(Minghui.org) Two years ago, several Dafa practitioners in our area were arrested. As part of plans to rescue them, local practitioners were each assigned an arrested practitioner to focus on. I took the lead in rescuing Ling (alias).
Compassionate Master (Li Hongzhi) arranged a practitioner called Jian (alias) to work with me. Jian was from the countryside and had not been practicing Dafa for long, but he was very diligent.
Every morning, Jian drove his motorcycle dozens of miles to the city to join me and Ling's family. We would visit various government agencies to request Ling’s release. Sometimes Ling’s family needed to have long conversations with us, so Jian did not head home until very late. We were so busy that we didn’t have time to study the Fa.
A practitioner told me to be careful because there were government representatives from the 610 Office spying on me outside my apartment. Jian and I agreed that we should improve our cultivation states by increasing Fa study, sending righteous thoughts, and giving up the attachment to being overly task-oriented. We also told other practitioners not to come to my apartment to avoid unnecessary risk.
I had been feeling very tense and wanted to take a break, as I had not been able to study the Fa for many days. That evening, however, I was visited by the husband of another arrested practitioner, Hua (alias). He asked me to meet a lawyer the next day to help with Hua’s rescue. He put his trust in me and needed my help, so I agreed to get involved.
After Hua's husband left, I started to feel scared. What would happen if 610 Office personnel were waiting for me outside my apartment the next morning? Would they arrest me on the spot? The more I thought about it, the more afraid I felt.
I thought about declining to help Hua, but I reminded myself that I'm a Dafa disciple who should behave with honor and dignity. How could I shirk my responsibility for the sake of my own safety? It's my duty to rescue persecuted practitioners.
Early the next morning, I walked out of my apartment reciting Master Li's Fa:
“He comes with Truth that gives him free reignAnd travels the four seas with a free and easy spiritThe Fa’s principles spread throughout the worldHis Fa Boat sets sail, loaded full with sentient beings”(“Tathagata” from Hong Yin II, English Translation Version A)
There was no one waiting to arrest me. My heart was at ease. But realizing how far my cultivation state was from Master’s requirements, I felt sad.
I had not completely gotten rid of my fear, however, so the test was not over. Some practitioners advised me to leave home for a while when they knew there were agents monitoring my apartment. My mind got stirred up, so I made plans to move out and take my child with me.
But if I left home, I’d be leaving my husband and my father-in-law to fend for themselves. My father-in-law had just come to stay with us for the winter. What would he think if I suddenly packed up and left? What would the rest of the family think? It could give them a negative impression of Dafa practitioners.
Since my father-in-law arrived, he had been studying the Fa every night and practicing the exercises every morning with us. My husband had also started studying the Fa fairly recently. If I left, it could have a negative effect on their cultivation. Dafa requires us to put others first, but I was putting myself first.
Furthermore, my family is a precious environment that Master provided for me to cultivate in, validate the Fa, and save sentient beings. With my strengthened righteous thoughts, I became firm in my mind: “I’m not going anywhere! I’m going to stay here to do what I need to do.”
Over the years, I have been involved in hiring several lawyers to rescue arrested practitioners. Whenever I saw how much practitioners expended their own money, time, and energy in these rescue efforts, I would remind myself that I must cultivate better, eliminate attachments, and walk well on my path of cultivation. I know that I am still far from the standards required of me, so I can only try to cultivate more diligently.