Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/4711

4711 Overcoming matter....

August 12, 1949: Book 54

Never forget that you are indeed children of the world but that you have to overcome the world in order to become aspirants of My kingdom, which is not of this world, and that this is your actual purpose of earthly life. Do not regard your earthly life as an end in itself but know that it is only a means to an end and that the end is only to detach yourselves from matter, thus to completely overcome the world. You have indeed been placed into this world and surrounded by matter which you can also make use of, yet only ever to such an extent that you, as well as the matter you use, are of service, that its actual purpose is fulfilled and at the same time you are able to serve your fellow human beings again through the use of matter and are thus active in neighbourly love. You shall overcome matter, but matter will overcome you.... it will try to captivate your thoughts, your souls, for this is the world's seduction, that everything worldly appears to you so appealingly that your desire for it is aroused and this desire can suffocate every other feeling if it is not fought against. You stand in the middle of the world, behind you lies the material world, i.e., all spiritual bound in matter still surrounds you, yet in front of you lies the spiritual kingdom, and both kingdoms seek to exert their influence on you. But your senses are still imprisoned by the material world and therefore cannot find the entrance into the spiritual kingdom. Therefore you have to fight against your desire, you have to fight against all covetousness which aims at earthly-material things. And in order to be able to do so more easily, the worthlessness of everything that surrounds you is presented to you; I constantly let you recognize the impermanence and nothingness of material things so that you detach your hearts from them, so that you become free from matter and can enter the spiritual kingdom unhindered by directing your thoughts to where there is no more passing away, where everything you acquire in spiritual possessions is permanent and imperishable.

You are indeed in the midst of the world but at the same time you can also occupy the spiritual kingdom if your soul desires it and only grants the body the right to dwell in matter, yet completely untouched by it, because the soul, the human being's thinking, feeling and wanting dwells in spiritual spheres and has found the true kingdom there where it feels at ease and will never again exchange it for the material world. Overcome matter, imagine its worthlessness and turn away from the goods of this world.... Seek to gain My kingdom and you will possess far more than the earthly world can ever offer you. For even if you are children of the world, the spiritual kingdom is open to you and accepts everyone who leaves the world behind in his desires and only strives upwards, who wants to enter My kingdom because he has recognized that the earthly world is My adversary's share and whom I therefore help to reach the aim....

Amen

Translated by Doris Boekers