The Light of Life Shining in the Devil’s Dark Den

Lin Ying    Shandong Province

　　My name is Lin Ying. I’m a Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Before I believed in Almighty God, I always tried to work with my own ability for a better life. But things ran counter to my wish; I got into trouble and was frustrated everywhere. Having fully experienced life’s hardships, I felt exhausted mentally and physically and felt extremely miserable. Just when I was distressed and helpless, a sister preached Almighty God’s end-time gospel to me. I read God’s words, “When you feel tired and when you slightly feel a sense of desolation of this world, do not feel perplexed and do not weep. Almighty God, the Watcher, is ready to embrace your coming at any time.” (from “The Sighs of the Almighty” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) I couldn’t help shedding tears. The motherly words of Almighty God greatly comforted me. I felt that I, like an orphan wandering for years, returned to the bosom of my family and was no longer lonely and helpless. From then on, I thirstily read God’s word every day. Through having meetings and fellowshipping with the brothers and sisters in the Church of Almighty God, I saw that they were so kind and honest. There was no jealousy, dispute, or intrigue among them. No matter who met any difficulty, others would sincerely fellowship about the truth and help him solve it, without making bargains or seeking rewards. What they lived out was God’s love. There, I received the release and happiness that I had never had. I deeply felt that the Church of Almighty God is a holy pure land and became certain that Almighty God is the only true God who can save men from the abyss of misery. Just when I was enjoying God’s love, the CCP government arrested and persecuted me illegally, breaking my joyful and pleasant life.

　　It was deep in the night on August 12, 2003. I had been asleep. Suddenly, I was woken up by a violent knocking on the door and heard someone shouting, “Open the door! Open the door! We’re the police!” Before I could put on some clothes, I heard some thumping sounds and the door was suddenly kicked open. Six extremely ferocious policemen broke in. I asked them in a panic, “What do you want?” The head of the vicious policemen shouted, “Don’t play dumb!” And then he waved his hand and roared, “Search carefully!” Several policemen began to ransack boxes and chests here and there like bandits. Immediately, the pots and pans, clothes, quilts, foodstuffs, and so on were thrown all over the floor. It was a complete mess in the house. After searching my house, the vicious policemen pushed and pulled me into a police car. They also took away my newly-purchased CD player worth 240 yuan, 80 yuan in cash, and a bucket of books of God’s word. I had never imagined that the scene which I only saw on TV actually happened to me then. I was very scared and my heart was thumping, so I prayed to God unceasingly. Suddenly I remembered Almighty God’s words, “Do not fear this or that. No matter how many difficulties and dangers there are, you should be stable before me and not be hindered by anything, letting my will be carried out smoothly. … Remove your fear. With me as your rear guard, who can block the way? Remember! Remember!” (from “The Tenth Piece of Word” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) God’s words gave me great comfort, making my heart gradually calm down. I realized this: The One I believe in is the Ruler who created the heavens and the earth and all things. All things and all matters are in God’s hand, and satan and the devils are all under God’s feet. As long as I truly rely on God, satan can do nothing to me. Now is the crucial moment God is waging a war against satan, is the time God needs me to stand testimony, and is the time for me to experience God’s word and gain the truth. I must stand the ground and practice according to God’s word and never give in to satan!

God’s Words Guide Me to Learn How to Educate My Children (II)

Xiaoxue, Malaysia

　One day after dinner, I taught my eldest son how to read Chinese—just the simple words, “Heaven, earth, people, and, earth, daddy, mommy….” I taught him quite a few times, but he still couldn’t write them. He would write the first word and then forget the next one. The anger inside me rose up, and I grabbed the ruler on the table and hit him several times. I shouted loudly: “How stupid you are! You cannot even learn these few words!” My eldest son was hit until he cried, “waah, waah” and broke free and ran to stand in the corner. I scolded him, “Come over here and keep writing!” My eldest son did not come over, so I grabbed hold of him and pulled him onto the chair. Seeing that my eldest son’s hand had been beaten red and swollen by me, I felt a stabbing pain in my heart. I cried and returned to my room and prayed to God: “God! As soon as my child displeased me, I could not control my anger. I don’t want to treat my children like this. God, may You help me.” After praying, I slowly calmed down.

　Later, I taught him as usual, but he still did not learn. I remembered praying to God and I did not get angry again. At the same time, I also started to reflect on myself. Why could I not control my temper when my child did not please me? Whilst reflecting on this, I thought of a passage of God’s words: “Once a man has status, he will often find it difficult to control his mood, and so he will enjoy seizing upon instances to express his dissatisfaction and vent his emotions; he will often flare up into rage for no apparent reason, so as to reveal his ability and let others know that his status and identity are different from those of ordinary people. Of course, corrupt people without any status will also frequently lose control. Their anger is frequently caused by damage to their individual benefits. In order to protect their own status and dignity, corrupt mankind will frequently vent their emotions and reveal their arrogant nature” (“God Himself, the Unique II” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). “Some exercise restraint in their anger, while others are more rash and flare up with rage whenever they wish without the least bit of restraint. In short, man’s anger derives from his corrupt disposition. No matter what its purpose, it is of the flesh and of nature; it has nothing to do with justice or injustice because nothing in man’s nature and substance corresponds to the truth” (“God Himself, the Unique II” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). Through what God’s words revealed, I saw that I was too deeply corrupted by Satan and too arrogant and domineering, always suppressing and forcing my children in my identity and status as their mother and as soon as they did not meet my demands and standards, I could not stop myself from getting angry and chiding and physically punishing them. I actually had no reason at all. Was the reason why I got so angry with my son not because his results from taking the school entrance test were the worst of all the children? This made me feel a loss of face in front of others. “Treating my child so strictly and disregarding his feelings today is not all for his own good or to make him quickly improve his academic performance, but to gratify my own vanity and desire for status. I’m too selfish and despicable! It is because of my arrogant, selfish corrupt disposition that I cannot obey God and always want to break free from God’s mastery and arrangements and want to arrange everything for my children based on my own ability and finally bring myself and my children so much pain.” When I thought of this, I hated myself and no longer wished to live by Satan’s corrupt disposition and be fooled by Satan. So I prayed to God and asked God to keep my heart, to guide me through His words, and to arrange even more environments to change and cleanse me. Subsequently, I no longer demanded too much of my son. Instead, I patiently taught him and did my best to be a mother. Slowly, I no longer worried because my children did not learn, and felt especially relaxed and happy. When I looked at my two children again, I realized that they were really cute and lively, and I realized then how unfair it was for my children when I always made them live my way and grow into the standard image in my mind.