Why Do Christians Risk Their Lives to Preach the Gospel and Witness for God?

Why Do Christians Risk Their Lives to Preach the Gospel and Witness for God?

Hou Xiangke (Chief of the Public Security Bureau): It is absolutely impossible for you to believe in God and preach the gospel in a country ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Whoever insists on believing in God and spreading the gospel will be terminated. Do you know how many Christians have suffered tragic death in prison? Do you know how many Christians were killed and their families shattered? No one can defy the power of the Communist Party! If you insist on believing in God and spreading the gospel, then your fate is imprisonment and death! Do you see this outcome clearly?

Ma Jinlong (Captain of the National Security Team): Your Church of Almighty God is a heartsore for the central leadership. The Communist Party sees you as the number one enemy. It won’t rest until you are eradicated. Do you know how much manpower and money the Communist Party has mobilized for the suppression and banning of the Church of Almighty God? The price is too high! Don’t you see the meaning behind all these? You are still spreading the gospel, witnessing for God and spreading the word of Almighty God everywhere. It is like ramming your chest against a gun barrel. Aren’t you stupid? This is how we should take care of you! If you sit quietly at home, no one is going to bother you.

Han Lu (A Christian): The Communist Party has always regarded those who believe in God as enemies. It can’t wait to exterminate them. Do you think you can ban the salvation work of God for mankind? When the Lord Jesus came to do redemptive work, wasn’t He nailed on the cross by the religious community in coalition with the authorities? They thought that they had succeeded, and the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus had certainly failed. But what was unexpected was that the Lord Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished.” God’s redemptive work was accomplished by the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus. What does this mean? The wisdom of God was built on the guile of Satan. The redemptive gospel of the Lord Jesus has been spread throughout the earth. This is the accepted fact. These years, the Chinese Communist government has been frantically suppressing and persecuting the Church of Almighty God. It even boasted, “Troops won’t be withdrawn until the ban is done.” However, what is the outcome? Not only has the Church of Almighty God not been banned, it has been thriving instead. Do you know why it is so? It is God’s authority, God’s power! Whatever God wants to accomplish, no nations or forces can obstruct. Why do we steadfastly believe in God, spread the gospel and witness for God? Do you know why? This era is about to end. The catastrophe is about to come. Only those who have accepted the work of Almighty God of the last days and received cleansing can receive the salvation of God and escape perils. How can we not spread the gospel like this? If we don’t, many people will be unable to return to God and perish in the catastrophe. Many souls will end up in hell for punishment! For the sake of these souls, can we sit idly at home for fleshly comfort? Can we just shamefully survive out of fear of the CCP government’s arrest and persecution? If so, our conscience will not be at peace! So, many Christians risk going to prison and losing their lives to spread the gospel and witness for God. What kind of spirit is this? Can you comprehend it? Yet you can treat the good people who believe in God as the country’s most wanted. I just don’t understand it. What good will it do for the stability of state power? Throughout history, those nations and races that had frantically resisted and opposed God were destroyed by God. This is all true. Just as Almighty God says, “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.” God’s righteous disposition is unoffendable. All those who resist God must suffer the punishment of God.

from the movie script of Sweetness in Adversity

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FALSE DEMONSTRATIONS AGAINST THE CHURCH OF ALMIGHTY GOD REFUGEES START IN SOUTH KOREA

FALSE DEMONSTRATIONS AGAINST THE CHURCH OF ALMIGHTY GOD REFUGEES START IN SOUTH KOREA

08/31/2018 BY ADMIN

Executing a secret plan that Bitter Winter revealed one month ago, the CCP brings to Korea relatives of asylum seekers of The Church of Almighty God and organizes false “spontaneous demonstrations” with the help of pro-Chinese anti-cult activists.

On August 4, 2018, Bitter Winter published a secret document by the Chinese Communist Party calling for harassment in South Korea of the asylum seekers of The Church of Almighty God (CAG), a Chinese Christian new religious movement heavily persecuted in China. The CCP called for the recruitment of the relatives of the asylum seekers who still live in China, if necessary through threats and coercion, who would then call for the “return home” of the refugees (who obviously would not return “home” but, once in China, will be arrested and will thus “return” to jail). The plan also sought the cooperation of pro-Chinese activists in South Korea and anti-cultists hostile to the CAG.

Bitter Winter has now learned that the CCP’s plan is being put into execution. On August 27, Ms. O Myung-ok (吴明玉Wu Mingyu), a pro-Chinese and anti-CAG activist, published several reports on some pro-Chinese and/or anti-cult Korean media, including Religion and Truth, releasing fake news claiming that CAG members are false refugees and are abusing the refugee system, and that the belief in Almighty God leads to family disruption. These reports strongly called for the deportation of CAG members back to China.

As these media disclosed, between August 30 and September 4, more than 50 people, including a dozen of family members of CAG refugees who are in Korea, and congregants from five Korean Christian groups active in campaigns against “cults,” will demonstrate against the CAG outside the Jeju court, Jeju Parliament, the CAG community in Onsu, the CAG worship building (i.e. the place where CAG members offer prayers regularly), the Blue House (Cheong Wa Dae, the executive office and official residence of the South Korean head of state, the President of the Republic of Korea), and other places. They held a press conference on August 31 as well. All this information has been confirmed by confidential sources in Korea and by CAG members Bitter Winter interviewed.

On the afternoon of August 30, one CAG member learned from his mother, who currently lives in China, that CCP officers had gone to his family two months ago, asking his relatives to cooperate with them by going to Korea to get him back to China. At a rough estimate, more than 10 relatives of CAG members were requested by the CCP to do the same thing. The CCP especially opened a WeChat account to have frequent discussions with them about this. This member’s mother also told him that his elder sister and her husband were on the way to Jeju with governmental staff members. They were asked to stay in South Korea for as long as possible. His mother insisted, “Things are getting serious. You’d better come back with them, or else we’ll get into big trouble.”

Another Korean CAG member and her husband, who are Korean Chinese, fled to Korea because of the CCP’s persecution in China. On August 29, when she made a phone call to her mother, who lives in China, she was told that her mother and cousin (male) would come to Korea to visit her and that they were waiting for the plane flying to Jeju at the moment. The CAG member told her mother that they live in Seoul and asked her to fly to Seoul directly. But her mother said she couldn’t do that since they had to stay in Jeju for two days and then go to Seoul later as scheduled, and that their hotel rooms in Jeju had already been booked. The CAG member noticed that her mother hesitated over talking and even left to her cousin the conversation when she couldn’t make herself clear. It is important to note that this cousin is working for a governmental television station in China.

On the afternoon of August 30, Ms. O Myung-ok went to the airport to pick up five cameramen (three males and two females) flying from Seoul. As far as we have learned, some 15 Chinese relatives had arrived in Jeju, while Chinese officers are also coming to Korea to direct the campaign on site. According to their agenda, on August 31 and September 1, they will stage demonstrations at the Jeju court and the Parliament building and organize press conferences; they will stage demonstrations at the CAG community in Onsu on September 2, at the Blue House on September 3, and at the CAG worship building on September 4 respectively.

When CAG refugees learned that their family members were coming to Korea, they asked to meet them as soon as possible. So The Church of Almighty God contacted the Korean police on their behalf, asking for help to arrange meetings with their family members. When the police contacted Ms. O Myung-ok, she said she couldn’t let them meet each other until they finish the demonstrations and press conferences.

We have learned from informed Korean sources that Ms. O and the CCP claim that The Church of Almighty God is trying to prevent its members to meet their relatives coming from China to Korea. This is not the case, and in fact, it is Ms. O who is preventing the relatives to meet the CAG members. Obviously, the CCP and the anti-cultists are interested in their propaganda rather than in the welfare of the families.

