By Sun Qiang, China
In February, 2013, my remote niece came to preach Almighty God’s work of the last days to me and my wife. She said: “God has come to earth in the flesh and does His work to save mankind. God presides over our fate. Only if we accept Almighty God’s work of the last days can we have reliance and gain His care and protection when encountering disasters or calamities.” At that time, I was dismissive of her words, thinking: “Belief in God is nothing more than a religious belief, a spiritual sustenance. How could it be so miraculous as you said? When we get ill, don’t we still have to go to hospital?” But seeing my niece was so sincere and thinking that we had nothing to do at home, we accepted God’s gospel and started living a church life. It was not until a serious illness came upon me that I completely turned around my wrong view of belief in God.
It was an early morning of August, 2017. At about one o’clock, when I woke up and wanted to use the toilet, I suddenly couldn’t feel my left leg nor could I sit up. After a short while, I began to vomit and have diarrhea. I vomited constantly, feeling as if I threw my guts up. And soon I was covered in sweat and my clothes were soaked. Seeing this, my wife hurriedly phoned my son. Afterward, he came back and took me to a nearby hospital. Upon seeing my condition, the doctor said to my son with a serious look: “Your father is seriously ill. But we don’t have the essential medical equipment here, so you’d better send him to a bigger hospital immediately; otherwise he will be in danger.” While saying this, the doctor gave me two heart-saving pills to take and exhorted me never to throw them up no matter how bitter they were. When I heard those words, fear and scare overtook me. I wondered: “Why did the doctor refuse to treat me? Have I had an incurable disease?” The more I thought, the more I felt death was drawing near to me step by step.
After a short while, the ambulance came and I was soon sent to the People’s Hospital of the city. As my condition was critical, the doctors directly sent me into the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), and immediately gave me some emergency treatment: giving me oxygen, attaching the electrodes of a cardiograph to me, and treating me with medicine. Then the doctor said: “You’ve got an acute cerebral infarction. Even in the best case scenario, you’ll still be paralyzed; and if something unexpected happens during the treatment, you’ll lose your life at any time. You’d better prepare for the worst.” Hearing this, I felt as if the sky were falling, and a sense of desolation upwelled in my mind: “Now I’m really done for!” Lying in bed in the ICU, I was paralyzed all over and couldn’t feel my four limbs, only with a clear mind. I didn’t dare to move, for once moving, I would vomit. The attending doctor was busy giving me a series of examinations, observing my condition all the time. Seeing that I vomited every 15 minutes, he consulted with other doctors on how to stop my vomiting. Several doctors and nurses were frowning at my medical record and talking in whispers with worried looks. The doctors tried all kinds of methods but still couldn’t stop my vomiting. At that time, my fears heightened and I felt death would come at any moment. “Will my life just end like this?” I felt extremely desperate. Just then I thought of my niece’s words that when we are faced with calamities, only if we relied on God could we gain His care and protection. So I kept crying out to God in my heart: “God, I feel very uncomfortable and frightened; I feel I’m dying. Please save me. …” After the prayer, I thought of God’s words brothers and sisters read in the meetings: “Of everything that occurs in the universe, there is nothing in which I do not have the final say. Is there anything that is not in My hands?” “Who of the whole of mankind is not cared for in the eyes of the Almighty? Who does not live in the midst of the Almighty’s predestination? Does man’s life and death happen by his own choice? Does man control his own fate?”
God’s words gave me a ray of hope and I thought: “The life and death of all living beings in the universe are in Almighty God’s hands; only God is the Master who holds the power of life and death over man. I’m one of the created beings, and my life is given by God. Today whether I can survive is not decided by the doctors; instead, it depends on God’s sovereignty and predestination. No matter whether I will live or die, I’m willing to give my life to God and let Him rule over it.” Thinking of this, I calmed down a lot and was not so afraid. I prayed to God in my heart: “God, You’re the Master of all things. The life and death of man are in Your hands, and whether I can live or die depends on You. I’m willing to entrust my illness to Your hands and submit to Your sovereignty and arrangements.” After the prayer, miracles took place: I stopped vomiting; my condition was gradually stabilized, and I felt much better; moreover, I could move my hands and feet in the bed. Seeing God’s wondrous deeds on me, I unceasingly thanked and praised God in my heart: “God! You are so almighty and practical! Your love for me is so great!”
Three days later, I was transferred to the general ward. The doctor said to me: “You’re so lucky! Most of the patients with cerebral infarction will probably die once they have the congestion of the brain.” Hearing this, I thanked God constantly in my heart: If it were not for God’s care and protection, I wouldn’t escape from the jaws of death or lie here safe and sound. Among the six serious patients in the ICU, three patients about my age had the same disease as me. One of them had been staying here for half a year, yet until now he still couldn’t speak clearly, nor could he recognize his family; and another one who was younger and came here earlier than me couldn’t speak clearly either. I was the only one who was transferred to the general ward. The doctors all felt it inconceivable that my illness could improve so fast. I knew clearly it was completely because of God’s care and protection.
Then I thought of God’s words brothers and sisters read in the gatherings: “God is not to be believed in by man, but loved by him, and pursued and worshiped by him.” From God’s words I understood: God doesn’t merely ask that we acknowledge Him, but that we should practically experience His work, know Him, truly obey Him, and worship Him. I remembered how I had believed in God, but regarded belief in God as a religious belief and a spiritual sustenance, so that I had no knowledge of God’s almightiness and sovereignty. However, God didn’t give up on my salvation due to my disobedience and ignorance. When facing serious illness, I fervently called out to God, and He extended a hand of salvation to me. Through experiencing this illness, I reversed my mistaken view on belief in God and came to realize: God is the Master of all things, and our life and death are in His hands. No matter how advanced the scientific equipment is, or how excellent the medical technology is, they can’t help at all when we are on the verge of death. Only God is our unique reliance and our staunch support. After I understood this, my heart was full of gratitude to God.
One week later, I was discharged from the hospital. After I returned home, my neighbors came to visit me. One of them said: “When we heard that you were so seriously ill, we were all afraid that you wouldn’t pull through. It’s surprising that you should have recovered so quickly. Look at Li XX; he got the same illness as you, but he has been paralyzed in bed for half a year.” Another neighbor said: “My father also suffered the attack of cerebral infarction. Unfortunately, due to its quick attack, he didn’t make it to the hospital.” Their words made me even more feel that if we don’t come before God, when encountering calamities, we can only live in endless fear and helplessness, with no reliance, Luckily, although I was faced with a major illness, thanks to God’s care and protection, I miraculously survived it. After this experience, I confirmed that Almighty God is our only redemption, and our only reliance.
This experience allowed me to see God’s marvelous deeds and establish a proper perspective of belief in God. From now on, I should read God’s words more, learn to experience His work, and perform my duty well to repay His salvation for me. That is what I should pursue as a created being. I sincerely offered my thanks and praise to God. All the glory be to God!
