By Wenzhong
I am an ordinary peasant. In order to have a good life, I had been working hard for decades, going out to work at sunrise and returning home to rest at sunset. When I saw that my wife’s cousins were always busy preaching the gospel and didn’t earn money, I couldn’t help but think: Doesn’t man live for making money to have a better life? Could their such faith in God enable them to have a good life?
In the blink of an eye it was 2014. Owing to the conflict between my family and our neighbor, my wife was charged and imprisoned, and I was forced to lodge in my relative’s house, living by tending the sheep. Later when my relative, who believed in God, preached the gospel to me, I thought: I can’t believe in God; if I do so, I’ll have no time to make money, and then how can I have a good life? So, I said to him: “I know that belief in God is a good thing, but I have to earn money to feed my family and live a good life. So there is no more need to preach the gospel to me.” Regardless of my resolute attitude, my relative didn’t give up. When we were having dinner together, he often turned on his MP5 player and played the recitations of God’s words and hymns for me, and sometimes had me watch the gospel movies of their church and fellowshiped with me patiently. Seeing him so persistent and conscientious, I was no longer as obstinate as before but listened to and read God’s words perfunctorily.
One day when I was about to tend the sheep with my portable radio as usual, my relative handed me a brand-new MP5 player and said: “Your radio is old. Take this please.” When tending the sheep in the hill, I was at a loose end as the sheep were eating grass, thinking: Ordinarily, when my relative fellowshiped with me and played the gospel videos for me, I didn’t take it seriously, so I don’t know what exactly it is to believe in God. Why don’t I turn on the MP5 player to see what mystery is in it? Thinking of this, I turned on the MP5 player and heard the following words: “Where you will go every day, what you will do, who or what you will encounter, what you will say, what will happen to you—can any of this be predicted? People cannot foresee all these occurrences, much less control how these situations develop. In life, these unforeseeable events happen all the time; they are an everyday occurrence. These daily vicissitudes and the ways they unfold, or the patterns they follow, are constant reminders to humanity that nothing happens at random, that the process of each event’s occurrence, each event’s ineluctable nature, cannot be shifted by human will. Every occurrence conveys an admonition from the Creator to mankind, and it also sends the message that human beings cannot control their own fates. Every event is a rebuttal to humanity’s wild, futile ambition and desire to take its fate into its own hands. They are like powerful slaps about humanity’s face, one after another, forcing people to reconsider who, in the end, governs and controls their fate. And as their ambitions and desires are repeatedly thwarted and shattered, humans naturally arrive at an unconscious acceptance of what fate has in store—an acceptance of reality, of the will of Heaven and the Creator’s sovereignty. From these daily vicissitudes to the fates of entire human lives, there is nothing that does not reveal the Creator’s plans and His sovereignty; there is nothing that does not send the message that ‘the Creator’s authority cannot be exceeded,’ that does not convey this eternal truth that ‘the Creator’s authority is supreme.’”
I was profoundly drawn in by these words. I kept listening to and pondering them and thought: These words are so consistent with the facts; isn’t it a true portrayal of my life? Thinking back on how I have been striving for money these decades, to live a good life, I have tried various means to earn more money; I was once a coal miner, and have run a business. However, not once have I fulfilled my wish to earn money as I have planned, nor have I improved the condition of my family. Instead, we came into conflict with our neighbor, with the result that my wife was imprisoned, and I was forced to leave home, seeking refuge with my relative and living by tending the sheep. It doesn’t conform to my belief that struggling to earn money enables us to have a good life at all. It seems that regardless of whether man believes in God or not, his fate is ruled over by the hands of God, and he is incapable of controlling himself. Whether man is poor or rich depends on God’s arrangement and predestination, not on how he rushes and busies about; if man is destined to be poor, regardless of the effort he puts in, he won’t become rich. Just as the following words say: “From these daily vicissitudes to the fates of entire human lives, there is nothing that does not reveal the Creator’s plans and His sovereignty; there is nothing that does not send the message that ‘the Creator’s authority cannot be exceeded,’ that does not convey this eternal truth that “the Creator’s authority is supreme.” These words are spoken so well and are so true. The more I listened, the more I wanted to listen and the more my heart became clear.