Nine international NGOs specialized in the defense of religious liberty, including CAP-LC, which has consultative status at the United Nations’ ECOSOC, have signed an appeal (below), dated August 31, to end this ruthless persecution of harmless refugees, strongly condemning the actions of both the CCP and the Korean anti-cultists.

Ms. O Myung-ok

The Appel of the Nine NGOs

Stop the Persecution of Chinese Refugees of The Church of Almighty God in South Korea

Heavily persecuted in China, with many documented cases of torture and extra-judicial killings, hundreds of members of The Church of Almighty God have escaped to South Korea, where they are seeking refugee status. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is pursuing them also in Korea. It has coerced or persuaded with threats their relatives to go to Korea and ask that the refugees “return home,” i.e. go back to China where they would not go “home” but to jail, and is staging false “spontaneous demonstrations” with the help of local organizations against the “cults.”

It is a scandal that for the CCP persecuting religious dissidents in China is not enough. They are pursued even in the countries where they have escaped, with the help of misguided “anti-cultists” and pro-Chinese sympathizers.

We ask the Chinese authorities to immediately stop this campaign of hate against harmless refugees, and the Korean authorities to grant asylum to the believers of The Church of Almighty God who, should they return to China, would face arrest, detention, and probable torture.

August 31, 2018

CAP-LC Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience

CESNUR – Center for Studies on New Religions

EIFRF European Inter-Religious Forum for Religious Freedom

FOB – European Federation for Freedom of Belief

FOREF – Forum for Religious Freedom Europe

HRWF – Human Rights Without Frontiers

LIREC – Center for Studies on Freedom of Belief, Religion and Conscience

ORLIR – International Observatory of Religious Liberty of Refugees

Soteria International

                                        From Bitter Winter

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Christian Skit "The Village Mayor's Limits" Who Has Made Christians Homeless (Based on True Story)

Christian Skit "The Village Mayor's Limits" Who Has Made Christians Homeless (Based on True Story)

Introduction

Christian Skit "The Village Mayor's Limits" Who Has Made Christians Homeless (Based on True Story)

The skit The Village Mayor's Limits tells the true story of a Christian husband and wife who are forced to flee because of the CCP government's persecution.

The Picture of The Church of Almighty God

Christian Liu Ming'en is sentenced by the CCP to seven years in prison for believing in God. Even after he is released from jail, he remains a target of heavy CCP surveillance. The village mayor uses the five-household responsibility system, security cameras, house visits, and other methods to prevent Liu Ming'en and his wife from believing in God, but none of it has the desired effect. This time, the mayor again receives a priority communiqué from Party Central, after which he tries to think of ways to force Liu Ming'en and his wife to sign a letter promising to stop believing in God. After his trick fails, the police again come to arrest the two believers. To avoid arrest and continue following God and believing in God, Liu Ming'en and his wife are forced to flee their home.

Recommendation：The Church of Almighty God was created because of the appearance and work of Almighty God, the second coming of the Lord Jesus, Christ of the last days.

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Regenerated in God’s Word | The church of Almighty God

                                 Wang Gang    Shandong Province

      I was a peasant. As my family was poor, I kept working everywhere to make money, just wanting to live a better life through my own labor. However, in real life I saw that the lawful rights and interests of a rural worker like me couldn’t be guaranteed at all. My wages were often withheld for no reason. Deceived and exploited by others again and again, I couldn’t get the payment I deserved for a year’s hard work. I felt that the world was too dark! People lived by the law of the jungle like animals and contended with and fought against each other. There was simply no place for me to live. When I was extremely distressed and depressed in my heart and lost confidence in life, a friend preached Almighty God’s end-time salvation to me. From then on, I often had meetings with the brothers and sisters, and we prayed, sang, and fellowshipped about the truth together. We learned from each other and made up for each other’s deficiencies, and I felt especially happy and released. In the Church of Almighty God, I saw that there was no deception or distinction of position among the brothers and sisters. We were all simple and open and lived in harmony. In order to cast off the corrupt disposition and live out the likeness of a man and thus be saved, all of us were striving to pursue the truth, which let me taste the happiness of life and understand the value and meaning of life. Therefore, I always felt that I should preach the gospel so that more people who lived in darkness could come before God to be saved by God and see the light again. So, I joined in preaching the gospel to testify God. However, I never expected that I would be arrested by the CCP government for preaching the gospel and suffer the extremely cruel tortures and imprisonment.

Pictures of The Church of Almighty God | Regenerated in God’s Word

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After Undergoing the Devil’s Affliction, I Knew More Clearly God’s Grace Is Precious | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

Xu Qiang    Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

My name is Xu Qiang. I was once a project contractor. I led many people to undertake contracted projects every year and had a good income. In the eyes of my contemporaries, I had a happy family and smooth career and had a great future, so I should be the happiest man. However, while enjoying the material life, I felt an unexplainable emptiness in my heart. Especially in order to undertake contracted projects, I had to ingratiate myself with the leaders of the relevant departments all day, observing their speech and behavior and fawning and flattering them. All those had to be handled extremely well, or I couldn’t earn money. Moreover, people of the same trade intrigued against one another and guarded and schemed against one another, which made me exhaust all mental efforts…. Thus, I felt very bitter and tired and felt as if I became a puppet and a moneymaking machine, losing my dignity and integrity completely. In 1999, I accepted Almighty God’s end-time work. The feeling of release in the church life and the simplicity and honesty of the brothers and sisters made me deeply moved. I liked very much to live the church life and even more liked to stay with the brothers and sisters, and I treasured such time very much. As I read God’s word and attended meetings constantly, I understood many truths and was greatly released in my heart. I felt very thankful that I had found the true human life and the true happiness. And my heart was full of gratitude to God. If God didn’t save me from the sea of misery of the world, I would never have hope in my life. Later, I began to preach the gospel, running joyfully and tirelessly among the people who investigated the true way, so that they could receive Almighty God’s salvation earlier.

The picture of Eastern Lightning

However, in China, this atheistic country, people don’t have any democracy or human rights. Especially people who believe in God and worship God will be even more oppressed and persecuted by the government. On December 18, 2005, I was arrested by the police. From then on, my hellish life began…. After experiencing that miserable life, I truly felt that God’s word is my life and my true love. If it were not for God’s word leading me and giving me strength and faith all the time, I couldn’t possibly have lived till today. God’s grace of salvation is unforgettable to me for life.

That morning, several brothers and sisters and I were having a meeting. Suddenly, there was a violent knocking on the door. Before we could have much thought, more than ten cops had broken in. They all stared with angry eyes and bore murderous looks on their faces. That scene was just like that of arresting the most serious escaped criminals in movies. Before saying any words, they took off all our shoes for fear that we might run away, and then they pulled out our belts and bound our hands backward. They took away all our things, such as cell phones, watches, cash, and so on. The evil cops roared and ordered us to kneel in a row against the wall. If we acted slowly, they pressed us down on the floor by pushing and kicking us. After that, they ransacked boxes and chests here and there. Only a short time later, the house was turned into a complete mess. Seeing that, I asked them indignantly, “We didn’t break the law. Why do you arrest us?” Unexpectedly, an evil cop rushed over and knocked me to the floor and roared at me fiercely, “You believers in God are exactly the ones we are catching. If we don’t weed you out, we can’t even sleep soundly.” The roar of rage shocked me and made me sober, “The one the devil hates is God. How can it let us believers in God off? I’m really too blind and ignorant!” Then I prayed to God silently to keep us, so that we could stand testimony and would not betray God. After a short time, the cops who guarded us questioned me, “Who asked you to preach everywhere? Who’s the church leader?” I said, “We all preach the gospel voluntarily.” He cursed, “Nonsense! Don’t be tough-lipped, bastard. See what awaits you shortly!” Just then, the roaring abuse of a female cop came from another room, “Bring me a needle. How dare you hide yourself! …” My heart flew up into my mouth immediately. Then I realized that a young sister among us was missing. She tried to hide herself and escape the evil cops’ arrest, but she was found. Seizing the young sister, the evil cop used a steel needle to prick the flesh under her fingernails and the arches of her feet furiously and pulled off her hair strand by strand savagely. In the end, they left behind that young sister who fainted, and took us together with the possessions they plundered from us and left the scene quickly.

