Finding My Shortcomings After a Recent Incident

By a practitioner from California

(Clearwisdom.net) A week ago, the Chinese Consulate General at San Francisco sent a few people to our area to issue new passports to Chinese residents. I received the message a week before they came, but I didn't notify fellow practitioners. I thought at the time that the consulate personnel were coming to help Chinese people get passports. If I go and distribute truth clarification materials, wouldn't it cause misunderstandings for those applying for passports and have a negative impact on Dafa?

The day for issuing new passports was on Saturday, and I didn't go. When some other practitioners got the message, they went there immediately. They distributed materials and held up banners.

From this incident, I realized that something was lacking in me. I first forgot that nothing is a coincidence in our cultivation. The Chinese government is no longer renewing passports, and are issuing new passports, which requires applying in person. So a lot of Chinese people came for the passports this time, far more than ever before, over 500. Everybody knows that it's hard to get an opportunity to see Chinese people together in one place. With so many people in one place, wasn't it a great opportunity to clarify the facts? This was a missed chance, especially because many Chinese had to drive 2-3 hours to get their passports.

Furthermore, I looked at the event with a ordinary person's mindset. I worried that our truth clarification would upset them, and I didn't think that the most important thing is to save them! Is there anything more important than saving beings? It also showed my fear, as I was afraid from deep inside that someone would be hostile towards me. With no strong righteous thoughts, how could there be righteous actions?

Also, I had feelings of refusal in my heart whenever I heard personnel from the Chinese Consulate being somewhat opposing and indifferent. But when I think about it calmly, I realize that these are all influences from the wicked CCP culture. We were educated this way, and even in elementary schools in China, we were taught to be "as cruel as winter when we deal with foes." So the feelings that I have nowadays are more or less shadows of the CCP culture. We Dafa practitioners don't have enemies, as no one is qualified to be our enemy. I found that I have a long way to go in cultivating my compassion. The personnel from the Chinese Consulates have been deceived badly by the CCP, and they are also sentient beings that we need to save. We can't refuse them from the bottom of our hearts or think that they are not salvageable. We should not have thoughts of differentiating between people when we're trying to save them.

Master said:

"Pause for a moment of self-reflection,
and increase your righteous thoughts

Thoroughly analyze your shortcomings,
and progress with renewed diligence"
("Rational and Awake" in Hong Yin II)

Let us do better in clarifying the truth and saving sentient beings! I would appreciate fellow practitioners' comments and suggestions.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2007/5/25/155557.html

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