Six Thousand-Year-Long Parting

“Parting” is a word prompts deep reflection the moment we hear it. As we move through life, we inevitably face times of separation. The sorrow of saying goodbye to those we love and have grown close to is beyond expression.

One day, while singing a New Song, a wave of emotion suddenly filled my heart.

“Six thousand-year-long parting made me forget Heaven. I was burdened with my grievous sin; at that time Father came down to this earth. . . . Six thousand-year-long parting turned my tears into a stream. I was wandering, missing Heaven; at that time Mother came down to this earth.” (From the New Song “Six Thousand-Year-Long Parting”)

Even a brief separation brings such sorrow. How great, then, must have been the heartache of Heavenly Father and Mother, who endured six thousand years of separation from Their children who sinned in heaven and came down to this earth. I offer my deepest gratitude to Father and Mother, who came to save us—lost sinners wandering, not knowing where to go.

The heavenly brothers and sisters beside us are truly precious, for they too were found after such a long time when Father and Mother came. I felt this especially during an overseas mission. Even though I was meeting the members of Zion for the first time—people who had grown up in different cultures and environments—it felt completely natural, as if we had known each another for years. Seeing them filled my heart with joy and gratitude, like being reunited with family after a long separation.

Even now, there are countless souls in the world who wander without knowing where to go, longing for Father and Mother. I long to guide our separated heavenly family back into the loving embrace of Father and Mother as soon as possible. I will become a child brings eternal glory and praise to God by leading them home.