Around noon, the evil cops took us to the police station and then interrogated us separately. The one in charge of my interrogation was a tall and sturdy evil cop. As soon as he entered the interrogation room, he shouted at me to kneel to him. I said, “I only worship God. Only the Ruler of the heavens and the earth and all things is worthy of man’s kneeling. I’ll never kneel to you!” On hearing that, he pointed at me and roared, “I tell you, even if the king of hell comes here, he has to walk sideways! Who the fuck are you? If I don’t let you taste death several times, you won’t know ‘Prince Ma’ has three eyes. Get down on your knees!” As he said that, he kicked me down to the floor. Then he questioned me, “Come clean with me! Are you a church leader? Where are the church books kept?” I was somewhat flustered in my heart and didn’t know how to respond. I could only keep calling to God to give me wisdom, so that I could deal with the devil. After praying, I calmed down and had strength in my heart: I would rather die than sell out the brothers and sisters and betray God! So I said to him, “I know nothing about your questions. What can I say?” As soon as I finished my words, the evil cop punched my head violently and then kicked and beat me wildly. I was beaten so badly that I saw stars and felt that the sky and the earth were spinning around. My head ached unbearably as if it split and I fell headlong to the floor. Then he took the notes for preaching the gospel searched out from me, and threatened me, “Look. The evidence is in our hands. You’re still fucking tight-lipped! Speak! Are you a leader? If not, you won’t have such things!” Seeing me say nothing, he switched the tone and coaxed me, “Don’t be stubborn. Cooperate with us actively and tell all that you know, and you can leave tomorrow.” At that time, God inspired me to think of his words, “When satan is warring against God in the spiritual realm, how should you satisfy God? How should you stand the testimony for God? You should know that every time a thing comes, it is a great trial to you, and it is the time God needs you to bear a testimony. Outwardly, it seems to you that they are not big things, but when they come, you will be revealed as to whether you love God. If you love God, you can stand the testimony for God. …” (from “Only Loving God Is Truly Believing in God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) God’s words made me see clearly that it was a war in the spiritual realm. I can’t fall into satan’s scheme and I must stand testimony for God. No matter how much evidence they say they’ve had, I can’t reveal any information of the church. This is the faithfulness that I should keep and is the testimony of my practicing loving God. Through the prayer, I calmed down gradually in my heart. No matter how they tortured me, I kept silent all the time. Finally, the evil cops slammed the door and left exasperatedly.

After a short time, another male cop over thirty years old came in. He helped me up from the floor and sat me down on the chair slowly, and he gave me a cup of water. He said to me, “Brother. Drink some water. You have suffered.” I was surprised, “What’s the matter? How come there is someone calling me ‘brother’ in such a place?” Not giving me more time to think, he continued, “Brother. We should be realistic about the life and be flexible in everything. If you behave like this, they’ll beat you to death. To be candid with you, I also believed in God before. I know it’s a good thing to believe in God. But if because of believing in God, you suffer so much and even die, it’s not worthwhile! If you’re sentenced, it’ll bring shame on all your family. Your parents are still alive, aren’t they? If you’re imprisoned for several years, they’ll have passed away when you get out. What will your relatives think of you? …” As my affection to my parents was strongest, each of his words was a dagger to my heart, and the figures of my old parents appeared before my eyes. I suddenly became dark and weak within, “Right. If I’m sentenced and imprisoned, how shall my parents live? Who will take care of them? …” At the thought of that, I couldn’t help shedding tears. The evil cop immediately seized the opportunity to coax me, “So, cooperate actively with them, and you’ll be free tomorrow.” When hearing this word, I sobered up suddenly and a very clear word appeared in my mind, “Never be a Judas and betray God!” That was close! The cunning evil cop was sent by satan to entice me to betray God. At that moment, God’s words guided me, “…only faithfulness can counter the devils’ schemes.” (from “The Tenth Piece of Word” of God’s Utterance to the Entire Universe in The Word Appears in the Flesh) Then I said to him, “Thanks for your kindness. I appreciate it, but I know nothing about the church.” Failing to achieve his purpose, the evil cop flew into a rage and exposed his true colors. He pointed at me and cursed fiercely, “You just wait for death!” As he said that, he pulled me down from the chair and dragged me to the door by seizing my collar, and handcuffed me to a beam in the room. In the end, leaving a word, “Take your time ‘enjoying’ it,” he went away. My feet couldn’t touch the floor at the same time. When one touched the floor, the other had to be lifted. As my body swayed, the handcuffs stuck into my flesh, and it hurt sharply. Nearly an hour later, the evil cops came back after being satiated with food and drink. With a heinous grin, they asked me how I felt. At that time, because of pain, my cotton jacket and cotton pants were already soaked in sweat. When I was put down, my hands were as swollen as bread and had no sensation. That gang of evil cops were really cruel and merciless. I hated them bitterly in my heart. At the same time, my hatred toward the CCP, the evil party, rose sharply.