After hearing this piece of word, I confirmed in my heart: This is the true way; these words are not something that could be spoken by us humans; only the Creator can see everything in the world so clearly and reveal such mysteries. Not until this moment did I come to understand why my relatives always asked me to listen to these words, and why they persistently believe in God and preach the gospel. These words lay bare the reality of the world, reveal the journey that every person takes in the course of his or her life, and allow us to know that only God is the Ruler of our fate. I thought: Since this God is so authoritative and so powerful, I should believe in Him and rely on Him. When I had this thought, I felt very relaxed. Seeing the green hill and blue sky and the sheep grazing on lush grass, I had an indescribable joy in my heart. Yet I still felt a little confused: Will belief in God interfere with my earning money to have a good life?
When I came back in the afternoon, I told my relative my thoughts and confusion. Hearing that, he was pleasantly surprised and said: “Thank God! It’s God’s words that have opened your heart and allowed you to be willing to come before Him. And it’s not uncommon for you to have such confusion. Let’s read God’s words, and then you will understand. God says: ‘God created humans and placed them upon earth, and He has led them ever since. He then saved them…. Humanity lost their God-fearing heart as well as the function incumbent upon God’s creatures after being corrupted by Satan, thereby becoming an enemy disobedient to God. Humanity then lived under Satan’s domain and followed Satan’s orders; thus, God had no way to work among His creatures, and became all the more unable to win their fearful reverence. Humans were created by God, and ought to worship God, but they actually turned their backs on Him and worshiped Satan instead. Satan became the idol in their hearts. Thus, God lost His standing in their hearts, which is to say that He lost the meaning behind His creation of humanity. Therefore, to restore the meaning behind His creation of humanity, He must restore their original likeness and rid humanity of their corrupt dispositions.’ ‘Being at peace before God does not mean not cooking or doing chores, or not living one’s life; rather, it is being able to quiet one’s heart before God in all normal states, and to have a place for God in one’s heart. When you pray, you should kneel down properly before God to pray; when you do chores or prepare food, quiet your heart before God, ponder God’s words, or sing hymns.’”
After reading God’s words, my relative fellowshiped: “Belief in God doesn’t mean not working or ignoring life; it’s our imagination and is not really true. In the beginning, before He created man, God had prepared everything that man needed; He gave us air, sunshine, and water and created grains, fruits, and vegetables that are needed for our existence; and the sun, the moon, the universe, and the starry sky have all been orbiting systematically and regularly within the laws set down by God. From these facts we can know that God’s will is for us to exist in a better way on earth. But since our ancestors Adam and Eve disobeyed God’s word and were deceived by Satan, eating of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, we humans have fallen under the domain of Satan, began to busy and rush about for making a good living, and thereby pain and trouble all emerged. Several thousand years have passed, and generation after generation of people only know to live for money, fame, and gain. But who has ever lived a better life because of having money? In this age when man has been corrupted by Satan to the extreme, every one of us is striving for money, wishing to become the people at the top through our struggle. Because of money, many people use unscrupulous tactics to bluff and deceive, ending up in prison; many parents and their children become enemies and even confront at court; and many people have earned a fortune but completely ruined their health, among whom some died at an early age, while some are riddled with sickness…. Looking at these people, who has led the life that he meant to live? Actually, as long as we live under the domain of Satan without God’s blessing and guidance, we will always live in pain, and will never have a good life. God understands our suffering and circumstances like a mother understands her own child, so He has personally come to save us, expressing words to tell us how to free ourselves from the human hell of suffering. Only if we come before God, conduct ourselves according to His words, and submit to His sovereignty and arrangement, can we thoroughly break free from Satan’s affliction and live the real happy life. Therefore, it is the law of heaven and earth that we humans believe in God and worship Him. God hopes that we can worship Him, no longer be deceived or bound by money, fame, and status, and depart from the harm of Satan. And He never forbids us to work to earn our living. This is something that our normal humanity should do and doesn’t conflict with the belief in God or the pursuit of truth at all.”
After hearing God’s words and my relative’s fellowship, my misgivings were dispelled, and my heart became much more enlightened. In retrospect, most of my life has passed, yet I still haven’t lived the life that I wish for. It turns out that living under the domain of Satan without God’s guidance and blessing, I will never obtain happiness. I am a creature, so only by believing in God, worshiping Him, and living according to His words can I be blessed by God and have real happiness.
