If you study the cause of this trouble carefully, you would discover that it had nothing to do with their love for the Lord; every one of them loved the Lord. The strange thing, however, was that every one of the three or five responsible brothers was narrow-hearted. They argued over minute details in everything, whether big or small. Sometimes they would argue over the size of the opening for a door at the meeting hall. For example, one would say that it should be three feet wide, and another would say that it should be four feet. They were unwilling to yield to each other, and they made themselves very unhappy. Unfortunately, though I sensed a little of their difficulty, I was not yet able to speak a clear word due to my lack of experience. If the same thing were to happen today, I could clearly tell them that it is unnecessary for them to choose the cross or to be broken; all they need is to enlarge their heart.

Brothers, there are difficulties in many local churches today because the elders do not have a large heart. Therefore, I fully agree that the elders in the different localities should go to visit other places. Those in Taipei should visit Tainan, Kaoshiung, and Hualien. Those in other places should also go out to visit. Once you visit another place, your heart will be enlarged. If circumstances allow, it would be even better to travel overseas. Once a man goes out for a visit, his heart will be enlarged. It is wrong to be proud, and it is wrong to be boastful. It is also wrong to strive to be large, but you must learn to enlarge your heart. It does not mean that to have a large heart is to be loose. You must still be strict with yourself, yet your heart toward others must be large.

Of course, the natural life can never learn this lesson. Often a natural man will make a pretension of trying to enlarge his heart. In order to enlarge our own heart, we need the Lord's abundant grace. Please remember that the ability to forgive others is a matter that has to do with the largeness of heart. The ability to bless the ones who curse us also has to do with a large heart. Your heart must be so large that whenever others offend you, you can forgive them as soon as they confess to you. Though others may persecute you and inflict harm on you, you can still love them. To be able to forgive others when they have offended you is something that has to do with a large heart.

Oh, the wisdom that comes from a large heart is immeasurable! In everything we do, it is right for us to be disciplined, and it is wrong to be presumptuous. But the most important thing is that our heart has to be large. If the heart is not large enough, you must prepare yourselves to make mistakes in the future; you will surely eat the fruit of regret. Suppose a brother asks you to do something today. If your heart is not large enough and you deny his request, you will surely regret it later. Or, if a brother asks for your forgiveness today, and you would not forgive him due to your narrowness in heart, you will surely regret it later. Therefore, brothers, your heart must be enlarged. We are narrow persons, but we must learn to enlarge our hearts. If you have an argument with a brother, eight or nine times out of ten it is because of the narrowness of your heart. In these years, I have not met many people with a large heart.