ICEBREAKER:
Get together with one or two others.
Discuss the following statement:
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My hopes and dreams for my family are __________________ .
Take ten minutes total for this sharing.
READINGS:
Be fruitful, and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it.” Genesis
1:28
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Because you have done this (willingness to sacrifice Isaac), I will surely
bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky
and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession
of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations
on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me. (Genesis
22: 15-18)
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God knows that a selfish relationship is self-destructive. Nothing can
flourish based on selfishness. Selfishness eventually leads to self-extinction.
God knows that an eternal and prospering relationship can never come about
through selfish taking. So God built the universe upon the principle of
unselfishness. God created everything in this universe to be complementary.
Everything is made for others.
The ideal husband and wife live for each other. Their children will
live for each others’ sake. The family will live for the society,
the society for the nation and the nation for the whole world. (God’s
Way of Life – Christianity in Crisis, New Hope)
~ ~
When there is oneness in the individual, there is harmony
in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is unity in
the village. When there is unity in the village there is stability
in the nation. When there is stability in the nation there is peace
in the world. (Confuscious)
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True parents do not tell their children, “Once you become children of true
filial piety, do not become loyal citizens.” True parents should
teach children of filial piety to sacrifice their family by following the
way of a loyal citizen in service to the nation, and to sacrifice the nation
to fulfill the way of saints in service to the world. Then parents should
teach their children to sacrifice the world in service to Heaven and Earth,
and to sacrifice Heaven and Earth to come to God. In short, “Living for
the Sake of Others” is the root of the family, society, nation, world and
Cosmos. (True Family and True Universe Centering on True Love,
6/16/97)
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As it says in Proverbs, “Without vision, the people perish.”
All families need a sense of mission. Without this in a family, the
opposite will take place – no mental creation, no envisioning for the future.
Just to let life happen, to be swept along with the flow of society’s values
and trends without having any vision or purpose of our own. (Steven
Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families)
~ ~
Everything that I am speaking of comes down to one simple word: harmony.
The ideal world is not a world of uniformity and regimentation, but a world
of harmony in which each person plays a distinctive role. Here we
are, white people, yellow people, and black people, products of the things
that have happened to our ancestors. Though we all started from common
ancestors, we have discriminated amongst ourselves, and divided into many
streams.
In the sight of God, there is no such thing as Orientals, whites, and
blacks. Just think of the different colors – they are only our various
complexions. Underneath, we come from the same God. Be proud of what you
are. We are all God’s children; we are brothers and sisters in God’s family.
If your hope is that the entire world can be embraced in your arms, then
you have the right idea. (God’s Warning to the World – Book II,
The Heart of Reunion)
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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(consider which ones you have time for)
Remember a time when you were proud of your family, either
in your childhood or presently.
Have you ever thought that your family is actually responsible for building
a better world? What does this mean to you? How will you live
by this idea?
The readings indicate that making a better community, nation and world
actually starts at home. How have you seen this to be true in your
life. You may use painful examples as well as hopeful ones.
In very practical examples, discuss what can your family contribute
to making a better community, nation and world.
As we conclude this group, write a reflection for a few minutes
on what you have learned about yourself, and hone in on one key idea
that you can use to improve your life.
Reflection: (Use other side if needed) ______________________
___________________________________________________
Key idea:____________________________________________
____________________________________________________
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