ playing in that little church and even detect the reverberations of the melodies bound off the mountain crags. You could even see snow falling and watch a skier swooshing down the hills. You might even be able to repeat the preacher's sermon.

Sometimes you need only one small suggestion to give wings to your imagination. Flying to new heights is the nature of co-creatorship. You already see in that special realm of your mind's eye all the elements necessary to create your picture. Then you can be the architect, the co-creator, and begin to fashion new worlds with the materials accessible within you.

The ability to invent generally derives from an inspiration from God or spirit world. The original mind within each of us, no matter how buried it may be, reveals the ultimate possibilities to connect with everything in nature and help us find a balance in our lives. As co-creators with God, we are able to create an environment according to many things-dreams, cultures, styles, musical abilities, sense of flamboyancy or astuteness.

The motivation for all creation was love. God was moved by love to invent this universe. If we want to make something in our world or in our family, love must always be the first impulse or motivation. The whole universe has evolved into the image of God, and hence all entities are soaked in His love. God's sending station transmits love and there is a built-in receiver inside of our hearts that can pick up His signals. Our responsibility is merely to turn it on and flip through the channels until we get the right frequency to perceive God. It is then that we will receive a clear picture and sound. Feeling such love from God, we ourselves will want to seek to adjust the fine tuning and produce even sharper and more brilliant images which we -- could then share with others.

Human beings are able to survive because of the existence of the worlds of minerals, vegetation, and animals. Because they supply us with our daily needs, each of us should respect and honor those worlds. If we research the interaction between them, we would not just see how beautiful the master plan of God was from the beginning, but also desire to study the intricate interaction between the three kingdoms and mankind. We would see how alive everything is and how each of those kingdoms exists for the sake of others.

Vegetation and animals are elevated into a higher state of existence through being absorbed by the human body. They are used to freshen and ultimately replace our blood as they become part of us. Through this evolutionary chain, a continuous process of elevation occurs. Once this elevation process takes place, the entity fulfills its purpose. A potato is no longer simply a vegetable. After it is harvested, a potato actually looks quite dead, but it becomes part of our sustenance and gives us energy and life as we consume it. Likewise, beef and lamb are no longer beasts but become part of our flesh once we eat them.

By viewing the universe from such angles, we will naturally reach higher levels ourselves.

I remember vividly one spiritual experience I had in the Vienna woods. The wind was blowing softly over me; I felt God manifest Himself within that wind and in a whisper, I told Him so. I could not stop the tears from running down my face. It was such a precious time; I was all by myself in the living room of my God. Through my experience, I know it is definitely possible to perceive the love of God in nature. When I prayed in that forest, it seemed row upon row of those gigantic pine trees bent down as if they were bowing before me. I felt heaven could even move nature as a result of the connection and relationship I had with God.

One time I was on the ocean as it was tossed about by a hurricane. I saw the mighty waves coming at the boat and felt as if they were going to devour me and my friends. At such a moment it is hard not to think that God is really an enemy, unleashing His anger through the wind and waves. I felt that God wanted to show His power even though I was confident He would not let us drown. God speaks strongly- through hurricanes, high winds, tornadoes, and ocean waves. Yet curiously, weather is very calm in the midst of a hurricane. It appears as though the waves pay homage to the serene and almighty God.

Creativity is expressed even in words. When you pray with a peaceful heart, you may create poems with your words. I have had such an experience. During my pioneering days, I often drove for hours and composed one love story after another-for both God and True Parents. Beautiful words and melodies spilled out of the cup of inspiration God poured into my heart. I was elevated because of my relationship with them and constantly tried to attune myself to them. This made it much easier to create angelic words and tunes to serenade my love. My God and my True Parents were the recipients of the love songs I composed. I was tremendously uplifted as I also heard the strains of their love songs in response.

In order to become a co-creator, we need to use the same basic tools, have the same thoughts, feelings, heart, and energy as the Creator. As we come closer to God, we will become greater personalities and broaden our capacity to contain the energies God originally created. At the same time our scope of love will also widen.