In the days that followed, I tended the sheep and attended the meetings, and when I was free, I would read God’s words; my belief in God not only didn’t affect my life, but made me feel a great release in my heart. From God’s words I saw that Job lived his life for worshiping God, and God blessed him with great wealth. When God tested him, making him lose all of his possession, he could obey God’s sovereignty and arrangement, still praised God’s name, and feared God and shunned evil; then he received double blessings from God. Abraham worshiped God and obeyed God all his life; when God tested him, seeing whether he had true obedience, he offered his only son to God. God saw his true heart and blessed him with descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven, and as plentiful as the sand on the sea shore. I couldn’t help but admire and respect them: They lived for worshiping God all their life and bore strong and resounding testimonies for God. Only living a life this way has value.
Later, I saw God’s words say: “Are you aware of the burden on your shoulders, your commission, and your responsibility? Where is your sense of historic mission? How will you adequately serve as a master in the next age? Do you have a strong sense of masterhood? How would you explain the master of all things? Is it really the master of all living creatures and of all physical things in the world? What plans do you have for the progress of the next phase of the work? How many people are waiting for you to be their shepherd? Is your task a heavy one? They are poor, pitiable, blind, and at a loss, wailing in the darkness—where is the way? How they yearn for the light, like a shooting star, to suddenly descend and dispel the forces of darkness that have oppressed man for so many years. Who can know the full extent to which they anxiously hope, and how they pine, day and night, for this? Even on a day when the light flashes past, these deeply suffering people remain imprisoned in a dark dungeon without hope of release; when will they weep no longer? Terrible is the misfortune of these fragile spirits who have never been granted rest, and long have they been kept bound in this state by merciless bonds and frozen history. And who has heard the sound of their wailing? Who has looked upon their miserable state? Has it ever occurred to you how grieved and anxious God’s heart is? How can He bear to see innocent mankind, whom He created with His own hands, suffering such torment? Human beings, after all, are the victims who have been poisoned. And although man has survived to this day, who would have known that mankind has long been poisoned by the evil one? Have you forgotten that you are one of the victims? Are you not willing to strive, out of your love for God, to save these survivors? Are you not willing to devote all of your energy to repaying God, who loves mankind like His own flesh and blood?” “As members of the human race and devout Christians, it is the responsibility and obligation of us all to offer up our minds and bodies for the fulfillment of God’s commission, for our entire being came from God, and it exists thanks to the sovereignty of God. If our minds and bodies are not for God’s commission and not for the righteous cause of mankind, then our souls will be unworthy of those who were martyred for God’s commission, and much more unworthy of God, who has provided us with everything.”
After reading God’s words I came to understand that the brothers and sisters’ trekking and expending for God is to witness God’s work and spread God’s kingdom gospel, and to take before God those souls that are living under the influence of Satan. I recalled that I was also a victim: Having been afflicted by Satan all my life, I knew only to sweat and labor to make a fortune. Though I have busily rushed about and worked frantically all my life, my family in the end were scattered and couldn’t return home. If God had not brought me back to His family through my relative preaching the gospel to me, if He had not awakened me with His genuine words, I would still be subjected to the affliction of Satan. Since my entire being came from God, I should believe in and worship Him, live according to His words, and even more repay His love. Now God incarnate has expressed His words to save man in the last days; if I do have conscience, I should testify to God’s work to more people so that those who are longing for the appearance of God and hunger and thirst for righteousness can receive God’s salvation and get the truth and life. This is the most meaningful and glorious thing a created being could ever do in this world.
Preaching the gospel to witness God is being considerate toward God’s desires, and is a good deed and righteous action. But in the past I had an opinion about those brothers and sisters preaching the gospel, thinking that they did not live a normal life, and saying that the positive was the negative. I was so ignorant! In gatherings, I learned that many saints and disciples of the ages who truly worshiped God and expended for Him, had offered their bodies, their lives and spilled their blood to spread the gospel and bear witness to God; while we, who believe in God in the last days, have understood and received more truths from God’s words than the saints of the ages, and God has led us onto the bright and right path of thoroughly escaping the dark influence of Satan and pursuing salvation, so shouldn’t we even more devote ourselves to bearing witness for God? Thank God for His grace so that I could accept His salvation and have the opportunity to know the Creator when I was sixty—over the age of acknowledging the will of Heaven; this is the greatest happiness in my life. I am willing to accept God’s commission and fulfill my duty as a created being, sharing God’s salvation for me with more people to bear witness to God and repay His love.