At past 7 p.m. that day, the evil cops forced the other four sisters and me into a police car and were going to take us to another place. All the sisters were pale, and I could see that they had also suffered cruel tortures. We encouraged each other with firm eyes. After arriving at the detention house, the evil cops only dropped the four sisters off and then continued to drive on. I asked them where they would take me. A cop said with a conspiratorial smile, “Although you said nothing, we know you’re not a small potato, so we dare not neglect you. We’ll treat you to a ‘midnight snack.’ …” I knew those evil cops wouldn’t have good intentions, so I dared not relax for a single moment in my heart. I silently kept calling to God to give me strength and keep me from betraying God. I was taken to the National Security Team, and two sturdy guys received me. They took me into the interrogation room. I saw that the torture devices were spread all over the floor, like silent hungry tigers, making my blood run cold. Then, an evil cop said to me venomously, “We heard you’re quite tough, ah? We just like to gnaw hard bones! …” Before he finished the words, two evil cops rushed at me and pulled my ears forcefully as they roared. In the dim light, I saw two ferocious and twisted faces, and my heart couldn’t help thumping. At that time, I heard one evil cop laugh wildly and say, “It’s your bad luck to meet me today. I’ll let you take a shower first….” As he said that, he seized me and stripped off all my clothes by tearing and pulling. I stood naked on the icy floor, my whole body twitching and my teeth chattering with cold. The evil cop pulled over a water pipe and directed it at me and opened the valve. In an instant, a jet of strong and icy cold water hit my body. My skin ached unbearably as if being cut by a knife, and I felt as if all my blood had congealed. After a short time, my body didn’t have any sensation. As the evil cops blasted water at me, they roared, threatening me, “If you’re sensible, tell us quickly. Otherwise, you won’t see tomorrow’s sun!” I choked back the pain and bowed my head and kept silent. An evil cop gnashed his teeth and said that he would warm me up, that is, he would give me electric shocks. At that time, I had already been tortured till I had no strength at all, feeling that death was approaching me step by step. I hurried to call to God in my heart, “God! Man is too small and can’t do anything for you. Today I’m willing to shame satan with death. May you keep my heart from staying away from you or betraying you at any time.” They forcibly pried open my mouth and stuffed a wet towel into it. The other end of the towel was connected with a wire, the other end of which was clipped on my ear. Then, they pressed the switch in their hand. In a flash, I felt that all my blood rushed toward my head, feeling as if my head would explode. I ached so much, feeling as if my eyes would burst out. Every nerve in my body was twitching violently, and I felt as if they were breaking. Seeing me overwhelmed with pain, those evil cops all laughed loudly. Only a few moments later, I fainted. Immediately following that, they sobered me up with a basin of cold water. When I woke up, the towel was still in my mouth. The evil cops asked me with a heinous grin, “How was the taste? If you want to say something, you can nod your head.” Then, I thought of God’s words, “When man gives up his life completely, nothing is difficult. No one can daunt him. Is there anything more important than ‘life’? In that case, satan cannot possibly do anything on man and has no way to do with man.” (from “The Interpretation of the Thirty-sixth Piece of Word” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) God’s words made me become more resolute in my choice. I thought, “Do as you wish. Anyway, I only have one life and the worst is to die. But don’t you expect to draw one word from my mouth.” I didn’t answer him and closed my eyes and didn’t look at him. My action irritated the evil cop and he wired me up once again. This time the electric current was more powerful than last time. I cried anxiously in my heart, “God! Save me! I can’t take it.” Just at that moment, the scene of the Lord Jesus being crucified appeared before my eyes clearly: The ferocious soldiers hammered a half-foot-long iron nail into the Lord’s palm, which pierced through his skin and his bone…. The sufferings Jesus underwent made me heartbroken. I couldn’t help crying loudly and prayed to God in my heart, “God! You’re holy. You are not of sin. But for the sake of saving mankind, you handed over yourself to the evil ones and were crucified, shedding your last drop of blood for redeeming us mankind. God! I’m an extremely corrupt man and one who should perish. Since I’ve accepted your salvation and have the fortune to experience your work, I should offer up myself for you. God! I know clearly that now you’re by my side, accompanying me in suffering. You’ve been loving me and expending for me all the time. I’m willing to dedicate my everything to satisfy you, so that you’ll no longer suffer for me and worry about me.” At that time, the two evil cops stopped shocking me. Seeing that God sympathized with my weakness, I was full of gratitude to God in my heart. Then, although they didn’t stop afflicting me, I felt no more pain. I knew that God kept me and bore the pain for me. My heart was so deeply touched by God’s love that I kept shedding tears. Later, another cop came in. He cast a glance at me and then said to the two evil cops, “Don’t beat him anymore. You see, he’s been beaten so badly but he still doesn’t tell anything. He surely knows nothing.” Then, they stopped. I knew it was out of God’s wonderful manipulation and arrangement. God didn’t permit the gang of devils to harm my life, and so he maneuvered person, matter, and thing to stop it. I truly felt God’s love.

The evil cops were defeated and stopped interrogating me. Around midnight, I was taken to the detention house. An officer took me to a cell where more than 30 prisoners were detained. When he opened the door and let me enter, I heard him say to the head of the cell with an insidious smile, “In a while, just do it quietly. Don’t make too much noise.” The head of the cell threw a glance at me and looked me up and down. He twisted his mouth and said to the officer, “Trust me!” Before I knew what was happening, the head’s face darkened and he lowered his voice to give a command, “Old rules, buddies, start!” All the prisoners sat up and glared at me fiercely, making me very frightened. The head waved his hand and those people rushed at me like ferocious wolves. They held me and stripped me naked and then lashed my body hard with the soles of flat-heeled shoes. In the end I fainted. When I woke up, it was already 6 o’clock the next morning. I saw I was put in a corner and my body was so swollen that I couldn’t put clothes on. Just like that, I lay on the big board for six whole days. I was covered with wounds. Moreover, the flesh in my mouth had been burned by the evil cops with electricity and become dead. I ached so much that I couldn’t even take a bite. The officers were afraid that I might die and bring them trouble, so they asked the prisoners to take turns feeding me some vegetable soup.

When my wounds healed a little bit, instigated by the evil cops, the prisoners continued to bully and humiliate me. They required me to recite the prison regulations every morning. If I couldn’t recite them well, they would beat me. They also asked me to do the cleaning and wash clothes for the rich prisoners. Whenever I was a little careless, they would punch and kick me. They knew I’m a believer in God, so they often said a lot of words of blaspheming God intentionally before me to provoke and humiliate me, “Is it that you believers in God don’t feel pain while being beaten and don’t feel tired after working? Is it that it doesn’t matter no matter how many sufferings you undergo? …” To torture me, they even required me to clear the commode with my hands. It was so disgusting that I felt like vomiting my guts out. They also required me to brush the floor tiles with a toothbrush and purposely threw my steamed buns in the commode. When the officer inspected sanitation in our cell, he would take off his shoes and walk round in white socks. If he found his socks stained, he would punch and kick me…. Facing the evil cops’ endless torments, I was very weak and depressed in my heart. I thought it was better to die than to live like that. When I was extremely distressed and weak, God’s words gave me faith and power to live. God says, “Maybe you all remember this word: ‘For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, works for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.’ In the past, you all heard this word, but none of you understood its true meaning. Today, you deeply know its real meaning. This word will be accomplished by God in the end time, and it will be accomplished in people in the dwelling place of the great red dragon who are cruelly persecuted by the great red dragon. Because the great red dragon is the persecutor of God and the enemy of God, people in this place all suffer humiliations and persecutions for believing in God. So, this word is accomplished in you group of people.” (from “Is God’s Work So Simple as People Imagine?” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) God’s words made me realize this: Today I’m humiliated and tortured for believing in God and this is God’s exceptional uplifting and also my honor! But I’m cowardly and spineless. I lose faith in God because my flesh suffers a little, unwilling to suffer for repaying God’s love. In order to save me, God has expended so much painstaking effort and price. How can I “repay” God in this way? How can I respond to him with passivity against my conscience like this? No! I’ll never be a spineless weakling! I’ll never let God’s name be shamed because of me! So, I hurriedly prayed to God, “God! Thank you for inspiring me to understand the meaning of suffering. I’m willing to endure all sufferings for your glory. Even if I have to be imprisoned for life, I’ll satisfy you. May you be with me and inspire and guide me, so that I can bear a strong and resounding testimony for you in satan’s affliction.” After the prayer, I felt I had strength all over and had courage to face the environment of suffering.

Over ten days later, the evil cops came to interrogate me again. They threatened me that it wasn’t too late for me to cooperate with them then, and otherwise they would make my following days harder. After experiencing the brutal tortures several times, I had already seen through their devilish substance and hated them to the core. So, no matter how they coaxed, threatened, and frightened me, I was strong in faith and never wavered. Later, they came to interrogate me every half a month. Finally, failing to get any information from me, they sentenced me to two years of hard labor on the charge of “disturbing the social order and having illegal meetings.”

