Mrs. Il Soon Youn
In 1956, Miss Youn joined the Unification Church. Her entire family had joined before her, except her uncle. She was a devout Christian and an active member of the Methodist Church, and she spied on her family and the Unification Church activities for many months, reporting everything she saw and heard to the Methodist Church. Finally, after a desperate internal struggle, she abandoned the fiancé whom her uncle had selected for her, and on the same day as her intended wedding, she married the Unification Church.
Part 2 (Click to read Part 1)
One day 50 soldiers came to me. Most of them were already Christian but hearing that one young lady had come from the Unification Church to preach, they were curious and came to test me. I was somewhat embarrassed by so many young men visiting but when I gave lectures, I became courageous. After they listened to me, they offered me many different kinds of things, such as rice, soap, and so on. Even though I didn’t want to receive those things, because of their sincere attitude, I accepted them.
That night I prayed and went to bed, and my grandfather appeared again in my dream. He said, “Don’t touch any of those things which were given to you. Give them back to the owners.” Then next week when I met them again, I did as my grandfather wanted me to do. They came to my church every Sunday for service and helped me through many difficulties. My grandfather always stayed close to me and gave me many directions every time it was necessary. My spiritual eyes were opened gradually, and I had many spiritual experiences.
PLANTING TREES
The next spring, 1963, headquarters sent out notices for everyone to plant at least 30 trees. However, because I didn’t have any money to buy trees, I went to the town chief and asked permission to cut branches of the Italian poplar trees and plant them on the mountain. Fortunately, he willingly accepted my suggestion, because Italian poplar trees are very strong trees that can grow with just planting a cutting. Some young men gathered the branches as I was cutting them and tied them up with string. They said, “Teacher, you even cut the trees well. You are rather like a man.” “My Lord, please let them grow well as your true sons and daughters,” I prayed, as I looked down on the young men who were laughing with joy.
The next day as I continued cutting branches, someone said that a telegram had arrived for me. It read, “Come to Seoul for the Blessing.”
The members there couldn’t understand what it meant because they thought I was too old to get married. I pretended it was nothing important and kept on working until I cut 3000 branches. I planted them on a bare mountain. Finally, I prepared to go to Seoul, asking one brother to take care of our family during my absence.
ENGAGEMENT AND BLESSING
I arrived in Seoul very sunburnt from planting the trees every day on the mountain. Mrs. Won Pok Choi called those of us who had a strong sunburn and gave us each ten eggs. I ate two eggs each day with a thankful mind toward her.
Even during the matching, my mind was always back with the family in my area, worrying about them, wondering if they might fall to Satan or if they were suffering because I wasn’t there. Thirty days after the engagement, the 72-couple Blessing ceremony took place.
Soon afterward we all went back to our area. Family members were so happy to see me again that they didn’t even know how to express their feelings. I comforted them, saying, “There won’t be any more of these affairs so don’t worry about it anymore.” I told them what had happened to me and heard their reports. By then the faith of our family members had grown so much that I no longer had to be anxious about them if I had to be absent again.
A NEW MISSION
Instructions came from headquarters for me to go to Dae Chun, Choong Nam to be with my husband. I had stayed in Ji Kyung Li for close to three years, from 1960 to 1963.
Arriving at my new mission I found the situation very difficult. The church was only a little wood-framed house, and it was hard for outside people to believe that it was really a church. I prayed, “Heavenly Father, You tried to save this whole world through one person, Jesus, who was born in a stable as the son of a carpenter. Although this is a humble house, I believe that You can come and work through us to realize Your providence in this city of Dae Chun. Please let people see the internal power and not just the external form of this place. Let us be wiser if we lack wisdom and let us be capable if we lack capability. I really believe in Your mightiness, please let us show Your glory in this city.” When I prayed my eyes got wet again with warm tears. I planned rallies everywhere I went, and I actualized those plans.
BECOMING A MODEL DAUGHTER-IN-LAW
One year after arriving at Dae Chun, I was ready to give birth to a baby. However, our financial situation was at that time very difficult; we could only manage to eat one bowl of soup a day. Needless to say, we couldn’t afford diapers, clothes, or a blanket for the coming baby. So, unwillingly, I had to go to my husband’s parents’ home.
My mother-in-law was a country woman, uneducated and conservative; she couldn’t understand our life and mistreated me very much. Finally, I became a mother by delivering a baby boy. I decided to be a model daughter-in-law and persuade my husband’s mother that a bride from the Unification Church was the best bride. Therefore, I decided to separate from my husband and live with my mother-in-law until she changed her opinion completely.
We farmed, as most of the people in the countryside do. I worked as hard as I could. I brought firewood from the mountains and weeded the crops, even though I didn’t have any experience doing many things. I just watched the farmers work from a distance and imitate them. I did men’s work as well as women’s duties because I only had one brother-in-law, and he was still very young.
Within one year, the concepts of my mother-in-law and neighbors began to change. I thought, “This is my chance,” and I gave the villagers-children and adults alike medical care and injections, as I had been trained to do. Finally, the people praised me saying, “This family got a very good daughter-in-law from the Unification Church.”
BAKING AND SELLING BREAD
After I changed their misconception of me and our church, I and my son left for Dae Chun, where my husband was waiting for me. Father named our son Yong Sam. It was always hard financially, so I started to sell bread. As I baked bread I would pray. “May those who eat this bread be blessed by God.”
One day a person came to me to confess that he once stole my bread. After that, for reasons he didn’t understand, he felt like repenting for what he had done and started going to church. Besides him, many people became connected with me through the bread sales.
I became pregnant with a second baby. The church was growing day by day. More people came and their faith became stronger and deeper. Finally, I gave birth to another son, whom Father named Young Seuing. Before Young Seuing was one month old, my husband was called into the army, because of a mistake with the army papers.
