I’m an ordinary rural woman. Loaded down with the heavy family burden, I went so bad-tempered, imperious and stubborn that I quarreled with my husband every now and then, which made it very hard for us to live together. Whenever I felt miserable, I would call out: “Oh Heaven, please save me!” In 2013, Almighty God’s work of the last days came upon me. Through reading God’s words and fellowshiping with my brothers and sisters, I was certain that Almighty God is precisely the Heaven that I cried out to when I was in misery. So I gladly accepted the work of Almighty God.
I saw God’s words, “Since the creation of the world I have begun to predestine and select this group of people, namely, you today. Your temperament, caliber, appearance, stature, family in which you were born, your job and your marriage, the entirety of you, even the color of your hair and your skin, and the time of your birth were all arranged by My hands. Even the things you do and the people you meet every single day are arranged by My hands, not to mention the fact that bringing you into My presence today is actually My arrangement. Do not throw yourself into disorder; you should proceed calmly” (“The Seventy-fourth Utterance” in Utterances and Testimonies of Christ in the Beginning). After reading God’s words, I was aware that my having the fortune to come before God’s throne and accept the watering and provision of God’s words in the last days was predestined by God at the beginning of time, and that my husband was also God’s predestination, so I ought to accept and obey God’s orchestrations and arrangements. From then on, I no longer rowed with him. After seeing my changes, my husband also supported me in my belief in God. Every time when my brothers and sisters came to my home for meetings, he was very polite to them, often asked me to serve them fruits, and sometimes showed great concern to them. During that time, I read God’s words every day, and felt enriched and happy in my spirit. I thought it was so great to believe in God.
Nevertheless, good times didn’t last too long. After the 28 May 2014 Case in Zhaoyuan, Shandong Province, I no longer enjoyed a harmonious family life. It was originally a common criminal case. But three days later, the nature of the case changed and the focus point was directed to the Church of Almighty God. The CCP government used the main media to wantonly frame and discredit the CAG. And instantly, all sorts of rumors about the CAG overspread the country. Having watched the news report on TV, my husband seemed to become another man, and started to strongly oppose my belief in God.
One night, my husband came home angrily and asked me sternly, “What on earth do you believe in?” I felt baffled by his abnormal manner and replied, “Christianity! The One I believe in is Almighty God—the returned Lord Jesus, the Heaven we often speak of.” And he said, “You believe in Almighty God?! Go see what the TV is saying.” With these words, he turned on TV. And it was broadcasting the 28 May Zhang Lidong’s Murder Case in Zhaoyuan, Shandong Province, and the contents were words about condemning the Church of Almighty God. I saw the evidences presented by the CCP government were actually some books covered with digital mosaics, and some words written on the wall of Zhang Lidong’s house like “maltreatment,” “slaughter,” and so on. Moreover, it said that the believers in Almighty God disturbed public peace, so the Shandong Public Security Bureau prepared to severely crack down on the CAG and arrest the believers. Watching this, I immediately said to my husband, “Those are purely slanders and rumors, and it’s just a setup. The killers are not believers in Almighty God at all. For preaching the gospel is principled in CAG, and we only preach the gospel to good people, not the evil. And such evil people like Zhang Lidong are totally not the objects the Church of Almighty God preaches to. Thus they are absolutely not believers in Almighty God. Besides, Zhang Lidong killed that lady out of rage just because she refused to give him her cellphone number. But my brothers and sisters of the Church of Almighty God never solicit phone numbers from others, and it’s also not allowed to forcefully drag people into the church. The actions of Zhang Lidong and his accomplices completely don’t accord with the principles for gospel preaching. So they are not believers in Almighty God, and all of these are just rumors and frame.” Unexpectedly, my husband stared at me and shouted, “I don’t care whether the case is true or false. You can’t believe in whatever the CCP government opposes. Our son hasn’t got married, and I don’t want to have my house ransacked.” Faced with the “May 28 Zhaoyuan Case,” I bitterly resented the CCP’s vicious plot of cracking down the religious belief.
