Brothers and sisters, in the book Ideal Family, particularly the chapter on the Value of the Blessed Family, it teaches us that the value of the Blessed Family is greater and more precious than all of the providential figures of history. It says that we are chosen, that we are the fruit of history. It tells us that when God views us He sees those who are tremendous.

I love that. I didn't say those who are trembling. It says tremendous. I love that because when we look at ourselves we have to see with those eyes. It’s so important that we see ourselves with the divine perspective. When True Parents teach us the Principle, they said that we have Ultimate Value. We have Divine Value. We have Unique Value. To see ourselves in that light is so important.

... It doesn't have to be something like meditation or prayer that is exclusively doing God's work. But something that we can see in our day-to-day life, in how we treat people, in how we respect ourselves, and what kind of examples we are for our children.

… It is so easy to go through the day and see ourselves in a not-anointed fashion, but it’s so important that in our blessed life we are able to view ourselves from the same point of view as God. If we look at ourselves with that correct perspective, I believe that our life will always be brighter. In the Biblical scriptures it says that the path of the righteous gets brighter and brighter.

It doesn’t say darker and darker. It doesn’t say worse and worse. It says brighter and brighter, and that’s what we have to expect for ourselves, for our lives and for our families today. We can do that. I know God will bring us to more Victory, Illumination and Peace. I really welcome you all here today.

It’s so important that we see ourselves with the divine perspective. When True Parents teach us the Principle, they said that we have Ultimate Value. We have Divine Value. We have Unique Value. To see ourselves in that light is so important.

Once I had a chance to talk with an American sister. She is blessed with a Japanese brother and has four sons. She's a very smart and accomplished individual. So I got to talk to her and I kind of asked her, "How have you kept your faith so long, in spite of all the difficulties in your life?" She said with a warm smile on her face, "Well, even though we are tired out, I can still see there's a fire in True Father's heart for God. Even at the age of 87, 88, 89 and 90. Just think about that. True Father's mind is tremendous. That's the reason I'm here in the Unification Church."

After I heard that, I was satisfied. It was simple and heartistic; I can really feel her real heart, like True Parents. She uses the True Parents’ example to inspire herself. In her late 40's, she graduated college with high honors. I was so proud of her. Let us also be inspired by our True Parents’ spirit and passion, and be successful with whatever work we are doing. Like True Parents, let’s bring back all the glory to Heavenly Father. Brothers and sisters, we love you so much and we believe in you. AJU!!!

A son asked his father for a car. The father said, "I'll think about it, and I want you to do three things for me. The first thing is I want you to bring your grades up. The second thing is I want you to help around the house, do your chores. And the third thing is to get a hair cut." (Laugh) The son said, "Okay, alright." He came back two months later and said, "Dad, look, my scores are up, I've been doing my chores. Please now can you buy me a car?"

His dad said, "What about the haircut? You haven't cut your hair." The son said, "Well, , Dad, I know you know the Bible quite well. I've been studying the Bible, and I've been searching my heart deeply and, you know what, I realized that in the Bible Moses, Jacob, Samuel and even Jesus had long hair." (Laugh) His father took that in and said, "That's actually a great point; and, you know, another interesting fact about those figures is that they walked around. If you want a car, cut your hair." (Laughing)

Today I want to talk to you about "Being Safe in God's Plan." In order to live the blessed life, it’s so important to be able to be safe and rest in God's plan. It’s so important that we know that God has a plan for our lives, that He is directing our footsteps, that He is making a way for us in our lives. And remember, while we are proceeding through our life, the purpose of our life is not to try to impress everyone, or even try to have everyone love us, or to have no one criticize us.

Actually, when we look from the Principle perspective, the purpose of creation is for us to return joy to God. Often, when we do that -- if in fact we are doing that -- we can be criticized. We can find people not loving us. But let's keep in mind that it’s important to move forward in building that joyful relationship with God, building those beautiful relationships in the four position foundation with our spouse and our children and really creating a house in which He can dwell.

When we look at our own life, when we assess our own life, it’s important to realize that we have a purpose. We have a real value in our existence. It may be something as simple as being a teacher, an educator, or maybe something as important as being a parent etc. But let us remember that the calling to which God has called us is not always a huge saintly activity.

