My Understanding of "A Desire For Doing Things"

Twice, when I expressed my desire to do more "truth clarification" work, a practitioner warned me, "Don't ever have a desire for doing things!" Her words hit the pit of my stomach. She was implying that if I encountered difficulties while doing truth clarification work, then it would be my desire that caused it. However, through more Fa study, I came to have a new understanding of this issue.

Teacher said,
"... a Dafa disciple's responsibilities aren't for the sake of personal Consummation, but to save sentient beings while validating the Fa--that is a Dafa disciple's historic mission, and that is why Dafa disciples are truly magnificent." ("Touring North America to Teach the Fa," March 2002)

Teacher also said,
"If every Dafa disciple who's been able to keep up with Dafa's progress has done what he should do. By contrast, how could those people who haven't come out of their homes but who still think of themselves as cultivating possibly be considered cultivating? ("Teaching the Fa at the Washington, D.C. International Fa Conference" from Guiding the Voyage)

Saving sentient beings is our greatest mission--the sacred vows made in prehistoric times. It seems logical that the more sentient beings you save, the better you are doing; the more people you save, the greater you are; wanting to do more clarifying the truth and wanting to save more people requires a compassionate state of mind. How could it be called "the desire for doing things?"

Then what really is the desire for doing things?

Teacher said,
"If you don't study this Great Law well your own Consummation won't be secured. What's more, all the important Dafa things you should do will be like ordinary people going about their business, with ordinary-person thoughts and with an ordinary person's basis, and then that's just ordinary people, at best that's just ordinary people doing good deeds for Dafa" ("Teaching and Explaining the Fa at the Metropolitan New York Fa Conference," April 20, 2003)

My understanding is, if you don't focus on studying the Fa, if you don't behave in accordance with the Fa when you do Dafa work, your thoughts are like those of everyday people, and not the thoughts of future gods. If you regard what you're doing as your own cultivation, and are pleased with only doing Dafa work, then can it be called "a desire for doing things."

My personal understanding is, "a desire for doing things" means that when doing Dafa work, you have human notions, but it doesn't mean that if you want to do more Dafa work. Fa-rectification needs every Dafa disciple to save people. It requires us to do more Dafa work to save people. If each Dafa disciple could strive to save one more person and do one more piece of Dafa work each and every day, maybe that is what Teacher requires! What we need to eliminate is an unrighteous state of mind.

Most recently I have noticed that some practitioners appear to have a feeling of "accomplishment," being pleased with what they have accomplished, and seeing themselves as "higher than others." Some practitioners even believe that who can be saved and who will be eliminated is already predestined. To these practitioners, other practitioners who are anxious and willing to save people are viewed as having attachments and have "a desire for doing things." These practitioners often lack a sense of urgency--they do more when they have more time, otherwise they do less or nothing. They don't focus on studying the Fa, and don't put a high priority on saving sentient beings.

With Teacher allowing me see all these things, I know I should look within myself. Let us eliminate the attachment of seeking comfort, let us have a better understanding of the Fa, let us do better with what we should do, and let us not disappoint our Teacher for his compassionate saving grace!

Fellow practitioners, please kindly correct any errors.