(Minghui.org) The 19th Israeli Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held on January 13, 2023. Eleven practitioners talked about how they followed Falun Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance to improve their character and deal with challenges when they told others about the ongoing brutal persecution in China. Many practitioners who attended the conference said that the speakers’ stories inspired and encouraged them. Several practitioners traveled all the way from Russia, Bulgaria and Moldova to attend the conference.

The 19th Israeli Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held on January 13, 2023.

Practitioners talk about their cultivation experiences.

Teaching Children the Principles of Falun Dafa

One practitioner shared how she established an after school child care facility at home, and named it, “The Lotus Children.” The young children in her facility learn to follow the principles of “Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance” in their daily routine and activities.

She strove to become more professional at work, knowing that this was her path to validate Falun Dafa. She often looked within to improve herself. “The children’s parents say they feel a special energy about this place. They can see the patience, the calmness, the quality and the efforts I make. All of these things validate the Fa,” she said. She built a website to share the children’s activities, and she wrote a blog to explain her educational philosophy and where her inspiration came from, including the teachings of Falun Dafa, traditional values and Chinese ancient culture. She hoped to reach out to more parents and educators, so that she can make The Lotus Children a brand name.

When the COVID pandemic broke out, she taught Falun Dafa exercises online. Eventually she built a website and ran webinars to help people learn Falun Dafa. “It was like crossing the Rubicon,” she said as she described the experience.

Comfort Versus Cultivation

Another practitioner talked about how he rearranged his life so that he could do more to validate the Fa. The title of his paper was, “When Comfort Becomes Uncomfortable.” He used to live a cozy lifestyle with a slow pace in a peaceful rural area. He almost never met the quota he committed to for the Epoch Magazine. “When I read the Fa, a practitioner told Master that he barely had enough time to eat or sleep because he was too busy with Dafa projects. I thought, ‘I am so far behind them in cultivation. I had a lot of time, but I didn’t feel comfortable with it.”

He gave up a successful business and an affluent lifestyle and moved to a city. He lived in a tiny apartment to work full time for the Epoch Magazine.

Husband Accepts Falun Dafa

A practitioner said that since childhood she was always shy. She stayed away from school activities to avoid being mocked. She married a religious man and had 5 children while abiding by the Jewish precepts. However in her heart she never really believed in Judaism. She followed Jewish precepts because she was afraid to contradict her husband.

A month after she was diagnosed with brain cancer, she remembered that her mother gave her the book Zhuan Falun. She started reading it. This angered her husband because he considered it to be at odds with his religion. She said that going to a group practice, which was held on Sabbath, became a problem for her, as it involved riding in a car, which was against the orthodox Jewish precepts. Thus, a fellow practitioner picked her up from a place far away from her home so that her husband wouldn’t find out.

“After almost 10 years of riding in a car on the Sabbath without telling my husband, I told myself I must tell him the truth, and Master would be with me. After I told him, he was enraged. I did not give up, and said, ‘Listen, dear, I accept you as you are, so you should accept me as I am. Don’t tell me not to practice Falun Dafa. Dafa helps me to be healthy and energetic.’ My husband listened quietly the whole time, and then said, ‘Do as you wish. You are like the earth, unshakable!’” Her family now lives in peace and harmony.

Conquering Fear

A practitioner noticed that he only looked within when conflicts surfaced, and did not actively pay attention to every thought in his daily routine. He started to examine his thoughts and intentions more closely and found small, subtle attachments that he hadn’t eliminated.

He talked about how he overcame fear of serious illness when a bump appeared on his knee. It kept getting larger and became very painful. Fear started to build up in his mind. He recalled something that happened 10 years before. His previous boss’ child had exactly the same condition. The issue was discussed in his workplace day and night. The child’s x-rays and scary diagnoses were constantly discussed at work. He knew that this was a test for him, yet he could not overcome it for a long time, until he remembered Master’s teachings.

This was a turning point for him. He said, “When I sent righteous thoughts, instead of eliminating the cause of the pain, I focused on removing my worries and fears about it. It was a dramatic change. From that day on, I eliminated my worries and fears when I sent righteous thoughts, and the pain no longer bothered me. Sometimes the pain weakened, and sometimes not. Having that state of mind, the pain stopped interfering with me.”

Eyesight Corrected

A practitioner said that when she began to practice Falun Dafa 21 years ago, her eyesight became normal and she no longer needed glasses. Years later her eyesight got worse again. She realized that it was a test for her, “I negated (the phenomena) and continued to read without glasses.”

When she went for an eye test to renew her driver's license at age of 65, and five years later, at the age of 70, for a more comprehensive eye test, she passed both tests. “This was an important event for me, I validated the Fa. I believed that what was said in the Fa is the correct thing to do. I saw through the old forces’ interference and did not let them succeed. Therefore Master was able to help me.”

The practitioners did the Falun Dafa exercises after the conference.

The day after the conference the practitioners held a series of truth clarification activities at Jaffa Promenade in Tel Aviv.