So I went pioneering to Po Chung, Kyung Ki Do. There I found one family who wanted to join after they heard lectures. They were worrying about having a church. I prayed very hard, and many brothers and sisters joined, and we built our church building easily.
PREACHING AS I NURSED MY BABY
One troublesome thing was that my baby cried whenever lecture time came. I tried to appease him but without success, so I had to preach while nursing my six-month-old baby. Where can we find a preacher who gives a lecture while nursing a baby with a mother’s milk? Nevertheless, all of the family there remembers receiving lots of grace through me.
I realized how hard Heavenly Father was working at this emergency time when I saw the spiritual phenomena happening around me. More members were joining the church, and its foundation was becoming stronger and firmer. I picked out some smart young men and sent them to a workshop. After they returned from the workshop, I sent them out on pioneer experiences to let them grow. They obeyed me as completely as a baby does his mother. Now they are all grown up and most of them are blessed. Some of them are in position of center directors, and others are working for companies or went abroad as missionaries.
In the meantime, my husband finished his service in the army, and I came back home, leaving my position of leader for another to fill.
1970
It was I 970, a significant year in God’s providence and the church headquarters ordered all blessed women to go out preaching. In town, we started for our new locations, in groups of ten. We left our children who were more than 100 days old at home. I went to Wha Chun, Kang Won Do as the 65th team captain. We were supposed to spend three years serving in public life preaching Principle to the people.
After I finished packing my bags, I explained to all my children why I had to leave home. My big son understood but persuading my little boy wasn’t easy at all. He didn’t want to separate from me. “Your mother is leaving to follow Heavenly Father’s will and True Parents’ direction to save the lives of all people. So you shouldn’t try to see mother for a while to please True Parents,” I said tenderly and left from home asking their grandmother to take care of them.
After I arrived in Wha Chun, I met members who had left babies less than 100 days at home. Their breasts were swollen every night. I bought a milk squeezer and squeezed milk from their breasts with it every day. Who can make mothers separate from babies less than 100 days old? Since we knew God’s painful heart, we came here letting grandmothers or husbands look after our children without any complaints.
Every time I squeezed milk from mother’s breasts, I prayed, “Heavenly Father please give us courage, great faith, and wisdom. We left babies less than 100 days at home.” Then tears were going to come out, but I couldn’t shed tears thinking that if I cried, the babies’ mothers would form a sea with their tears. When I wanted to see my children, I thought of our 1rue Parents who were working so hard even without taking care of their children, for the sake of their race and this world.
We began to restore the number 40 by having 10 members fast for 4 days. Because Moses, Jesus and 1rue Father also fasted for 40 days, we wanted to follow their example. We also went praying early in the morning to holy ground. I gave lectures about anti-communism, visiting each village.
Our situation was much better than before because headquarters provided us with living expenses. I finished my mission of three years in comparatively good circumstances and came back home.
After three years of blessed wives’ pioneering life, 1rue Parents gave another direction to preach to 100 homes. I started fasting and praying after having planned and picked out a name list. Finally, the time came to visit people. But because it was strange to visit people suddenly without having been acquainted with them, I decided to sell the necessities of life which I bought with the money I was given on Hyo Jin Nim’s birthday. “King of Kings my Lord, Heavenly Father, to preach to people I am going to sell things. Please work through these things and catch their hearts,” I prayed. I sold them without profit door to door. The people responded well pleased that the price was very cheap. This way I visited people as usual and said hello to them whether they bought my things or not. Naturally, then I became very intimate with the people. After 100 days had passed, I brought them the Divine Principle and the Bible instead of things to sell and appeared as a preacher giving God’s words. People who were touched with the grace of God became members one by one.
I DON’T WANT TO BE COMFORTABLE BY MYSELF
I have a ten-year plan. My faith is that if I do my best, making effort and praying hard, anyone can become a member of our family. This is my conclusion from my experience. To witness to one person, I always prayed and fasted for three days. Then the spiritual world showed me and taught by inspiration how to achieve my goal.
Because 1rue Father was so anxious to realize God’s desires, I didn’t want to be comfortable by myself. Father once said, “To save one life is to guide it to God’s dominion. Therefore, you cannot witness to people without dedicating more effort than
Satan. It means you should give anything you are valuing without hesitation.” I have always kept these words in my mind and struggled to actualize it. However, there were some people impossible to bring as I wanted, despite my best efforts. “He must be blessed too much to accept another blessing.” But Heavenly Father guided me to another person, in a different way. I realized that the price of our sweat and tears could never be stolen.
Once my younger sister tried to get married in the outside world. Nothing was effective at all in trying to persuade her to change her mind. It was so painful and sorrowful to think of her destiny in the future. It was unimaginable that my younger sister who passed through all the trials in pioneer life and church life could marry somebody in a fallen society. After much consideration, I prayed, crying out, “Heavenly Father, one life is going to be handed to the temptation of Satan. Please give her strong faith and let her go through this test of evil spirit.”
To my sister’s question wondering what was happening and who had died at home, I answered, “You are dead so I’m going to bury you.” Then she finally understood what I meant and asked for forgiveness, crying. At that moment, a voice sounded from heaven, “It was more painful than when I gave birth to you.”
After this event, my younger sister was blessed as one of the 430 couples. I could realize how hard God was working to save even one life. From this, I learned that it was impossible to restore one person without blood, sweat, and tears.
With this attitude in mind, I brought 18 lost people back to God in 1976. I’m trying to restore more people than that now.
Since I devoted myself all my life to God’s work, wherever He goes, I’ll follow, and whatever He does, I’ll do it.