There has never been a time when I have prepared for a sermon. When speaking from life experiences, it is impossible for it not to be emotional.

When you wonder why you suffered for God's Will in the past, it is because you have lost your subjective character. If you suffered for people, as long as those people remain your standard lives on.

Before I give a sermon, I spend more time praying for the members than I do praying for the sermon. After you have gathered your heart and prayed, "Father, I have to bring these people up but how do I do it? Is it this way or that way?" you preach according to your heart's commands.

Apart from the heart there is no life. The path of the valley of life is difficult and grim. If you must seek a teacher, seek a teacher of the heart, not a teacher of knowledge. If you dig into the valley of the heart, the more you dig, the more tears you shed and the more your "self" disappears.

When I stand at the podium, I say a special prayer. Sometimes I do not even have a sermon topic until I am standing at the podium. There are many times when I haven't prepared, and I pray after reading the Bible, and then the topic comes to me. After seeing what? After seeing people. As soon as you see a person, you say, "Ah, that one is this type," and you compare that person to yourself. "Oh, when I was like that, I was in such and such a circumstance, and my heart was like such and such..."

It is like giving a sermon to yourself. Through your course, centering on heaven's grace... If that person is being moved and inspired, the audience will return. Therefore, the audience and I, the members and I, are one. That is why members are necessary.

It doesn't matter if an ill-bred person speaks; there is always something to be learned. Each person has truth with their own unique characteristics. So, if you don't let it flow by but listen in earnest, there is a wealth of material you can gather for your own sermon. That is why you must pray. When I give sermons in Korea, my back is completely covered with sweat. My undershirt and white shirt is soaked and sweat drips from my forehead. I'm dry now because I use a translator. It's because I use a translator. It's not like this in Korea. Do you understand? [Yes.] That is why I say to speak with all your dedication and listen with all your dedication. Do you all do that? Listen to one grandmother's speaking for 12 to 20 hours. Listen while staying up the night. After having heard it all, it is then your chance to speak.

Long ago, I would give sermons even in my sleep. I would talk while sleeping. Even when I went to Sunday school, I was preaching while sleeping. In a loud voice... So I would wake up because of the sound of my own sermon. even then, I already knew that many people would represent heaven and lead. Whenever I passed a church, even if I was eating lunch, I would just want to go in and eat. I wanted to go in and eat at the head of the altar. That was how it was. Just as one already knows how to place a ladder and use it, your heart already knows.

You must restore everything. You must start as a laborer. You must restore starting as a laborer and go up. If you lose from the highest position of glory, there is no magic formula back. You must go to the lowest position and pull yourself up. when you wear clothes you cannot wear a suit. Does a laborer wear a suit? I started wearing a suit to do sermons only after 1970, and it wasn't even a real a suit. I wore a laborers uniform. You American members may be hearing this for the first time. I did not start eating at a dining table. Starting with mere rice balls... It is restoration. Restoration through indemnity. I had no need for any spoon or fork. You must indemnify and restore all of those things.

Dr. Sontag's question: "You are receiving criticism because it is said that what you say in sermons to the public and what you say to your followers is different. Many people are supposing that the lessons you teach to your followers in an unofficial setting are different and stronger. Where do these comments have their basis?"

I do not fear speaking to the public. There is no compromise in God's words. Throughout history all prophets revealed the content of their prophecies boldly, and I do the same. Whether it be at the Yankee Stadium Rally or the Washington Monument Rally or at a general sermon for my believers, anyone such as yourself may come. I often speak candidly. Sometimes I give sermons with strong language. That is because I want that sermon to remain in one's memory.

I do not speak smoothly like a diplomat. Also, I do not seek to buy the good graces of people such as politicians. What is most important to me is how history is going to speak of me.

I do not chase the popularity of the present. It is not important whether or not I am popular with the American people today. I only speak the way God instructs me to. But sometimes, in order to match what people need, I will speak to match the level of the listener. There is no secret there.