On February 24, 2006, I was sent to a labor camp. Because of believing in God, I was convicted as a “political offender.” The prison guards deliberately assigned me to labor in the brick works, where the work was the hardest and most tiring and dangerous. My task was to take the burned bricks out of the kiln. The temperature in the kiln was at least 300 degrees Celsius. The temperature was the lowest in the morning, but it was still at least over 100 degrees Celsius. We worked in such a great heat, but the prison guards didn’t provide us with any heat-resistant work clothes. The safety helmets we wore would melt after we stayed in the kiln house for two minutes. In order not to be burned, we had to hold our breath and go in and out quickly. Because we didn’t have any heat-resistant shoes, after entering the kiln house, we could only stand on our feet alternately. If we were a bit careless, our feet would blister. When we first worked there, we weren’t accustomed to it. We had to run out after being in it for less than five seconds. The captain arranged for the group leader to hold a PVC pipe filled with sand to lash whoever ran out. Such a pipe couldn’t break bones, but it could leave a red mark on one’s skin and cause his flesh to swell up. The prisoners called it a “cramp stick.” We dared not inhale in the kiln house, because if we did, we would feel as if drawing fire into our nostrils. After fishing out a few bricks, we had to pull the cart and run out. If the tire blew out, we would not only be punished but also be imposed on a longer term of imprisonment on the charge of “damaging the work tools and resisting reform.” Our daily task was to carry 115 carts of big bricks and 95 carts of small bricks. It was impossible for us to finish the task in such a great heat. However, the prison guards never asked why you couldn’t finish it, but asked why you resented laboring. Because I sweated too much while working in the great heat, I had an acute sodium deficiency and fainted on the ground several times. They just threw me on the kiln wall and let me cool down for a few minutes. After I woke up, they let me drink a cup of salt water and then go on working. It was the first time for me to taste what it meant to reach the limit, what it meant to suffer unspeakably, and what it meant to feel worse than death. There, no one would care whether you were alive or dead. The captain only cared whether the task of your group had been finished. If the task was finished, he said nothing. If not, he said nothing either. He just pointed at the door of the kiln house and left. The group leader would then call those who didn’t finish the task into the kiln house and beat them up. When they fell down, their body got burned by the great heat of the ground and blistered all over. Apart from that, he would also add another 20 carts of bricks to their daily task until they begged for mercy. Facing such an environment, I was very weak in my heart. Having been tormented for several days, I felt as if having made a trip to hell. I thought, “What a long term two years is!” I didn’t know how to pass the future days, fearing that even if I wouldn’t be beaten to death by the evil cops, I would be scorched to death by the great heat. The more I thought, the more I felt I had no way to go. I really couldn’t bear staying in the demon’s prison any longer. Then I thought of dying. In the days that followed, I looked for an opportunity of “getting released” every day. Finally, the opportunity came. One day, when a truck loaded with bricks started to leave, I rushed under the truck. But the wheels suddenly stopped only one foot away from me. It turned out that the truck broke down. A few prisoners dragged me out. The leading captain said that I “didn’t obey the discipline and my old nature didn’t change” and began to punish me. They put an electric baton which was sparking into my bosom. I writhed on the ground from the pain. Then, they handcuffed my hands backward to a wire pole and beat me savagely with the electric batons. After supper, they held a criticizing meeting to “remediate” my thoughts…. Endless sufferings and tortures made me feel extremely terrified, desperate, and helpless. Just when I was struggling and hovering for how to live on, a passage of God’s words arose in my mind, “No matter how God refines you, you are full of faith, do not lose faith in God, and have done what man should do. What God requires of man are these. Man’s heart can turn to him completely and can be toward him every moment. This is the overcomer. The overcomer God speaks about is one who, under the influence of satan and the siege of satan, that is, in the forces of darkness, can still stand the testimony, and can still keep his original faith and keep his faithfulness to God. In any case, you can still keep your pure heart before God and keep your true love for God. Thus you have stood the testimony before God. This is the overcomer God speaks about.” (from “You Should Hold on to Your Faithfulness to God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) Right! God will ultimately make a group of overcomers. This group of overcomers can still keep their faith and faithfulness to God and live by God’s word and finally stand testimony for God before satan in any adverse environment. However, today satan tortures and afflicts me by every possible means, just attempting to use my weakness in the flesh to strike me down and force me to betray God. I can’t become the sign of shame! God loves me with deep and earnest affection. Even when I wanted to die because of my weakness in the flesh, God still cared for and kept me in secret and didn’t let me die. No matter how weak I was, God never intended to give me up or changed his love for me, but still inspired and led me, so that I could walk out of the dense fog. I’ll never disappoint and grieve God. I thanked God for leading me to see through satan’s scheme again, so that I came back from the jaws of death. I couldn’t help singing a hymn of life experience silently, “I will offer the sweetest to God, and leave the bitterest to myself; I will firmly stand God’s testimony, and never again yield to satan. Ah! Head can be cut off and blood can be shed, but the backbone of God’s people cannot be bent; God’s charge is on my mind. I resolve to shame the old satan. Let tears shed in my heart; I’d rather endure great humiliations than cause God’s heart to be worried.” (from “I Wish to See the Day God Gains Glory” in Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs)

When I was obedient and willing to endure all sufferings to satisfy God, God made a way out for me. As the captain was illiterate, he asked me to write reports for him. Since then, my task of carrying bricks was reduced. Later, an elderly sister of the church came to visit me. She held my hands, saying tearfully, “Child, you have suffered. The brothers and sisters are all very worried about you and pray for you every day. You should be strong! Don’t bow your head before satan. Exert more strength for the sake of God’s uplifting. We’re all waiting for your coming back.” In that ruthless hell on earth, except for God’s words of comfort, I had never heard a warm word from others. Now when I heard the kind words of the brothers and sisters, which I hadn’t heard for a long time, I felt greatly comforted and encouraged in my heart. In a long time after that, I was encouraged by God’s love. I felt much relieved in my heart and had the energy to work. Those days went by fastest in my prison life. Especially during the last four months, every month I ranked first on the list of the people who got a reduced sentence. Before, only heads of the cells, group leaders and the prisoners on sentry duty could be given a commuted sentence every month. The prisoners who had no money or power could never have their turns, much less could a Christian convicted as a “political prisoner” by the CCP like me enjoy such treatment. So the prisoners often surrounded me and asked, “How did you make it?” At such times, I would thank God from my heart, because I knew that it was God’s great mercy to me and that it was God’s love that brought me strength.

On September 7, 2007, I was released after serving my sentence. Not long afterward, I returned to the church and lived the church life again, and joined in preaching the gospel once again. After experiencing that tribulation, I became stronger and more mature than before and I even more cherished the opportunity of performing duty. As I saw the true face of the CCP government’s resisting God and afflicting man, I felt more deeply that God’s salvation is precious. If God hadn’t been incarnated and personally worked to save man, all men living under satan’s domain would be afflicted and devoured by satan. Therefore, my mentality of performing duty was greatly different from before. I thought that it was so important to spread the gospel work and save souls, so I was willing to be faithful and spend my lifetime energies to bring more people before God, so that they could also wake up from the deceiving and fooling of the atheistic political party and receive the life supply from God and gain God’s salvation. In the two years of long prison life, satan attempted to use its despotic power to force me to betray God, but God, through that adverse environment, perfected my faith in God and my faithfulness and obedience to God, purified me of my mixtures in loving God, and made me know God’s wisdom and almightiness and deeply realize that God is salvation and love to man! I have infinite worship and praise in my heart for God!

Eastern Lightning | The Church of Almighty God came into being because of the work of the returned Lord Jesus—Almighty God, Christ of the last days in China, and it isn't established by any person. Christ is the truth, the way, and the life. After reading God’s word, you will see that God has appeared.

