"Taking Hardship as Joy"

I once read an article by a practitioner in North America in which the author said, "I always feel I have sacrificed a lot and feel very tired. One day, there was only myself and another practitioner in the News Department working on some projects. After staying up almost the entire night, both of us felt very tired. Thinking that most practitioners would have a good sleep for the Fahui the next day, I told that practitioner that we were unlucky. However, that practitioner said, 'No, it is not unlucky. It is an honour for us [to be working like this]'. At that moment, I felt the gap between myself and her. I did not take hardship as joy and did not cherish the honour."

"All sentient beings are admiring us since we can participate in Dafa projects. Why would I have negative thoughts when feeling tired? Now, my mindset has changed and I truly understand taking hardship as joy. I will cherish even more what we have today, and really do well with Dafa projects."

Yes, "It is an honour for us [ to be working like this]." After all, why are we here? We are here to assist Teacher to rectify the Fa. Compared to the great sacrifice of Teacher, our hardship is almost nothing.

Hardship is not just limited to physical endurance, it also includes letting go of many things that everyday people find pleasurable. Take watching television as an example. Now and then, there might be one or two sentences from television that are insightful. However, 99.9% of the television programs are filled with sentimentality, lust, as well as party culture, all of which are interfering with us. They waste our precious time for cultivation and saving sentient beings.

Why do we feel lonely? Thinking about ancient cultivators sitting alone quietly in the mountain, how can our life be compared to that loneliness? Plus, Teacher has said, "What's given up is not oneself, But instead the folly of delusion" (Hong Yin - Volume II)

Several days ago, I heard a song by a Dafa practitioner. It talked about the hardships Teacher had when introducing Dafa to the world. It also talked about our sacred, prehistoric vows. Right now, just thinking about the song, I am already in tears.