Jesus said, "I still have a lot to tell you, but as of now, you would not be able to understand." There are times when I cannot tell things to my members or even my leaders. That is not because they are secrets, but because they would not understand. For each person there is a different level of understanding the Unification Principle. Even Saint Paul said that for religious followers, "You should eat milk rather than hard foods," because they were not prepared spiritually. Every one must speak at the level of the listeners so that they can understand.

There is no reason for any Unification Church activities to be done in secret. The record of the past proves this point very well. What have I done in the past few years and what has the Unification Church done in Korea, the United States and Japan? That is the proof. The things that we have done have been acts of sacrificing ourselves for the nation, the people. In short, others. Our first mission is to spread the truth and restore man's heart for God. Have you ever heard that we were going to rob any bank or take over any government?

1) Sermon Preparation and Spirit

A. Sermon Preparation is not Accomplished with Books

People who work for the sake of God are truly pitiable. They are lonely people. If you consult with people and read books to receive the gospel of life, it can serve as a reference. You can make an artificial leaf, but you cannot make a real leaf. If you look at a book, you must consider that person's thought perception, and it does not help at all to center on a different thought perception and have responsive feelings. It often serves as an obstacle or detraction. That is why spiritual leaders are lonely people. You all don't know that, correct? You must. You must. Because I do it myself as well.

When I am here, I feel that Chungpyung is not far, and I go there everyday. When it is cold, when the sun is blazing, when the wind is blowing-all the time. It is because I need the taste of something new, the atmosphere of grace which you feel at the center of your heart. I need the new feeling that comes from God. When I don't eat food, it doesn't matter if you have that. You need that sort of thing. You must overcome the feelings you get from dealing with people. When dealing with people, you mustn't do it unsatisfactorily. In a course that is mandatory, the phenomenon of revival does not occur. It has to be exciting. You must stay up nights without even realizing it is night. You discover the value of Heaven only when you get to the point that you can say, "Heaven is the only place to be." Isn't that right? Even with trees, they either completely adhere or they don't graft. Right?

Without any direct experiences, a spiritual leader can do no work. Doing sermons based on books--heaven is such and such, from a book... Is God in the middle of this book? He is not. You must all know that God exists in the soul and it doesn't work if God doesn't go through the soul.

The most valuable thing is direct experience-based faith. That is why if you are a Unification Church member, you have direct experiences. You absolutely get to experience first hand. What kinds of things arise? Everything possible within the realm of your realistic life. Truly, if you give all the dedication you have for the providence, Heaven will go with you.

If you all have an intimate relationship with God, don't worry that you didn't prepare for your sermon. You need that kind of training as well. When I meet a famous person there are times when I can speak up to ten times a day. Then I must talk about different things with each different location. But do I prepare for each and every one? My heart at those times is to completely have the consciousness of an offering. The consciousness of an offering. There is no "I"-there is no concept of your existence. There is no sense of having possessions. It is a position of absolute dedication.

If you say "Sermons are only for Sundays," when it becomes Sunday you say "Where in the Bible shall we read? Come out you holy song, come out." [laughter] This is not what you should do. Do not do this. Center on your knowledge of people, center on the live resources, extract relevant miracles from the Bible, and give a fun sermon comparing that person's experiences with the content of the Bible. Then the listener's mind will be completely blown. When he hears his own experiences, he will like it. You must do it like this. Do you understand? Do not attempt to do it by looking at books. Books come from people as well. You must know that people themselves are the origin of books. Do you understand? [Yes.]

B. You must have Spiritual Abilities

You are the same. I do the most difficult thing in the church. Always have a plan and do not look around you and do not get sidetracked. If you can become that kind of people, you will develop. Do you understand? [Yes.]

The most difficult position is that of a spiritual leader. You must pray and consult with members all night. It is development when you continuously stay up nights debating the truth. Do you understand? [Yes.] Even if you receive opposition from the neighborhood...

Even now, wherever I go, if I think back to the 1960s I get the feeling of that time again. If I go there and work, that environment will completely change in an instant. There is that "something." You too must pray in order to get that felling. You must do a lot of those prayers. Do you understand? [Yes.] If you don't spend a lot of time praying, your heart's antenna will always be immersed in that place. If you always aim for that, 24 hours a day, and if you always live by that standard all the time, no matter what you're doing, you don't have to have a lot of praying time.