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The Church of Almighty God - After the Afflictions, I Have a Firmer Love for God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

Zhang Ren    Jiangxi Province

My name is Zhang Ren, and I’m a Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Since I began to know things, I saw my parents labor hard in the fields from morning till night every day for making money. Although they exerted much effort, they couldn’t earn much money after one year’s labor. So my family had been living a very poor life. When I saw those influential people live well without needing to labor hard, I envied them from the bottom of my heart. And I made a firm resolution that I would build up a career or get an official post after I grew up, so as to shake off our poverty and backwardness and let my parents live the life of the rich. However, after I strived for this ideal for years, it was still not fulfilled, and we still lived a very poor life. I often felt depressed and sighed for my accomplishing nothing, and I gradually lost my confidence in life. Just when I was discouraged and disappointed at life, Almighty God’s end-time salvation came upon me. From Almighty God’s word, I knew the root of man’s suffering in living in this world and also understood how to live in a most meaningful and worthy way. From then on, I, lost and helpless, found the direction of life, came out of depression and decadence, had vitality and vigor, and saw the hope of life. Later, in order that those who still lived in misery and helplessness could also receive this rare salvation, I ran around preaching God’s end-time salvation actively. But unexpectedly, during my preaching the gospel, I was arrested by the CCP government twice and suffered brutal and inhuman tortures…. In the dark den of the devil, Almighty God had always been with me, and his word gave me faith and strength, leading me to overcome satan’s influence of darkness time after time, so that my love for God became stronger.

The Church of Almighty God - After the Afflictions, I Have a Firmer Love for God

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The Church of Almighty God - The Persecution and Tribulation Made Me Love God More | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

Liu Zhen    Shandong Province

I’m Liu Zhen, aged 78 this year. I’m an ordinary Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Thank Almighty God for choosing me, a rural old woman looked down upon by the worldly people. Since I accepted the end-time work of Almighty God, I prayed and listened to the recital of God’s word every day and had meetings with the brothers and sisters. I felt very happy in my heart and lived in the happiness I had never had. As I was old and my legs were stiff, I couldn’t go out to have meetings. So the brothers and sisters came to my house to have meetings for my sake. Whether it was cold winter or hot summer, they never missed the meeting. Even if it was windy and snowed, they persisted in coming to visit and take care of me, an old woman. I was greatly moved by that. I saw that God’s love for man is so great! In my contact with the brothers and sisters, I saw that they were so different from the worldly people. What they lived out was forbearance and love. They all could open their hearts to each other and treat each other with sincerity, without barrier or distance, and being dear as family members. That made me become more certain about Almighty God’s work. As I understood more and more truths, I knew that man should perform the duty of a created being. So I told the church that I wanted to perform duty. But because I was old and couldn’t perform other duties, the church arranged for me to do hosting at home. I really thanked God for giving me according to what I could do. Before I began to do hosting, the brothers and sisters fellowshipped with me, saying, “There are principles for doing hosting in the church. Extravagance and waste in meals are forbidden. One principle is that everyone can eat his fill. We’ll just take pot luck and must not expend too much.” Since then, the brothers and sisters all had ordinary meals at my house. They ate what I ate at usual times and never asked for special treatment. And they often helped me do chores. Sometimes, I saw that the brothers and sisters worked very hard outside in performing duty, so I specially cooked some nice food for them. Then they fellowshipped with me that I should perform duty according to the principles. This made me truly see that the brothers and sisters in the church were really different from the worldly people. I got along very well with them and felt greatly released both physically and mentally. Also I gradually recovered from the former diseases. So I was more grateful to Almighty God for his grace and keeping for me.

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The Church of Almighty God - The Fragrance of Love Given Off in Adversity | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

Xiaokai    Jiangxi Province

I’m an ordinary country woman. Due to the feudal thought of valuing sons and belittling daughters, I, who have no son, once felt unable to lift up my head before others. In my agony, I was selected by the Lord Jesus. Two years later, I accepted Almighty God’s salvation. In Almighty God’s word, I understood many truths and got real release in my heart. However, while I was performing duty to repay God’s love, I was arrested twice by the CCP government and suffered cruel tortures from the CCP lackeys. On the verge of death, it was Almighty God’s word that led and encouraged me all the time, so that I stood testimony in satan’s affliction and thus firmly resolved to follow and love God all my life.

The Church of Almighty God - The Fragrance of Love Given Off in Adversity | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

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The Church of Almighty God - Regretless Youth | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

         Regretless Youth

Xiaowen    Chongqing City

“‘Love’ means a pure and unblemished affection, to love with the heart, to feel with the heart, and to care with the heart; in ‘love’ there is no condition, no barrier, and no distance; in ‘love’ there is no suspicion; in ‘love’ there is no cheat, no deal, and no cunning; in ‘love’ there is no choice; and in ‘love’ there is not any mixture.” (from “Pure and Unblemished Love” in Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs) This hymn of God’s word accompanied me through the long and painful seven years and four months of prison life. The CCP government deprived me of the best years of my youth, yet from Almighty God I got the most precious and practical truths. So I have no regrets!

The Church of Almighty God - Regretless Youth | The Overcomers’ Testimonies

In 1996, uplifted by God, I accepted Almighty God’s end-time salvation. Through reading God’s word and fellowshipping at the meetings, I firmly believed that all God’s words are the truth and are something entirely different from any knowledge or theory of this evil world. The word of Almighty God is the highest maxim of life. Much more to my delight, when staying with the brothers and sisters, I could open myself and express my mind freely. I didn’t at all need to behave as I did in contacting the worldly people, taking precautions or engaging in suspicion and deception. I had never felt so happy and joyful. I liked this big family very much. But soon, I heard that believing in Almighty God was not allowed in this country. This puzzled me greatly: Almighty God’s words are all telling us to worship God and walk the right way of human life and to be honest people; if people all believe in Almighty God, everywhere under heaven will be at peace. I really couldn’t figure out why the CCP government would persecute, oppose, and even try to arrest believers in Almighty God, given that believing in God is the most just cause. I thought, “No matter how the CCP government persecutes and how much the pressure is from public opinion, since I have firmly believed that this is the right way of human life, I will walk to the end!”

Henceforth, I began to perform the duty of sending the books of God’s word in the church. I knew that in such a country that resists God, it was very dangerous to perform this duty, and that I might be arrested at any time. But I even more knew that it was the calling and the bounden duty for me, a created being, to spend for God and do my duty. Just when I was cooperating with God with full confidence, one day in September 2003, I was arrested by those from the Municipal Bureau of State Security on my way to send the books of God’s word to the brothers and sisters.

In the bureau, faced with interrogations one after another, I didn’t know how to deal with them. So I desperately cried to God, “O Almighty God, please give me wisdom and the proper words to say, and keep me so that I won’t betray you and can stand testimony for you.” In that period, I called on God every day, not daring to leave God in my heart for a moment, and only beseeching God to give me wisdom to deal with the evil cops. Thank God for his care and keeping. Every time I was interrogated, I either drooled or hiccupped unceasingly, unable to speak…. Because I saw God’s wonderful deeds, I made up my mind, thinking, “I’ll fight it out! If you want my head, I have one. If you want my life, I have one. Today, if you want me to betray God, that’s impossible!” When I firmly made up my mind that I would rather die than be a Judas and betray God, God helped me in every aspect, which made me truly grateful to him. In each interrogation, God kept me and made me go through it safely. Although I didn’t tell anything, the CCP government eventually sentenced me to nine years on the charge of “using a cult to disrupt the enforcement of the law”! When I heard the court’s judgment, because of God’s keeping, I didn’t feel sad, nor fear them, but felt contempt for them. While those people were pronouncing the sentence, I whispered quietly, “This is the evidence of you the CCP government’s resisting God!” Afterward, the public prosecutors came specially to sound me out. I told them calmly, “Nine years is nothing! When I get out of here, I’ll still be a member of the Church of Almighty God. If you don’t believe, just wait and see! But you should remember that you are the ones dealing with this case!” My attitude surprised them very much. They gave me the thumbs-up, saying, “Impressive! Impressive! You are even tougher than Sister Jiang! When you get out, we’ll meet again. Then we’ll treat you!” At that time, I felt God had gained glory, so I was gratified in my heart. When I was sentenced that year, I was just 31 years old.

