By Li Ai
I am Li Ai, 77 years old. Though I am old and of poor caliber, God doesn’t reject me. After believing in God, I know our life comes from God, and that only by following God and worshipping God can we live under His care and protection, and gain peace and happiness. Especially after a breath-taking experience in a fire, I deeply felt that God is my only reliance.
I remember that it was about 2 o’clock one afternoon in April of 2011. The villagers all went to work on farm fields, and an unexpected fire broke out. At that time, some villagers saw a ball of fire falling from the heavens, dropping in a backyard, which was in the western tip of the village. Then a huge fire broke out—a tremendous conflagration. A gale was blowing from west to east that day and the conflagration spread from the first house to the second one very rapidly, and in less than an hour, the village was almost enveloped in flames. I saw the fire on the road kept surging forward rapidly, and the flames leaped higher than the roof. The raging fire turned the places it spread to into ruins.
At that time, some villagers ran back home and risked their lives to drive the livestock out of the pens. Some carried the grain out, but most villagers couldn’t come into their houses. Cattle, sheep, donkeys, mules and other livestock in their backyards, as well as the farm implements were burnt to ashes; things in their houses were burnt completely. That scene was too horrible to watch! In addition, the fire made the road impassable, and people couldn’t pass through at all. Seeing the blazing flames, I was in a blue funk, feeling that we were so small and fragile when faced with disasters. No matter how capable one was, he could do nothing about it, but only see the fire burning fiercely!
In a little while, the wind changed suddenly and started to blow from south to north. Within a few minutes, I saw the raging fire rapidly spreading to my house, and it was only two houses away from mine. Suddenly, I remembered the books of God’s words in my home. I thought: These books are as important as my life for me! They can by no means be burnt by the fire. When I saw the fire continued blazing, my heart leaped into my throat, and I ran into the room to move them out hurriedly. My family also loaded the things we needed into our car in a hurry, wanting to carry them away.
However, seeing the fire was fierce and spreading fast, and thinking not all the books of God’s words had been moved out in time, I burnt with anxiety. At the critical juncture, I called out to God for His help immediately: “Almighty God! May You help us! I know all things are in Your hands. Whether the fire will burn my house or not is decided by You. O God, I am willing to entrust You with these books, and may You keep them.” After my prayer, a miracle happened in a short time. The wind didn’t blow toward my house and the fire was not as fierce as it was a moment ago. The flames were dying down, and stopped spreading two houses before ours. I really thanked God. From this, I felt God’s authority and His protection.
When the flames were about to go out, the fire engine arrived. In fact, when the fire just began to burn, someone called the fire brigade, but they did not show up. It was not until the whole village was nearly burnt up and the fire was not that fierce that they came to put out the fire. This made me see that it is useless to turn to man for help in the face of disasters. Because everyone is afraid of death, and moreover, most of the time, man can’t save others at all. We can only depend on God—our only reliance. Faced with disasters, it’s only by relying on God that we can survive, because God is the Master of all things. God is just by our side. As long as we sincerely cry out to God, we can see His hands of salvation.
In this fire, only a few villagers’ houses in the whole village were not burnt, and my house was one of them. Moreover, a sister in the church didn’t lose anything but some cornstalks in her backyard. I knew clearly that it was because of God’s care and protection for us that our houses could be spared, for God said, “The disaster originates with Me and is of course orchestrated by Me” (“Prepare Sufficient Good Deeds for Your Destination”). I couldn’t help but give praise in my heart unceasingly: “Thank God! Thank God! God is really so almighty and wondrous!”
In the fire, I saw everything come into being or disappear according to God’s thoughts. All were under God’s sovereignty and control, like the wind direction, the scale of the fire, and so on. Just as God’s words say: “Man’s heart and spirit are held in the hand of God, everything of his life is beheld in the eyes of God. Regardless of whether or not you believe this, any and all things, whether living or dead, will shift, change, renew, and disappear in accordance with God’s thoughts. Such is the way in which God presides over all things” (“God Is the Source of Man’s Life”). “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? ” (“Chapter 1” of God’s Words to the Entire Universe). God’s words are of great authority and power, which makes me see that all things and all events are controlled and ruled by God’s hands, and they all shift, change or disappear according to God’s thoughts. For instance, how this fire broke out, how strong it was, which direction it spread to, and when it went out are all ruled and orchestrated by God. Nobody can hinder or control it. Especially when I saw the fire was only two houses away from mine, I prayed to God earnestly, and then He changed the wind direction wonderfully. Then the wind no longer blew toward my house, and the fire died down, so the books of God’s words and I were safe and sound. That made me truly feel His faithfulness, and feel His care, protection and love to those believing in Him, as well as His wondrousness and almightiness. I couldn’t help but think of the matter when the Lord Jesus and His disciples got caught in a gale on the sea. When the wind was about to capsize their boat, the Lord Jesus rebuked the wind and waves, saying, “Peace, be still” (Mark 4:39). Then the wind stopped. Today, I personally saw the direction of the fire was also in God’s hand, which demonstrated God’s unique authority and power.
Though nobody was hurt in the fire, it brought serious economic loss to more than 70 families. Their houses, all savings and properties were burnt down by the fire. Some people just built new houses and bought new furniture. Before they moved in, their houses turned to ashes. The whole village was burnt into a mess and had changed out of all recognition. Moreover, some people fell into a trance because of being frightened. In the face of disasters, we are so small and so helpless. Our families can’t save us, nor can money. God is our only reliance, and the Lord of creation is the only One on whom our existence rests! When faced with disasters, only by relying on God can we survive and live on. Just as God says, “I am mankind’s only salvation. I am mankind’s only hope and, even more, I am He on whom the existence of all mankind rests. Without Me, mankind will immediately come to a standstill. Without Me, mankind will suffer catastrophe and be trampled underfoot by all manner of ghosts, though no one takes heed of Me. … In any case, I hope that you prepare a sufficiency of good deeds for your own destination. Then will I be satisfied; otherwise, none of you can escape the disaster that will befall you” (“Prepare Sufficient Good Deeds for Your Destination”). God is our rear guard and shield, and even more our refuge and strong tower. Only by coming before God and worshiping Him can we escape the disasters, and gain God’s care and protection. Just as the Bible says, “A thousand shall fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you” (Psalm 91:7).
In the fire, I truly tasted God’s love for me, which is so great and practical! I am willing to perform my duty well as a created being to repay God’s love for the rest of my life!