The will of God is vast; no one person can convey it totally. Each of us is a unique aspect of His personality and therefore, we must all try to share our knowledge of it. We need to perceive His desire with intellect and heart, digesting it through prayer and actions. Sometimes we evoke certain reactions from God and ask if we can be the channel of His love. We may speak the words, yet how many of us realize the essence of this role of co-creatorship. Being the channel of God does not mean that He simply enters and then leaves us. We must become a pole of love, and do so through a relationship of give and take. As His energy flows through us, we also give out energy.

I often receive messages or inspirations from God when speaking to a group. Once I feel something specific, I try to express it through my words and gestures. Then it is up to my audience; when any of them responds to the truth, the love, and the essence of God which has flowed through me, I receive something in return. You will find the same is true when you talk with others.

As we complete such a circle, we become united through the same understanding and heart. It is then that God is within us.

Although we need to find God within each other, we also must relate to God within nature. We must be grateful to nature itself. The creation is robed in magnificence, yet to untrained eyes may still seem clothed. It is only when we allow her to reveal herself that she disrobes and we can see the original beauty which had long ago been planted in the garden of God's mind. The vividness of the flowers' hues, the sparkle of sun on the water, the murmur of wind, the silence of snowfalls -- when we really open our eyes, nature reveals so much splendor and majesty to us. Elements of God's soul are imbued in the waters, forests, mountains, and pastures; He lives within them, too.

Have we actually treated nature with utmost respect and dignity? If not, we must repent to the creation. When we do, we will be surprised by how it responds. The moment we talk to nature, God responds to us. That is the very instant that the angelic and spirit worlds also join us in partaking the magnificence of nature. Even though nature cannot speak words which are audible to us, by praising its divinity, we will be able to hear and see God.

If we have not been appreciative of or cared for God's creation, we should actually repent for our superficiality. If we have not seen the glory of God in the different tunes and sights reflecting His grandeur, how could we ever praise Him for what He has given us? We should approach Him with contrite hearts, remorseful because we have not exalted His eminence enough. We should also be regretful of the fact that we have forfeited such abundant pleasures throughout our lives.

Although it is possible to feel God's caress when our spouse embraces us, it is not the only experience in which we can feel the greatness of God. Our God has painstakingly created the whole universe for us. When we study each organism, we will be overwhelmed by the minute and fine details He saw to. The way He constructed things to interrelate with one another, and produced so many different entities which all work toward the fulfillment of glorifying Him and pleasing mankind, was no less than a stroke of genius. He did not create simply for Himself; He also constructed the world for us. It was and continues to be an act of love and the type of service any parent performs for his children. That is the essence of God's creation.

God was incredibly wise when He began to create. He made Himself indispensable to mankind. He created everything in such a way that nobody could live without Him. Even though many people in the secular world deny Him, they will discover that in order to get out of hell, they must grow close to Him. He fashioned this universe so that He would be present in any action, in anything that exists. With meditation and deep thought, it is easy to uncover His motivation -- He has backed it up with service and love which He extends to His children. He wanted us to reap the benefits because when we experience love and joy, God can perceive the same emotions.

If we dwell on this one point, we can conclude that God is extremely anxious for each of us to reach perfection of heart and to fulfill the ideal of creation. Yes, He wants each of us to know ecstasy, but He too wants to experience the same. The kind of heart that motivated Him to create is unreachable by imperfect people. But if we make God our first priority and allow God to be the center of our lives, He will manifest Himself in our lives. That most magnificent of all creators, God, still wants to help us mold ourselves into His perfect image.

The environment has tremendous impact on the soul. We feel differently in the sunshine than we do in the snow or rain or wind. The varied aspects of God's nature manifested during the different seasons evoke special responses and emotions. But one thing is sure: God is always there; the beauty of His love is always able to shine in our lives when we do not cloud our minds and hearts. It never fails that each and every day a beautiful blue sky with wispy clouds skillfully positioned above wheat fields or seas exists somewhere in God's creation. He brings out dense black clouds full of snow and rain just temporarily. They eventually will be tucked away and the sun able to smile on us once again. Sometimes we may think God hides behind the clouds and might feel we cannot catch a glimpse of Him in the darkness of the night. But He never goes away; the sunshine of His love and the effervescence of His creativity are always radiating just behind those clouds.