It may not be saving the world by tomorrow, but it maybe saving a child's life, it maybe educating somebody in our classroom that will go on to do great things. You see, it may be something very small that we encounter in our day-to-day life, in our day-to-day activities or in our work, that will contribute to creating miraculous people, miraculous moments for those people.

I was talking to one sister who is a financial planner, and she really finds it her calling. She feels that God is really calling her to be a financial planner. You know, sometimes we make the very strong divide between the spiritual and secular. But she really feels that God is working through her to help plan people's finances.

Because she does this work, she is able to make very educated decisions for herself and for her own family, and at the same time, she is able to help other blessed families to make good decisions for themselves. She went on to tell me how, from a very young age -- she did not know why -- but she always liked math. She always excelled in mathematics.

She always excelled in wanting to use numbers and help people, and interesting enough,  by keeping true to herself and doing her best, she kind of matched up with what God planned for her. When we see her doing that work, I'm so proud of her. She's really working hard doing her thing. Also, instead of forcing her kids to go and get a job, by her example the children are inspired.

They want to become professional people. They want to contribute in that way. They want to use their talents to help other people in their community, in their families, etc. Even in our own family, and we have a huge family -- we have lots of cousins, I have a lot of siblings, all in different fields -- and in no way can I say, "I’m doing God's work because I'm in ministry." I can’t say that.

All my family members, I believe, are doing things that God is utilizing them in, and I believe that's all part of the plan that He has for us. In the same way, in our own life, it doesn't have to be something like meditation or prayer that is exclusively doing God's work. But we can see in our day-to-day life and how we treat people and how we respect ourselves and what kind of example we are for our children, (in all this) we can see that God is using us to be a miracle in this world.

It’s so important that when God is guiding us to know and to be open to His guidance. So many times people wait until they are hundred percent certain, a hundred percent sure before they take that step of faith or take the next action step.

For example, if we were to wait until we were hundred percent sure before we drove a car, we would never be able to drive, because simply there is always risk, there's always the chance of us getting into an accident, but what do we do? We take that step of faith. We get into the car, we obey traffic rules; we try our best to pay attention to the traffic lights and all those kinds of things. Then we will have a higher chance of succeeding at that kind of activity.

It’s the same in our life. If we wait to be a hundred percent certain before we take that step, before we make the next decision we need to make, many times the decision is too late. Many times we have lost the opportunity. Too many people have so much talent, so much potential residing within them. But because of that hesitation sometimes, maybe the person that God has prepared for them is right in front of them, and they don't take that chance to really connect with that person. Or the opportunity that God has prepared for many years for them is right in front of them, but they are waiting for a hundred percent certainty in their lives until they make the decision.

We have to learn how to move in a more educated fashion. In the leadership field, there's a rule called the "70/30 Rule." I would like to share that rule with you today. That's the rule that many CEOs use, many people in the leadership field use. That 70/30 Rule is a very simple rule. It simply says that we can never wait until a hundred percent certainty before we take our action step.

If we do that, the chance is usually lost. Instead of doing that, when we have about seventy percent certainty, through research, through searching our heart whether this is the right path or not or the right place that God is leading us, when we have seventy percent certainty, then it is now appropriate to take that action step.

It’s now appropriate to move forward and take that leap of faith. Of course, many times it’s hard to say. "I have sixty four percent, so I'm going to wait until I have seventy percent." It’s a rounded number. You have to feel around seventy percent, ok? It’s a feeling. It is not going to be exact all the time, but you have to feel, "Okay, I'm about seventy percent sure that God is leading me in this direction; I want to take that leap of faith."

I heard a wonderful statement: "It is better to have tried and failed than to have never tried at all." Too many people in their lives have so much potential, they have so much God-given talent and innate ability. But because of the waiting, because they are waiting until they are hundred percent sure, many times those chances can be lost. Instead of that, let's take initiative.