You can center on the things you see, and center on the things that you feel and center on the things you say... Than even if you don't prepare for sermons, you will always have a sermon topic and things to fill the sermon. You aren't like that, right? If you stop suddenly and completely, you will always be looking for the end of the sentence, saying, "Where did the end go? Where has it gone...."

It is the same of an electric line. You lose the end and all of a sudden you are saying, "Whoa, where did God go?" If you decide to find out, you cannot just say "For goodness sake God!." You cannot do that. I must always have the end of the line. If you connect them, then, "ZZZTT!" If you connect the plus and the minus there will be a big spark.

If I go into a home, I can tell in an instant if this is a home of dedication or if it is not. Even if no one says anything, I already know. If you remain still, the cells know that the electricity is flowing. Do you understand? If I just go in, I can tell right away whether or not the household has given much dedication. If I go to a church, I know. There is something that makes God's Will or something special follow in the church and keep it from dying and failing. Without this, do you think it would last? If it is anything like you, it would have failed a long time ago. I don't tell you. I don't even tell my mother what it is. Sometimes by mistake I might say, "Something is going to happen today," and then people would say, "How do you know?" or "Well, let's wait and see," and it becomes exposed. I hardly ever speak of such. Also, if I don't speak according to the Principle, Ill be the worst person. Do you understand?

Would it be all right if rumors spread that I am a sorcerer? Is it acceptable for the Reverend Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church to do such a thing? No, it is not possible. Rather, it is better to act as if I do not know of such things.... You do not know what kind of people they are. They may say things, but you will not know why they say those things. But I know. I know why they do. Therefore, you should receive my teaching.

That is why you must pray for these kinds of situations. These things must follow Father. I listen to words that others receive very well, and I act as if I know nothing and say, "Is that so?" Therefore, I know, as a teacher who can listen well to what you have to say. You must do that in this manner. It is a very difficult thing for God to create this kind of phenomenon in order to develop one such person. Think about how tremendously difficult it must have been in order to lay a bridge from the spirit world to this one individual. How much suffering and toil must there have been in order to lay that bridge over many historic generations, after being broken over and over? Because I know this, because I am a specialist in this area, because I know God has a will for this person, I listen while staying up the whole night. Isn't that what must be done? You have to understand each other. Isn't that right?

You all must have that something, and in order to get it, you must pray. Do you understand? [Yes.] When you go out for witnessing and come back when dusk is setting in, you must have instances when you return lost in endless tears. "I was so unworthy today...." When my footsteps, which set out to find sons and daughters of God, return in persecution, I must feel that my dedication was not sufficient. "How shameful is it that God could not find any of his sons and daughters, when he appointed me to the task?" You must know how to stand in a rice paddy and wail out loud. You must know how to grab onto trees and whip back and forth, and pray with no regard for yourself. You must have a lot of this kind of time. If you are a leader, shouldn't you have this kind of experience at least once every four days? Do you understand?

When I go to sleep, I pray for guidance about where I will go the next day. "Father! I will leave my direction for tomorrow in your hands, so please let me know my direction as soon as I wake up tomorrow." Then as soon as I wake up in the morning, I have a feeling of where I will have to go. If you go somewhere on what seems like a whim, you will find someone waiting there. Do you understand? By doing this, you can develop your spiritual heart.

If that happens, your thoughts will always be right. You will always have thoughts like, "Today, such and such a situation will occur." When you don't even think about it, when the motivation of the thoughts are not yourself, you must wait and see if thoughts appear. If you wait and see you will know if they were revelations. This is how it works. I hope that you can develop this aspect and go forth.