The prison in China was hell on earth. The lengthy prison life made me thoroughly see satan’s true colors of being inhuman as well as its demonic substance of being God’s enemy. The cops in China don’t rule people by law, but by evil. In prison, instead of fixing people personally, the prison guards incited the prisoners to rule the others by violent means. The evil cops also used various means to shackle the prisoners’ mind. For example, all of us must wear the same prison uniforms distributed by the CCP government, with special numbers on them, have the hairstyle they required, wear the shoes they permitted, walk the paths they required, and take the steps they allowed. Whether in spring, summer, autumn, or winter, and whether it was windy or rainy, hot or cold, we had to act according to their orders and we couldn’t have our own choice. Every day we were required to assemble and number off at least fifteen times, and sing the praises of the CCP government as many as five times. We also had political tasks, which were learning the Prison Law and the Constitution. We would have a big test every half a year, which was aimed at brainwashing us, and we would be given a test of the prison rules and regulations at any time. The prison guards not only afflicted us mentally, but destroyed us physically in an inhuman way: I had to do hard labor for over ten hours every day, and worse still, several hundred people were crowded into a small workshop. Due to the large number of people and the small space and the noise of the machines all around, after working there for some time, even a very healthy person would have serious health problems. Behind me was a big machine for punching holes in shoes. Every day it kept punching holes and making unbearable roaring sounds. After several years, my hearing suffered a great decline. Even now I still haven’t recovered yet. What harmed us more was that the workshop was very dusty and seriously polluted. Many of us were diagnosed with tuberculosis and pharyngitis. Moreover, because we sat at work for a long time and couldn’t move around, most of us had severe hemorrhoids. The CCP government treats the prisoners like money-making machines, not caring in the least about their life or death, and makes them work from early in the morning non-stop till late at night. I often felt very exhausted and physically tired. What’s more, we had to deal with different spot checks in prison plus the weekly political tasks, the work tasks, the open tasks in prison, and so on. So, every day I was in a state of high mental tension with my nerves tensed all the time, fearing that if I was slightly careless, failing to keep up in anything, I would be punished by the prison guards. In that environment, it really wasn’t easy if I wanted a day to go by without incident.

When I just began to serve my sentence, I couldn’t stand the savage torment in prison. Various pressures from intensive work and mental pressures loaded me down, and I had to associate with different kinds of prisoners and endure being beaten and scolded and insulted by the devilish guards and the head of the cell…. I was often driven to desperation by their torment and fell into despair several times. Especially at the thought of the nine-year long sentence, I was overtaken by waves of desolation and helplessness. I cried so many times, and I even wanted to die to free myself from the misery. Every time I became extremely sad and could hardly hold on, I would pray and cry to God urgently, and God’s words would inspire and guide me, “Now you can’t die. You should clench your fists and live on. You should live for God once. If one has the truth, he will have this resolution and will no longer think of death. When death threatens you, you will say, ‘O God, I’m not willing to die. I still haven’t known you! I still haven’t repaid your love! … I have to testify God well. I have to repay God’s love. Afterward, it is OK to die in any way. Then I will have lived a satisfactory life. Now, I won’t die regardless of who dies. I have to live tenaciously.’” (from “How to Know Man’s Nature” in Christ’s Talks with Church Leaders and Workers) God’s words consoled my lonely heart like a mother’s gentle eyes and wiped away the tears on my face like a father’s warm hands. At once, a warm feeling and a strength surged in my heart. Although my flesh had to suffer in the dark prison, courting death was not God’s heart’s desire and couldn’t testify God. Additionally, I would be satan’s laughingstock. If I could walk out of the demonic prison alive nine years later, it would be a testimony. God’s words gave me the courage to live. I made a resolution inwardly, “No matter how many difficulties there will be ahead, I will try my best to live on. I will live bravely and tenaciously. I must bear a good testimony to satisfy God.”

The heavy work all year around made me weak gradually. After sitting in the workshop for a long time I would sweat a lot abnormally. When my hemorrhoids got worse, they would bleed at any time. Due to severe anemia, I often felt dizzy. But it wasn’t an easy thing to see a doctor in prison. When the guards were happy, they would bring me some cheap medicines. When they were unhappy, they would claim that I was pretending to be ill to avoid working. I could only endure the torment of the illness and swallow my tears. After a hard day’s work, I dragged my tired body back to the cell and wanted to have a rest. But I even didn’t have the right to have a sound sleep. I would be asked by the prison guards to do things at midnight, or woken up by the noise the prison guards made…. They toyed with me so much that I was often in a confused state of mind and in unspeakable misery…. Moreover, I had to suffer the prison guards’ inhumane treatments. I, like a refugee, had slept on the floor and in hallways, and even beside the toilet. My clothes didn’t air dry after being washed. They dried as we prisoners crowded together. Especially in winter, it was a most tiresome thing to wash clothes. Many of us had arthritis because of wearing wet clothes for a long time. In prison, no matter how healthy one was, he would become muddleheaded, obtuse and weakened and have illnesses after a short time. We often ate withered and yellow vegetable leaves, which were out-of-season or expired. If we wanted to eat a little better, we had to buy their pricey dishes. In prison, the guards asked us to learn the law, but there was no law there, and those guards were the law. As long as anyone was disagreeable in their eyes, they would find any excuse to punish them, and they even inflicted corporal punishment on them without any reason. The more detestable thing was that they classified the believers in Almighty God as political prisoners. They said that we were the ones overthrowing the government, even worse than murderers and arsonists. So, they were especially hostile to me, guarded me most strictly, and tortured me most harshly. All those evil deeds are the irrefutable evidence of the facts of those dictators’ perverse acts, going against Heaven, and being the enemy of God! Experiencing the brutal torture of the guards, my heart was often filled with righteous anger: We believe in God and worship God; which law does it violate? We follow God and walk the right way of human life; what crime have we committed? Man is a created being in God’s hands. It is right and proper to believe in God and worship God. On what authority does the CCP government willfully obstruct and persecute us in every possible way? It is clearly that it is doing things in a perverse way and going against Heaven, and resisting God in everything. But it labels believers in Almighty God as reactionary and severely persecutes and afflicts them, attempting to catch and exterminate all the followers of Almighty God. Isn’t this calling black white and downright reactionary? It is so wildly against Heaven and hostile to God that ultimately it will surely be subject to God’s righteous punishment! This is because where there is corruption, there will be judgment, and where there is sin, there will be chastisement. This is a heavenly principle ordained by God, which nobody can escape. The CCP government is guilty of the most heinous crimes, and it is doomed to be destroyed by God. As God says, “God has long since harbored a bitter hatred for this dark society and gnashed his teeth in anger. He only wishes to tread his feet on this old ancient serpent guilty of heinous crimes, making it never rise again, not allowing it to harm people any more, not tolerating its past, and not allowing it to deceive people any more. Its crimes throughout the generations will be dealt with one by one. God will never let off this arch-criminal and will exterminate it thoroughly.” (from “Work and Entering in (8)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh)