If we are seventy percent sure that God is leading us, that this is the right path for us, let’s take that action step. Let's move forward to the victory that God is planning for us. When we do that, when we take that step, then, as we proceed along the way, that is the time to modify, that is the time to adjust.

There are so many things and circumstances that we cannot plan for on the outset. We cannot plan everything; we don't know what’s going to happen in the future. So as we are moving forward with that decision, as we are moving forward with God's purpose, then it is important that along the way we adjust ourselves.

Let me ask you: Is there something in our lives today; is there something in our heart today that requires a decision? Is there something in our lives that we are maybe postponing or procrastinating with a little bit -- something that really requires our attention or decision making? Let’s use this time today to search our hearts to see whether or not now is the time to make that step, to take that next action step into the purpose and plan that God has created for us.

Let's remember that God is going to use us for a certain purpose. He’s going to give us that purpose, but we have to do our part and expect that God will do good things through us. If we are always expecting when we get up that, "Oh my goodness, today is a horrible day, nobody will listen to me, people will just mistreat me, my boss is going to look me over, my children will not listen to me or probably yell at me, or curse at me again,"

If we say such things, then we are almost preparing or setting the condition for such things to occur. Instead of that, we have to get in the habit that, as we get up, we say, "You know, something great is going to happen to me today. Something good will happen to my children. I'm going to be on the lookout for something that God will provide me with today."

Whatever we are looking out for we tend to find. So it’s important that in our lives we keep our minds focused on the good things that God is giving to us, keep our mind focused on the simple pleasures that God is affording us. It may be as simple as being able to breathe, or it may be as simple as my children are healthy. But let’s find something each day -- because it may be our last -- find something that is enriching, find something that is good.

There is really a difference between enjoying life and enduring life. When we are able to find what God is giving even though sometimes the day may not be great, or maybe our kids are not all that perfect today, but still if we look deeper, we may be able to find something that God is trying to communicate to us. He may be telling us, "Have more patience." He may be telling us, "Have more perseverance." He may be telling us, "Take that leap of faith and believe in that child or believe in yourself." He may be saying those kinds of things, so let's be on the lookout for such things.

A sister told me that whenever she went out to witness, she would pray. She would do a three-day condition before she would witness. Interestingly enough, when she made that condition, when she set the right focus in her mind and she started praying to meet that right person, when she started preparing her heart, when she went out she was enthused, she was strong.

And interestingly and almost coincidently, she would meet somebody that was prepared for her. Many times she would recount how the person she met said, "I had a dream that someone is going to come to me today." In other words, when we prepare, when we focus our mind on something, God can allow that, He can use that as a condition to help us to bring that to pass.

When we do our work through our good actions, through our good deeds and all the good works you all are doing, many times not everybody will be pleased. In medieval times there was a big kind of catapult that was called a "trebuchet". This was a very interesting type of catapult, a more advanced type of catapult, and it was not used necessarily to throw rocks or to throw other types of projectile items.

It was actually used to throw -- I don't know how to say this nicely -- dead bodies, rotting carcasses. So it was actually an early form of biological warfare. What they would do, if there was a fortified city, they would throw dead animals in there, and then allow disease to spread inside the castle or inside the fortified walls. The purpose was to destroy that city or fortified area from the inside out. So essentially they would go down and try to make an unhealthy environment within.

It’s just like that in our lives. Many times in our lives when we are trying to do good things, when we try to excel in our work, when we try to put in our best at work, in educational institutions or whatever, there will be those archangels that will try to use "trebuchets" on you. There will be those people that will try to put into you unhealthy things. They may tell you bad things, they may speak behind your back, and they may spread rumors about you.

But it is important to not lose your energy to such static. It’s so important that if we are going to be blessed, to know how to focus, to not let such weapons affect our insides. Whenever those negative things come to us, we should be in the habit of letting them go, letting them pass right by. Whenever you hear something about you, don't call your friend and try to find out what it’s about, don’t call five friends and tell them, "Did you hear that what this person just said about me?"

The more you dwell on it, the more it’s going to take root, the more it goes into your system, just like this weapon. It’s going to affect your internal mind. The better things to do, whenever we hear such static, are to just simply change the channel, let that static pass. Don’t let those things affect you.