That night, neither my husband nor I slept well. He advised me to hide out, and asked me to either hide the books carefully or return them to the church, for our home would be ransacked once the CCP government searched out these books. At his words, I remembered my cousin: He ever had a dispute with the head of the police station as he couldn’t stand him riding roughshod over the common people, and then he was sentenced to a year of reform through labor. If my home was ransacked because of my belief in God, how could I face my husband and son? I tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep, repeatedly imagining the scene: I am arrested, my home is ransacked, and my husband and son are incriminated, they looked so desperate. At this thought, I suddenly felt desolated and afraid within, thinking: In China, it is too difficult for one to believe in God, be a good person, and walk on the right path, for he will be in danger of death at any time; however, if I betray God for fear of being persecuted by the CCP, I will be pricked by my conscience all my life; even if I seek temporary ease and comfort, I will be just a living corpse, and will be too ashamed to see God when I die. Tortured by these thoughts, I felt perplexed and extremely negative.
Just when I was in pain, the Lord Jesus’ words occurred to me, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28). “For whoever will save his life shall lose it: and whoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it” (Matthew 16:25). The Lord Jesus’ words gave me faith and strength, and dispelled my worries and fear. God rules all things and living beings, and all I had came from God, so I couldn’t betray Him. At this point, I also recalled Job: He still held his devotion to God, praised the holy name of Jehovah, and stood testimony for God even when he had his property robbed and lost his sons and daughters and everything he possessed; In contrast with Job, what I’m facing now is merely the rumors fabricated by the CCP, not the fact of getting arrested or my house being ransacked, yet I’m already weak and passive. My stature is truly too small, and my faith in God entirely can’t be compared with Job’s, not worthy of mentioning at all. My little faith makes me a laughing stock of Satan and a mark of humiliation to God. Thinking about that, my heart was filled with guilt toward God, and then I established a resolution: No matter how painful or difficult it may be, I will never betray God but follow Him to the end.
The next noon, my husband came back with the newspaper and threw it at me, saying, “Read it carefully! It says whoever is discovered to believe in Almighty God will be arrested. The prison is simply not a place for man to stay. Apart from suffering beating, scores of prisoners have to squash together in one bed. And if someone goes to the toilet during midnight, he’ll find no room left on the bed when coming back. If you’re under arrest, we won’t have money to ransom you. Isn’t it that only after being imprisoned for several years can you be well-behaved?” Hearing his words, I felt much pain and could only cry out to God in my heart: “O Almighty God, I know all the CCP government spreads are rumors and slanders against You. The CCP is exactly Your enemy. May You give me Your wisdom so that I can see through the crafty plot of Satan and never allow it to prevail. I wish to firmly stand on Your side.” At that time, I didn’t dare to turn away from God in the slightest, and then I thought of Almighty God’s words, “When the Lord Jesus did something such as bringing Lazarus back from the dead, His goal was to give proof for humans and for Satan to see, and to let humans and Satan know that mankind’s everything, mankind’s life and death are determined by God, and that even though He had become flesh, as always, He remained in command of the physical world that can be seen as well as the spiritual world humans cannot see. This was to let humans and Satan know that mankind’s everything is not under the command of Satan. This was a revealing and a demonstration of God’s authority, and it was also a way for God to send a message to all things that mankind’s life and death is in God’s hands. The Lord Jesus’ resurrection of Lazarus—this type of approach was one of the ways for the Creator to teach and instruct mankind. It was a concrete action in which He used His ability and authority to instruct mankind, and to provide for humans. It was a way without words for the Creator to allow mankind to see the truth of Him being in command of all things. It was a way for Him to tell mankind through practical actions that there is no salvation other than through Him. This type of silent means of His instructing mankind lasts forever—it is indelible, and it brought to human hearts a shock and enlightenment that can never fade. The resurrection of Lazarus glorified God—this has a deep impact on every single one of God’s followers. It firmly fixes in every person who deeply understands this event the understanding, the vision that only God can command mankind’s life and death” (“God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III”). Inspired by God’s resurrection of Lazarus, I again had strength and became unyielding: Yes! God rules over all things in the universe and no one except for Him can command man’s life and death. God protected me once again. My faith in Him increased, and the panic and fear in my heart dissipated a lot.
