(Clearwisdom.net) A fellow practitioner from our region died as a result of illness karma. In the past, I had always considered that as just another kind of trial for Falun Dafa practitioners, and that it was an arrangement by the old forces or a prior agreement with the old forces.

But, after learning what Teacher said in "Teaching the Fa at the 2003 Atlanta Fa Conference," I feel that my former views of sickness karma were not correct. Teacher said:

"In fact, out of those killed by the persecution in Mainland China, many were Dafa disciples deceived by them, while some were arranged by them; they all agreed to it at some point in history, and that is why it's hard to handle. Also, while being persecuted, they weren't clearheaded or rational, and didn't remember that they were Dafa disciples, nor could they remember Master, as if it were all just human beings persecuting other human beings. Plus, they were arranged that way by the old forces back in history, so they couldn't reject it. You tell me, how do you handle that? So, a lot of things aren't as easy as you'd imagine. Cultivation is a serious thing, and the Fa-rectification is by no means something trivial."

Therefore, I think that if any of us find ourselves treading on a path to death that was arranged by the old forces, if we are steadfast and regard ourselves as Falun Dafa practitioners, only what Teacher has said matters. We must steadfastly deny the arrangements of the old forces. Then, we can completely walk away from those arrangements. Furthermore, in the same lecture, Teacher told us:

"When a Dafa disciple's righteous thoughts are strong his existence in the world has a positive effect. So take a look, everybody--isn't it true that the amount of evil factors left now is tiny?"

Therefore, I think that our fellow practitioners who are struggling with these old force arrangements must look squarely upon the significance of their existence and bear the responsibilities of their historical missions.

A fellow practitioner had a sudden heart attack one night. (The practitioner previously had a serious heart disease.) She felt that she could no longer move and could not find her voice to call out. Using all her remaining strength, she pushed her sleeping husband and departed. She was floating in the air and saw her husband holding her hand and softly calling her. She floated to her child's bedroom and watched her child, who was in a deep sleep. She thought, "I cannot just leave like this. I am a practitioner, and I cannot ignore my responsibility. I am a Falun Dafa practitioner, and I just cannot leave this way. Next, she shouted, "Teacher, help me! Teacher, help me now!" In a flash, she returned to her physical body. The person then woke up in this world.

Another fellow practitioner suddenly had difficulty breathing on the night of January 15 of this year. She felt that her life was ending because she could hardly breathe. She sent forth righteous thoughts in her mind to deny all the arrangements of the old forces and to eliminate the persecution by the evil. She thought about Teacher saving her. She suffered torment for half the night. She sent forth righteous thoughts and thought of Teacher a myriad of times. She mentioned that when it became critical, she was unable to send forth righteous thoughts; she reckoned she was on the point of death. Left with only the tiniest of thoughts, she thought of Teacher, and finally, she walked away from death. This verified principles of Falun Dafa: during tribulations, if your thoughts are sufficiently righteous, Teacher will do anything for you.

If we can comprehend the great significance of being Falun Dafa practitioners at critical moments, and understand the mighty historical responsibility of saving sentient beings, then at any moment, no matter how difficult a tribulation may be for us to bear, at that instance, no matter how tormenting it might be, we can deny all the arrangements by the old forces. When we remember that we are Falun Dafa practitioners, we can complete our paths in the last period of Fa-rectification. As the Fa rectifies the human world, we will do as Master said, "Fly and ascend upon Consummation, together returning to the heavenly paradise" ("Assimilation and Consummation," Hong Yin, unofficial translation). This will be the greatest accomplishment!