(Clearwisdom.net) The first few times that I clarified the truth, I didn't do well. I always felt something was missing, and more than once I felt that the difficulty was overwhelming. I was discouraged when I encountered setbacks, but became overzealous and anxious for quick results when things went smoothly.
Master taught us,
"As I've said, everything that happens today in the ordinary society is the result of Dafa disciples' thoughts. Even though the old forces do exist, if you don't have those thoughts they can't do anything." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Philadelphia, U.S.A.")
I realized that it was my own thoughts that led to all the difficulties, and only by calmly studying the Fa could they be resolved.
After earnestly studying the Fa and reading the experience sharing articles on Clearwisdom.net, I took a good look at myself and found that I had regarded clarifying the truth as a chore to get done. I did not have the heart of compassion to save sentient beings, so as a result, I needlessly created obstacles for myself.
I realized that clarifying the truth is Dafa disciples' sacred mission. It is an expression of compassion, and there should not be any precondition to do it well. Slowly I calmed down after I realized this, and I began doing better in clarifying the truth.
Seize Every Opportunity to Clarify the Truth
The process of clarifying the truth is also a process of continually and diligently studying the Fa, and cultivating our inner selves to improve ourselves. Once we can achieve that, there will be many opportunities to clarify the truth around us. The opportunities are there for Dafa disciples with a sense of our sacred mission. Without that, these opportunities will quickly disappear. Opportunity waits for no one. Once lost, it could mean it is lost forever, and some people might miss the opportunity to learn the truth altogether.
Only with the compassionate thought of "saving more sentient beings," can we come upon and seize every passing opportunity. I came to this realization on many occasions. For example, I would suddenly and unexpectedly meet someone I was thinking of clarifying the truth to; I would be sitting on a bench when somebody would come and sit close by; while I was asking for directions, somebody else would come over to tell me, and even offer me a ride; someone would be asking me for information about a bus station, and after I told him and he thanked me, he then struck up a conversation with me; a tricycle cabby would be pouring out his personal problems because the "urbanization" policy had not been implemented; a taxi driver might complain about the high fees and taxes; an off-duty worker would be talking to me about how stressful life is etc. Nothing is accidental. I know that all these are opportunities that Master has arranged for me to let people know the truth. I must not miss any of them, not even one.
One day I went to a shop to buy a paper shredder. A customer who had made his purchase stayed back to watch how the storeowner tested my machine. At that moment two young people came into the shop. I knew this was an opportunity not to be missed, so I began by explaining why I needed a paper shredder, and went on to clarify the truth about Falun Gong. One of the young girls cut in, "That's right. I don't believe that Falun Gong is bad. I won't be misled so easily!" I said, "Yes, we should use our heads. Would the state-controlled media show you the truth about Falun Gong?" "I often receive Falun Gong pamphlets in my mailbox, and I read them all," she added. I told her how fortunate she was. I talked some more, and nobody wanted to leave. Finally, when I left, they all said it was great that we had the conversation.
I discovered that there could be a lot of such "delivered to the door" opportunities every day, as long as we don't stay at home.
As Master said,
"This is especially so for the Dafa disciples in Mainland China: each must come out and clarify the truth, bringing it to every field and valley, mountain and hill, not omitting a single area where there are people." ("Let Go of Human Attachments and Save the World's People")
Seek Out Opportunities to Clarify the Truth
We must also actively look for opportunities to clarify the truth to the people we meet. In particular, we must not, as a result of our neglect, miss the people who are lost in the secular world and waiting for us to save them. Master Li once told us that all the world's people had once been Master's relatives.
For quite a long time, I had an aversion to the police. I mistakenly regarded them as a low priority group for my truth-clarification because they had committed untold crimes. Later on, through Fa study I gradually corrected that erroneous viewpoint. Thereupon I expanded my scope of truth-clarification. One day I saw on the Internet that a parent of a former student of mine was on the "List of Vicious Persecutors." When I was tutoring the child in the past, I had clarified the truth to his parents and felt that they were willing to listen. Just when I was at my wits' end trying to find their address, this student, whom I hadn't seen for over a year, suddenly phoned me to say hello. I knew that this was no accident. It was Master Li who arranged this opportunity because he knows my thoughts.