In that demonic prison, I was not as good as a stray dog in the evil cops’ eyes. Not only did they beat or curse me, but my bedclothes and private things were often turned upside down by the evil cops who suddenly rushed in. Moreover, every time such things as riots happened in the outside world, the ones responsible for politics in prison would come to me and question my views on them. They also kept condemning my taking the way of believing in God. Every time I faced this kind of interrogation, my heart was in my mouth. I didn’t know what hostilities they had prepared for me, so in my heart I always urgently prayed to God to help me and lead me through the difficulties. Day after day and year after year, all those abuses, exploitations, and suppressions tortured me miserably: The daily heavy workload, the tedious political tasks, the torture of illnesses, the long-time mental depression, and so on drove me almost to the verge of collapse. Especially when I saw that a middle-aged prisoner hanged herself from a window in the middle of the night because she couldn’t endure the inhuman tortures from the evil cops, and that one old woman died from disease in prison because of the delay for treatment, I again fell into a hopelessly suffocating situation. Once more the idea of suicide came to my mind. I felt that death was the best kind of deliverance. But I knew that it was betraying God, I couldn’t do that, and I could only endure all the sufferings and obey God’s manipulation and arrangement. However, thinking that the prison term was so long and that gaining freedom was so distant, I felt unspeakable misery and despair, feeling that I really couldn’t stand it any longer. I really didn’t know how long I could hold on. Many times I could only wrap myself in the quilt weeping secretly in the stillness of night, praying to Almighty God and pouring out the difficulties in my heart. When I felt most painful and helpless, I thought of how the Lord Jesus endured the suffering of being nailed onto the cross for redeeming mankind. And I also thought how today the holy and innocent God has been incarnated again and come among men and endured the sufferings of rejection, slander, blasphemy, and persecution. God is innocent and should not have undergone these sufferings, but he has silently endured all those in order to save us corrupted people. However, today I suffer for myself to cast off corruptions and be saved by God. Such suffering is what I should undergo, and is also what I have to undergo. Thinking of those, I didn’t feel that bad. But instead, I felt that it was the most valuable and meaningful thing that I was persecuted and put into prison because of believing in God and suffered for pursuing to be saved today. It was so worthy to suffer this! Unconsciously, my heart turned from sorrow to joy. I couldn’t help but sing in my heart the hymn of life experience “We Are Not Living in Vain,” “We are not living in vain, for it’s meaningful though we are suffering. We are not living in vain, and however hard we will never draw back. We are not living in vain, for we have received a golden opportunity to know God. We are not living in vain, for we are spending ourselves for God the Most High. Who can be more blessed than us? Who can be more fortunate than us? God has given more to us than to the past generations. Let us live for God once to repay God’s great love for us.” I repeatedly hummed it in my heart. The more I sang, the more my heart was encouraged. The more I sang, the more strength and enjoyment I had. I couldn’t help but take an oath before God, “O Almighty God, thank you for comforting and encouraging me, which makes me have the confidence and courage to live. You make me feel that you are indeed the Lord of my life and are the power of my life. Although I’m caught in the devil’s den, I’m not alone, because you have been accompanying me through these dark days, once and again giving me faith, and giving me the power to live. O God, if one day I can get out and live freely, I still want to perform my duty. I won’t grieve your heart any more. I won’t plan for myself any more. O God, no matter how hard and difficult the following days will be, I’m willing to live tenaciously by relying on you!”

In prison, I often thought back to the days I spent together with the brothers and sisters. What a wonderful time! We had joy, laughter, and also disputes, but all those became my beautiful memories. However, every time I recalled my being perfunctory in performing the duty, I felt very guilty and indebted. Remembering the scenes when I had disputes with the brothers and sisters due to my arrogant disposition, I felt particularly sad and remorseful…. At such times, I would always burst into tears and silently sing in my heart a hymn of life experience, “I am so remorseful. I have wasted so much precious time. Time has fled, and it will never return. Only regret is left! … Today I will atone for my past fault and make a new start with full confidence. God has given me another opportunity and tolerated me again, so I will make a choice again. I will cherish today and offer up everything to satisfy God for the last time. God’s heart is worried, and he is expecting. I cannot disappoint his heart again.” (from “I Am So Remorseful” in Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs) Painfully remorseful, I often prayed to God in my heart, “O God! I’m much indebted to you. If you permit, I’m willing to pursue to love you. After I get out of the prison, I still want to perform my duty and make a new start! I’ll make up for my past indebtedness!” During those days in prison, I especially missed those brothers and sisters who had ever been with me every day and I really wanted to see them. But now I was put in this demon’s prison, and this desire had become an extravagant hope. However, in my dreams, I often dreamed of them, dreaming that we were reading God’s word together and fellowshipping about the truth together. How happy we were! How joyful we were! …

In 2008, when the Wenchuan earthquake occurred, our prison also shook. I was the last one to leave there. In those days, the aftershocks continued happening. Everyone, whether they were the prisoners or the guards, was terrified and lived in constant fear. But I felt very calm and assured, because I knew God’s words were being fulfilled, and this was the descending of God’s fiery wrath. In that rare big earthquake, God’s word had been keeping my heart. I believed man’s life and death are all in God’s hand, and no matter what God would do, I was willing to obey God’s manipulation and arrangement. But the only thing that would make me feel sad was that if I died, I would have no opportunity to perform my duty for the Creator, I would have no opportunity to repay God’s love, and I could no longer see the brothers and sisters. However, my worry was superfluous. God was always with me and gave me a great keeping, enabling me to escape death in the great earthquake and survive safely!

In January 2011, I was released early, and my slave-like prison term finally ended. Being freed, I felt very thrilled: I can go back to the church again and can be with the brothers and sisters again! There were no words to express my excitement. However, what I never expected was that after returning home, my daughter denied me. My relatives and friends all looked at me differently, stayed far from me, and refused to associate with me. No one around me understood or accepted me. At that time, though there was no abuse or torture like that in prison, those cold eyes, mockeries, and rejections were more difficult for me to bear. I became weak and passive. I spontaneously recalled the scenes before: The year I was arrested, I was just 31; when I came out of the prison, I was already 39; in prison, I spent eight winters and seven summers; so many times when I was desolate and helpless, God arranged people, matters, and things to help me; so many times when I was in distress and despair, God consoled me with his word; so many times when I thought of death, God gave me strength, so I had the courage to live…. In those long and painful years, it was God who led me step by step out of the valley of the shadow of death so that I survived tenaciously. But today faced with such a little suffering, I become passive and weak and grieve God. I’m really a weak and incompetent person, and an ungrateful base person! Thinking about that, I felt greatly rebuked in my heart. I couldn’t help but remember the oath I took before God in prison: If one day I can get out and live freely, I still want to perform my duty. I don’t want to grieve your heart any more. I won’t plan for myself any more! When I thought about that oath and recalled the scene of swearing to God at that time, tears blurred my vision. Slowly I sang a hymn of God’s word, “I pursue God and follow God out of my own willingness. Now even if God deserts me, I will still follow him. No matter whether God wants me, I will still pursue to love God. I am resolute to gain God in the end, dedicating my lifetime energies to God. May God’s will be accomplished. May my heart be offered up to God. No matter what God does, I will follow him all my life and never give up until I gain him. If you want to be able to stand, better satisfy God, and follow God to the end in the future, you must lay a good foundation now, practicing the truth in everything to satisfy God and care for God’s heart. If you always practice this way, you will have a foundation within, and God will stir up your love for him. One day when trials come, you may undergo some sufferings, be sorrowful to a degree, and experience extreme grief. You will lay down your life willingly for loving God. No matter how God tries you, you will be able to give no thought to your life and willingly give up everything for God and endure everything for God.” (from “I Will Never Give up Until I Gain God!” in Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs)

After a period of spiritual devotions and adjustment, under God’s revelation and guiding, I walked out of the passive state very quickly and began to perform my duty again….

Although I spent the best years of my youth in prison, I have no regrets in suffering for believing in God during those seven years and four months, because I have understood some truths and tasted God’s love. I feel it meaningful and worthy to undergo such suffering. This is God’s exceptional uplifting and grace for me and is a special favor to me! Even if none of my relatives and friends understand me and my daughter denies me, no person, matter, or thing can cut off my relationship with God. Even if I die, I can’t leave God.

“Pure and Unblemished Love” was the song I liked to sing most in prison. Today, I will offer up my purest love to God with my actual actions!

Source : The Overcomers’ Testimonies

Recommandation:     Eastern Lightning

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