In the Biblical tradition, there was the figure of Nehemiah who was a cupbearer to King Artaxerxes. He was working very hard with the king; and God gave him a plan. He gave him a purpose. He said, "Nehemiah, I want you to go back to Jerusalem and build the walls back up." But Nehemiah could not see how he could do that. He did not have the resources, he did not have the ability; he was confined within the work that he was doing for the king.

There was no way possible that he would be able to go back and rebuild the walls around Jerusalem. But interesting enough, the scriptures said that because of the favor of God he was able to get favor with the king; and somehow the king agreed to give him permission to safely travel to Jerusalem. But not only that, but he could use the king's timber to build those walls.

When he went back to the walls, all the people in area began to oppose him. Sanbal'lat, Tobi'ah, the Ammonites, the men of Arshad, they all started to oppose him. They all said, "Nehemiah, you're crazy. We’ll never let you build the walls of Jerusalem, you're only ONE person. You will never be able to defeat us." They even plotted to attack and destroy Nehemiah. In Nehemiah 4:16, we see that half of his men had to defend, while half of them worked. Even more specifically, the men who carried materials had to carry a weapon in the other hand.

The builders also wore their swords on their belt. What is the meaning here? It is that when we are doing good things in our life, many times there will be those don't like to acknowledge the good that we are doing. They want to prevent us, to stop us doing such things, maybe even harboring a jealous heart towards us. It’s so important that we stay away from that, to know that we are doing good work and to continue to do our work.

Interesting enough, Nehemiah eventually became the governor of Jerusalem, and even he was able to bring peace to that very unstable area. So let's remember that Nehemiah's people, his men and the people that where working with him, stayed true to God's purpose. They knew that they had to rebuild and raise the dignity of the Israelite people. They knew that, although it was tough and although they would face opposition, they knew that they were involved in a very holy work.

And so even in our lives, let us remember that we are involved in a very holy work. All of you are involved in such precious work with whatever you're doing. In your own respective field, in your own respective profession, you are contributing to helping people, and God, I believe, is using each one of you for those respective purposes.

I often asked myself, "Why is it that I have chosen to be a Unificationist?" I've studied other world religions. I've studied Buddhism; I’ve studied Christianity; I've studied a little bit of Islam; I've studied other traditions. Then, why is it I chose to become Unificationist? Of course the answer is very complex. But in my own view, I feel that our theology is quite compelling.

One of the things that I really enjoy about our tradition is that we believe that God is in other religions as well. We acknowledge other religions as being sacred and holy. We believe, for example from the Principle perspective, that Christianity does provide spiritual salvation to those who are believers of Christ. At the same time we believe that True Parents, through their blessings, are able not only to help us individually, but they are able to actually bring us closer as families to God.

I like that because I'm part of a family. My children and my spouse, we are all part of this tradition, this is the legacy, this is the tradition that they all are going to live in, that they are going to have to be proud of. I believe and I feel that there’s important work to be contributed to this field. I feel that there’s too much that has been sacrificed, too much that has been invested in terms of heartistic qualities or spiritual qualities. It’s such a waste if we just simply let it all go. When I look at this tradition, as we move forward, we will become more blessed, as we move forward we will become more prosperous, as we move forward we will shine more in this world.

We are really teaching that True Parents are trying to save families and, in that sense, bring families back to God, not only our individual selves or individual salvation, but also our descendants, our ancestry that we are all one family, a tribe that is trying to connect back to God. I believe that is theologically compelling. Father said that each one of you, each one of our family members who have received the Blessing, stand in the position of the original ancestor, that you are the beginning of your tribe. You are the original ancestor. That position is so precious.

I believe that as we move forward, we will rise to better heights. I believe that we are maturing as a movement, and our families are becoming stronger. Of course we have obstacles; we have challenges like any other tradition, like any other institution. But I believe that we are overcoming such things with maturity, with strength and with wisdom.

It’s interesting, once I visited a Christian church out here in Korea, a big church. They were handing out these wonderful books, very nicely wrapped and with a nice cover design. But the title was "A List of Heretical Movements." I happened to pick one up and I said, "Thank you for the book of the List of Heretical Movements."