The rumors fabricated by the CCP government broke our peaceful life. In order to avoid domestic disputes, I attended meetings and fulfilled my duty with great caution, which made me feel pretty pressured. Afterward, when my father heard about the “May 28 Zhaoyuan Case,” he also opposed me, saying, “You can believe in God as you like. Just don’t preach the gospel to others or attend meetings outside. I’m old now. You should think about the whole family.” I suffered a lot from the persecution and misunderstanding of my family, afraid of bringing trouble to them once I was careless. So every time before I went out, I would carefully hide the books of God’s words and other things relating to my belief, lest those unbelievers would discover them and report to the CCP. In that case, my home would be ransacked, and my old father and unmarried son would suffer with me. Therefore, I was constantly in a high state of alert, and my heart would flow up into my mouth when there was the smallest sign of disturbance, which really made me miserable. I felt believing in God in China was simply like living on the edge of knife, and thus I loathed this atheistic party even more: What crime is it to believe in God and walk on the correct path? Why does the CCP forbid people to believe in God? Why does it frantically repress the believers in God? And why does it hate people who believe in God so much?
Later, through reading Almighty God’s words, I understood the truth. God says, “God works, God cares for a person, looks upon a person, and Satan dogs His every step. Whoever God favors, Satan also watches, trailing along behind. If God wants this person, Satan would do everything in its power to obstruct God, using various evil ways to tempt, harass and wreck the work God does in order to achieve its hidden objective. What is its objective? It does not want God to have anyone; it wants all those that God wants, to possess them, control them, to take charge of them so they worship it, so they commit evil acts alongside it. Is this not Satan’s sinister motive? … This issue has made Satan’s hideous countenance and its essence very clear. Satan is at war with God, trailing along behind Him. Its objective is to demolish all the work God wants to do, to possess and control those whom God wants, to completely extinguish those whom God wants. If they are not extinguished, then they come to Satan’s possession to be used by it—this is its objective” (“God Himself, the Unique IV”). Almighty God’s words made me suddenly see the light. I realized: It is a spiritual battle. Satan is the enemy of God, the devil betraying and opposing God; ever since Satan corrupted mankind, it has kept them under its control, not letting them worship God, and it doesn’t want God to gain the mankind He created; therefore, from when God started His work of saving mankind, Satan has been doing its utmost to demolish God’s work, using various despicable means to disturb mankind and hinder them from returning to God; its objective is to make the mankind God created lose God’s salvation, to drag them into hell in the end. Now in order to hinder me believing in God, Satan actually uses those rumors to disturb God’s work and drive a wedge between me and my family, and uses affection and psychological tactics to threaten and attack me. Its goal is to force me to deny and betray God, to control me and make me become its slave and ultimately be destroyed by God alongside it. The motive of the CCP government is so sinister, and it is truly the enemy of God and the soul-devouring demon. Just as God says, “Satan wins its fame through deceiving the public. It often establishes itself as a vanguard and role model of righteousness. Under the banner of safeguarding righteousness, it harms man, devours their souls, and uses all sorts of means to benumb, deceive and incite man. Its goal is to make man approve of and follow along with its evil conduct, to make man join it in opposing God’s authority and sovereignty. However, when one grows wise to its schemes, plotting and vile features and does not wish to continue to be trampled upon and fooled by it or to continue slaving away for it, or to be punished and destroyed together with it, Satan changes its previously saintly features and tears off its false mask to reveal its true evil, vicious, ugly and savage face. It would love nothing more than to exterminate all those who refuse to follow it and those who oppose its evil forces” (“God Himself, the Unique II”). The revelation of God’s words made me see through the true face of the CCP government. It is the downright embodiment of Satan and the evil force opposing God; under the banner of safeguarding righteousness, it made use of the “May 28 Zhaoyuan Case” to fabricate rumors and frame the Church of Almighty God, trying to benumb, deceive and incite people, so that they would approve its evil conduct, defend its evil regime, and stand on its side to oppose God; furthermore, it seeks to capture all the God’s chosen people and ban the Church of Almighty God, so as to attain its ambition and desire of setting up a region without God forever on earth. The CCP government in substance is truly treacherous and evil to the extreme.