I called back and made arrangement to meet with the father, the policeman. He was delighted. I went to his home as arranged. As soon as I sat down, I started to talk about Falun Gong. He tried to dismiss the child from our meeting, but I said, "It would be good for him to listen as well." He didn't object. Soon, he told me, "I was on the 'List of Vicious Persecutors,' but the things I did ( referring to the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners) were in the past. I don't do them any more." I could feel the pressure he was under. Maybe because his child was present, he didn't say much. Still, I was happy for him, for he listened to the truth I told him both times, and his wife was also present.
Recently I studied Master's latest teachings, "Let Go of Human Attachments and Save the World's People,"
"For a Fa-rectification period Dafa disciple, personal liberation is not the goal of cultivation: when you came, saving sentient beings was your great aspiration, and that is the responsibility and mission history has bestowed upon you in Fa-rectification. Thus great numbers of beings are to be saved by you. Dafa disciples, don't forsake the magnificent responsibility that has been bestowed upon you in Fa-rectification, and even less should you disappoint those beings, as you are now their only hope for entering the future."
I feel that the responsibility and mission that history bestowed on us are both great and sacred. I told myself that I had to do well with every step, and I must not be careless.
Create Opportunities to Clarify the Truth
As a veteran professional, engaged in the education of elementary school linguistics and educational research, I am fairly well known in my circle. I have gained the acceptance of my school, the teachers, students, and parents. I have also received many honors and awards. Before I started practicing Falun Gong, I believed these were the result of my persistent efforts. But after I studied Falun Dafa for some time, I realized that I had vied for these things out of my attachments to fame and gain.
Master said,
"Clarifying the truth during the gigantic changes has already become the major way of saving all beings and the world's people, so in doing this, the wisdom that Dafa has given you and the enormous capability that the Fa has provided you with are manifesting." ("Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference")
I began to understand that none of this was by accident. All my abilities and skills have been bestowed by Dafa, by Master Li, and should be used for the great mission of saving sentient beings. I must use my expertise to create opportunities to clarify the truth.
So when some schools invited me to give teaching advice or to help train new teachers, I not only did my job well to show how outstanding Falun Dafa practitioners are, but, most importantly, I used the opportunity to clarify the truth to the teachers. I gave them literature and VCDs explaining the truth of Falun Dafa. Later, however, they were ordered by their superiors not to consult with me. To deny the arrangement of the old forces, I then engaged in informal exchanges with the teachers, outside of the constraints of the workplace. This way, I had even more freedom to clarify the truth. Whatever the teachers asked of me, be it to evaluate their teaching in class, conduct teaching demonstrations, assess the teaching materials, correct essays, or just to lend them my ear, I granted all requests as much as I could, and tirelessly, with the result that they were quite pleased with my solid support. In all these activities, clarifying the truth was my main subject matter, and whether at the beginning, during our exchange or towards the end, the results were all good. Moreover, I discovered unexpectedly that my brain was working particularly efficiently while guiding them; all the designs and teaching methodologies were at my fingertips. All of the teachers under my instruction made significant progress, and as a result, I was highly respected and well-liked by the teachers and the schools.
Towards the end of a class evaluation session, I started to comment from the class-related contents to the declining morality in society, and again naturally turned the subject to the truth about Falun Gong. A male teacher sitting next to me stepped on my feet under the table. I knew he was worried that I would get in trouble. But filled with righteous thoughts, I continued. Finally, it struck a chord with all present, and everyone started to criticize the senseless cruelty of the Chinese Communist Party. One teacher even borrowed the book Zhuan Falun from me to read. After the meeting, I asked the male teacher if he was worried for me. He said that he was. How could he have known that Falun Dafa disciples are here to save sentient beings, and that Master's law body looks after each disciple? Later, after listening to my talks a number of times and reading the Falun Gong literature, he understood the truth and actively clarified the truth to his family and other people.
My fellow practitioners, please "hurry up and tell them"; clarify the truth to save the sentient beings! Clarify the truth and fulfill a Dafa disciple's sacred mission!