How Can You Make a Difference This Year?
By Celine Stoco
In the grand symphony of our lives, there exists a timeless exchange – one that shapes the very essence of our human connections. It is the relationship between giving and receiving.
Imagine a world where God is able to ask for our help directly when He needs it, and we are able to answer Him right away. This is how our relationship with God was originally supposed to be, but our connection with God was severed. It is up to us now to rebuild that relationship, and one of the best ways to do that is by helping others.
“Based on the forces generated by this give-and-take action, the dual characteristics construct a foundation for their continued reciprocation. This becomes the foundation for the existence of each individual being, upon which the being becomes an object partner to God and is able to generate all forces necessary for its continued existence.”
Give and Receive
The action of give and receive is everywhere we look, from the small things, like complimenting a stranger and receiving a smile, to big things, like the desire to become a child of filial piety, or praying kind words to God and receiving comfort in return. All of these actions allow us to create a cycle of loving and receiving love from each other, which is what God wanted from the start.
It’s Everywhere
This exchange is not something that only humans can do, but it is something that is part of the whole universe: from invisible things like electrons around a nucleus or electromagnetic interaction that creates atoms to the action between stamen and pistil for the reproduction of plant life.
Sacrifice for the sake of the other
What all of these actions have in common is the willingness to sacrifice a part of themselves so that something, or someone, can benefit, which in the end brings benefit to the one giving. Thinking about others, putting ourselves in their shoes, and helping each other. This reciprocal give and receive is one of the main things that brings joy to God.
Give out of love
As we start a new year, there is nothing better than to write in our new year’s resolution a promise to engage in more actions of giving and receiving. It is always important to remember the essence, the reason for doing it should not be what we will gain in return, but doing all of our actions with our whole heart and soul.
There are many people and stories where we can find inspiration to have this kind of heart, such as in the story of “The Feeding of the Five Thousand” (Matthew 14:13-21), where a young boy was willing to offer his precious five loaves and two fish and in return, Jesus multiplied the offering. Jesus’s life itself is a great example, of where he lived and died for humankind.
Father Moon explained that when we give, we are not simply giving. We are truly loving the other person, which consequently allows us to feel God’s heart.
“True love begins from God, who exists for humanity and whose love is such that He gives, gives, and gives again, and then forgets.”
If we truly desire to make this year full of hope, happiness, and love, we can devote ourselves to living with a heart of giving and receiving.