In order to become true lords over creation, we must come to understand the universe and everything God has created. It is not necessary to become a brilliant scientist to do this; rather, we should learn to relate to all things with a loving heart. Because God endowed His love into all entities in the universe, we can so easily touch the heart of God's creation. His purpose is love, joy, and fulfillment.

All of us want to meet a personal God, but how can we appreciate Him if we do not really understand or cherish the essence of His creation?

In order to meet our personal God, we must feel His energy and heart even in nature -- within minerals, vegetation, and animal life. Through prayer and intimate communication, we can spiritually feel God within us. But in order to picture His physical body, we need only to look around at the beauty and grandeur of nature. Our Creator has shared so much with us, let us not fail to recognize it!

I believe that we will never be able to know God completely, even though we can understand some basic principles and laws which govern both God and humanity. Yet even God can never be absolutely certain how we will ultimately act. He knows our potential and may gauge our response according to the law of probability, but there are millions and billions of possibilities and our moods and desires change from one split second to the next. God does not know beforehand what decisions we will make. Free will is an amazing gift which God bestowed upon us. He has also given us personal creativity. Since He created billions of people, what an amazing capacity He must have.

Each kingdom God created fulfilled its purpose and provided the backdrop for the birth of mankind. The universe -- His children's house was finally ready for its occupants. The sky was the ceiling. There He placed a most amazing light bulb, fully equipped with a dimmer switch. He created the sunshine as daylight and turned down the intensity to soft moon-glow at night. God thought of everything. When the environment of the house was completed, He could then turn His attention to creating His children.

We would do well to study the principles God used to create because they are the same set of standards and laws by which we must re-create ourselves and our world.

There is a certain harmony and melody ringing throughout the universe. The roar of the lion harmonizes with the twitter of the birds and the hum of the bees. The wind whooshes past a family of pine needles clustered together. Sometimes rain pounds or splashes, but sometimes is nearly silent. All these sound images "paint" a picture; God is a marvelous artist. There is no need to be a connoisseur of art or music to feel the heart of God and connect with it. When you discover the miracles of nature, you will hear a gigantic orchestra and perhaps even catch a glimpse of the master conductor Himself.

Use a pair of spiritual stereo headphones to be able to discern every sound. Close your eyes for a moment and be transported into another world. When you open them you will see the panorama of forest and pasture. Look at the deer standing along the backdrop and see how the birds flit in and out of the trees, gliding along the waterfront while watching the sunset. Every entity gives a certain sound and vibration. Can't you hear the symphonies and minuets played by God's creation?

How do you feel in spring? Summer or autumn? How different are your moods in winter? You acknowledge that in certain seasons you have different feelings, emotions, and attitudes. For example you must dress yourself according to the climate. In fact your whole attitude can change with the mere transformation of weather.

Spring evokes the happiness and anticipation that accompanies new life. It represents hope and fulfillment, and seems to bloom and grow before our eyes. Summer allows us to feel the heat of God's passion; even parched fields have a certain beauty. Autumn brings the metamorphosis of colors and leaves fall from the trees, joining their comrades on earth. The harvest time also affords humanity the chance to observe the abundance our Heavenly Father provides for us. Winter is a sleepy and dormant time, a period when very little grows visibly but provides many entities a rest. It ushers in the snow and ice which swirl around the barren trees; there is a magnificence in the stark white of winter.

When you think of it, life too has its variant seasons.

We are coming to know the heart of God and the essence of His creation intimately. Doesn't God look a little different now from the image we may have previously held? Have we discovered that He is not simply an old man with a beard or the one who forgives everything arbitrarily? Isn't He a bit more than the one on whose door we can knock at anytime and gain entry? And isn't He more than the one who wipes our tears and reassures us that everything is fine?

The way to begin to increase your knowledge of Him is to acquire permission to enter His mansion. He will ask you to sit down and then will explain many things about His original plan. He will share what we should fulfill in order to see and experience Him. We will begin to understand that God manifests Himself in all things -- from the most fundamental level, the world of minerals, to the most developed level, of sharing His heart with us. He will tell us how much He is looking forward to the moment we become co-creators as well as lords over creation. God desires that we understand Him, His creation, and His motivation for creating this universe. And then He wishes that we offer our help to re-create this world according to His original blueprint.

Now that you have become privy to this eventuality, are you willing to follow His desire?

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