C. A Spiritual Life is Necessary

The good feeling that you had when you first joined, the heart of determination that you had when you first joined...these feelings must become stronger and brighter. Now, if you have this speech, I want you to have the confidence that "I will without a doubt make this world one!" That kind of heart. A person who goes thinking that anything can be overcome and that kind of atmosphere can be had. Now, if that environment existed, there is not one of you here that could lift your heads. Even if an arrogant person came here, there would be some sort of spiritual energy pushing down on him. If someone came with a pompous heart saying, "What is there in this church?" he would strangely be unable to move, and if he has any humility, he will feel it is his own home.

For this to happen you must pray. You need a prayer life and spiritual life where you can go by yourself to a quiet place and look at the moon and interact with all of nature. I am like this as well. Me. The reason I go out to the sea, the reason I go out to Barrytown, is to be able to physically feel this heart. That is more important that even eating food. There are instances when I am sleeping alone and I sit up and stay up all night...

So, the heart of being able to wail while thinking of Heaven and the providence, the heart of longing for a precious lover, and the heartbreak of an eternal separation with your precious lover, must always be within you. Because you feel these things, you are able to leave all the people you love in the world and go forth. When you listen to my speech, you just hear the words, but they do not reverberate in your heart.

Why? Why is that so? Because you have no direct experience. When a minister goes gives a sermon from the podium, I know in an instant if those are words from Heaven. You do not know.

"I myself" must bore through to the very bottom and observe all the things in reality. Standing from that position I must bring out something new. Have you ever even once had this heart? You must think about how much in your 24 hours you have realistically done for the providence, and how much, in the face of the providence you have felt value and went forward. How many hours do you think you spent? The time must come when we are able to do this.

You must also have time to gain experience through your own direct senses and believe after finding out for yourself. The amount of time you have doing this is important. Although someone leading an individualistic life may not be able to feel this, a person leading a life filled with grace will be able to view the creation differently. It is always seemingly new. It seems new when seen in the morning, and new when seen in the evening. When God's grace slowly rolls in like waves, you can feel fascination and mystery in three dimensions. If there is someone who can perceive this, that person is a happy person. This person is the one whom Buddha proclaimed as being the one who is unique in all of heaven and earth. This person will feel endless value and stand in the position of being able to celebrate his importance.

D. There are Historic Stories

I, too, have things that have left an impression. I remember vividly when I was being transported to Hung Nam prison, sharing iron shackles with a criminal, going through a mountain valley and following a path along a stream. Truly it was a new feeling. The time when we trod through the mountain valley trail will not be forgotten. It left a deep impression. That walk was the walk of departing for a new world.

"Where is the road that I must take everyday from now on?" "What must I do when I am finished with my sentence?" I was very curious. I was very curious. "How will I endure prison life? Even though it is hard, I choose to take the path. This is a good opportunity to realize a new self." The only thing that I have left are these kinds of things.

One time I had to dig a tunnel at Ham Hung. We were so hungry while we were working I couldn't lift the tool that my hand was grasping, and we were on the verge of collapse. When we heard the cry, "It's lunch time!" you cannot imagine how wonderful that sounded to our ears. Oh that rice! The feeling of that moment of coming to eat after sticking that pick in the ground... I have had countless experiences of these and other materials of living history. There is no suffering that can compare to these.

These miserable situations do not destroy me, but enable history's path to be enlightened. So I must go on until the day comes when God can gather together his treasure. If these facts of suffering were revealed to the people of the world, if rather than speaking for one hour on a different subject, you speak only 10 minutes on this topic, everyone will break out in tears. Where is there any sermon topic that is as good as this?

That is why I tell you all not to worry, but suffer until you are 30 years old. Even Jesus lived till 33 years old, and then he went on the path of death. The Unification Church Blessing that I speak about is a blessing that you all have borrowed. You must know that intelligently. If you're wondering what the conclusion of all these contents is, it is to be able to realize something new. This new day can succeed only if new things are realized. If nothing new comes out, then progress cannot happen. Mother is sitting here listening to the sermon, and although it seems as though I am speaking with many different topics, Mother is the best at listening, and eventually she knows what the topic is. The conclusion is that this refers to yourself. Therefore, it is important to receive a lot of education. You have to educate yourself.