I looked through and there we were in one of the sections, a very prominent section, Unification Movement. And of course, I saw True Father's face and True Mother's face. I read, "Be very wary of this tradition. Do not get involved with this tradition, etc, etc." But when I saw it, I said "You know what, the biggest Church in Korea, the Yoeido Full Gospel Church, when that began they were also called heretics. But now they have over 180,000 members and no one calls them heretics anymore." In the same way, I said, "You know what; I want to take True Parents’ out of this book. And I don't want to get into this book. I know I’m going to be in there soon (laugh). I don't want to be in there for long."

So in terms of our own tradition, I really believe this tradition has so much value. We have so many resources. We have so much talent. We have so much potential that God has prepared. From a scholarly perspective, I've studied other religions; I've seen the new movements: the Ba’hai tradition, the Hare Krishna tradition, and the Mormon tradition -- in the time of their founder, no other religion has come to our level of success. None other. There is no other new religion, and also ancient religion, that has come to our level of success.

What I'm saying is that we have come enormously far and enormously fast. I believe that as we progress forward we will rise to new heights. We will become even more influential in a good way. We will spread the message of family, of marriage, of fidelity, of respect, of True Parents’ Blessing. I believe that such things are important to people, and they are very important to me.

So if there any lessons that we can learn today, let's remember that God has given us a purpose. He has designed a specific plan for us. Of course, He has done His 95%. With our 5%, if we stay true to ourselves, if we continue to believe in the person that God made us to be, that we have the capabilities and talents to fulfill that purpose, I believe (that) God will bring us to that goal and to that achievement.

As we are progressing along the way, let's remember: don't heed the archangels that are trying to bring you down, that are trying to make you disbelieve or doubt yourself. Don’t listen to that static. Keep focused on your purpose, keep focused on your good works. Just like Nehemiah, stay true to what God is calling you to do. One hand can be building the walls of the kingdom while the other hand can be fending off the enemies. But do it nicely, do it nicely, keep protected, ok?

In the same way, with our purpose, when God is leading us in our purpose, let's remember we can't always be 100% sure. Let's remember the 70/30 rule: When we are 70% sure, around 70% sure, let's take that action step, let's make that decision. Let's not procrastinate. Let’s make the right decision to do. It can be something as simple as, "I can start treating my wife better. I'm going to start to drive a friend to work." It can be something as simple as that. But let's remember to continue to make good decisions in our life.

As we are doing that let’s adjust, let’s modify along the way and lets expect good things. Don't walk around your life and saying, "Oh, nothing good happens to me; oh, its always raining for me, there's always a cloud chasing me." Don't live like that. That's not the way to live.

Know that you have brightness in your future. Know that you have sunshine on your face. Your smile is radiant; use it! You have a great gift inside of you. You have a champion inside of you. God has placed all that you need within your heart.

So as you move forward, let us remember to stay true to God's purpose, in our church, in our families and in our hearts. Let's continue to spread that message. Let's continue to spread our message -- not through force, but through our examples -- that message of love, of hope, that message of diligence, that message of friendship and strong relationships, of maturity; let’s spread those things.

If we can do that, I do believe that not only we, ourselves, but also our church will rise to more victory, more illumination and more peace.

Brothers and sisters, can you accept this message today?

Yes (answered by audience).

Thank you so much.

Before we end our service, we always like to give all our brothers and sisters around the world the chance to rededicate themselves to True Parents, and those who are not in our tradition to start their hearts again fresh with our True Parents. Let’s just simply say a prayer in our hearts:

"True Parents thank you for this day. We repent for our wrong actions. We pray that you can come into our midst, and make us a holy palace of your peace. Make our families the holy palace of your love, of your lineage, Father. Thank you so much for this. I pray all of these things. AJU!"

Family, if you pray this simple prayer, we believe that you are now spiritually connected back to True Parents and God, and we believe that you are now in your home, welcomed to your rightful place. Let’s keep True Parents in our hearts, and if we do that, we know they will raise us to more victory, more illumination and more peace than we can ever possibly imagine.