After having some understanding of the spiritual battle, I had another question in my heart: “Is God not almighty? So why does He allow the CCP government to persecute us?” Later, Almighty God’s words resolved my confusion once again. Almighty God says, “I once said that My wisdom is exercised based on Satan’s schemes. Why did I say that? Is that not the truth behind what I am saying and doing right now?” (“The Inside Truth of the Conquering Work”). “God intends to use a portion of evil spirits’ work to perfect a portion of man, so that these people can completely see through demons’ deeds, and allow everyone to understand their ancestors. Only then can humans completely break free, not only forsaking the posterity of the demons, but even more so their ancestors. This is the original intent of God completely defeating the great red dragon, to make it so that all of man knows the great red dragon’s true form, completely tearing off its mask, and seeing its true form. This is what God wants to achieve, and it is His final goal on earth for which He has done so much work; He aims to accomplish this in all of man. This is known as the maneuver of all things for God’s purpose” (“Interpretation of the Forty-first Utterance”).
From Almighty God’s words, I came to understand: God’s work in the last days is to reveal man and class man according to kind. And in this work, God wants to gain a group of people who truly believe in Him and are of the same mind with Him, that is, those who won’t yield to Satan under its evil force but stand testimony for God. God shall take such a group of people into the kingdom and into the beautiful destination. However, among God’s followers, there are true believers and false believers, and those who pursue the truth and those who make up the numbers and believe in God just for blessings. And only through the service of Satan and the CCP government’s evil force, will God reveal the true believers and the false ones, and perfect God’s chosen people. Thus the CCP government is exactly a serving object and the foil in God’s work, and God uses its schemes to great effect: For one thing, God can make a group of overcomers complete; for another thing, man can see through the substance of the CCP government, discern good and evil, black and white, positive things and negative things, and thus rejects Satan and returns to God. From God’s work, I saw God’s wisdom and omnipotence, and that His wisdom is exercised based on Satan’s schemes.
I saw a passage of God’s words, “We trust that no country or power can stand in the way of what God wishes to achieve. Those that obstruct God’s work, resist the word of God, disturb and impair the plan of God shall ultimately be punished by God. He who defies the work of God shall be sent to hell; any country that defies the work of God shall be destroyed; any nation that rises up to oppose the work of God shall be wiped from this earth, and shall cease to exist” (“God Presides Over the Fate of All Mankind”).
From God’s words, I saw God’s righteous and majestic disposition. Although the CCP government has been frenziedly persecuting and defying God’s work, His work still expands to every nation in the world, which proves that no one can stand in the way of God’s work. Since the CCP government resists God so wildly, it will surely suffer God’s righteous punishment and be destroyed by God when God’s work comes to an end. This is determined by God’s righteous disposition. Almighty God’s words cleared up my confusions and suddenly lit up my heart. I couldn’t help releasing a sigh from deep within and praising God’s wondrous deeds: God’s wisdom precisely soars higher than the heavens, and He is indeed wise to utilize the efforts of the CCP government. God’s salvation for mankind is so practical, making me completely convinced and praise Him endlessly. Then I prayed to God in my heart: “O God, I don’t want to be the tare or chaff winnowed out in the time of Your winnowing, or be blown away by the wind. I want to be the wheat gathered into the storehouse by You. And the CCP government is actually serving as the wind. O God, I have never satisfied You before, but now in the CCP’s frenzied persecution, I’m willing to offer up my true heart, pursue the truth properly, and become a person who thirsts for righteousness and seeks the light; I won’t yield to the CCP’s evil influence. I will stand witness for You to glorify You.” When I had such knowledge, I became strong in spirit, and understood that my family’s misunderstanding and hindrance were arranged by God for saving me. So I no longer complained about the environment around me, nor was I constrained by it. Instead, I was very grateful to God, and made a resolution in my heart: No matter what type of environment God arranges for me, I will stand testimony for Him, perform my duty faithfully, and never betray Him.
After that, I saw God’s deeds. My husband no longer opposed or persecuted me as before. Rather, he said to me, “I didn’t mean to prevent your belief in God. I acknowledge that you’ve changed after you believed in God. Just be careful when you go out for meetings.” Hearing his words, my eyes were filled with tears, and I thanked God and praised His deeds within. This truly allowed me to see that justice can overwhelm all darkness and evil. In this experience, although I suffered the bitterness of refinement, I have gained a little knowledge of God’s wise work, and had some discernment of the positive and the negative. All these are the riches of my life, and they even more inspire me to thirst for the truth and seek the light.
All the glory be to Almighty God!