Running Toward the Bright Path of Human Life

Wang Tao

Both Xiaoliu and I ran auto repair shops. Our shops were of the same size, and the equipment we used was also the same, except that there were more kinds of repair parts in my shop. But in recent years, there arose a great difference in our businesses level: His business was flourishing day by day, and more and more people drove to his shop to get their cars repaired, so much so that some cars had to be parked in front of my shop, while my shop was rather desolate.
One afternoon, when I was cleaning a car, I heard a horn blaring from afar. Then I saw a brand-new car was pulled over. To my surprise, it was Xiaoliu who was driving the car! He yelled at me smugly, “Hi, guy, look at my car! It doesn’t cost too much, just about 500,000 yuan. When will you buy one?” Seeing his smug expression, I choked with resentment. Meanwhile I was quite vexed, “We both repair cars. Why is it that his business is so flourishing that he can afford a famous car, while my shop can barely manage to stay in business?” I really couldn’t figure out why! The next day, I learned from Xiaoliu that the goods he stocked in recent years, such as spray paints, lubricants and repair parts, were not high-quality products made in authorized factories but fake and counterfeit ones. I couldn’t help but ask him, “Aren’t you afraid that you will get into trouble by selling fake goods?” He turned his nose up at my question, snorted and said, “Humph. These days, fullness for the bold and famine for the timid! Be they authentic or fake, making profit is the key.”

After I returned home, I felt more vexed in my heart, “How should I continue to run my business? Selling fake goods would make my conscience uneasy, because it might cause fatal accidents. But if I don’t sell fake goods, as the products of authorized factories charge higher prices whereas the knockoffs Xiaoliu sells are much cheaper, those customers who don’t know the fact will certainly choose the cheaper ones. If so, my shop will probably go bankrupt in the next spring….” Torn between the two choices, I thought of what Xiaoliu said, “Fullness for the bold and famine for the timid! Be they authentic or fake, making profit is the key.” Then I said to myself, “Forget it, and I’ll take the risk!”

Before long, Xiaoliu introduced me to some counterfeit sellers. What they sold were all low-grade and fake products, but the prices were really low. In order to continue my business, I betrayed my conscience and stocked many fake goods. After that, my business turned for the better gradually, and later I also made enough money to buy a famous car. However, as a matter of fact, I was not happy at all, because I felt panic in my heart and my conscience condemned me severely. Especially every time on hearing the news reported some people were killed in traffic accidents, I felt anxious and scared, wondering whether the car accident was caused by my counterfeit repair parts. Every time after I installed those fittings on my customers’ cars, I was very regretful. But when I thought of the words, “Fullness for the bold and famine for the timid! Be they authentic or fake, making profit is the key,” I once again sold counterfeit fittings. Just like that, I was lost in the society of money, living miserably, unable to find the light and direction of my life.

In the year 2011, my elder sister preached the end-time gospel of Almighty God to me, and thereafter, my life changed. I saw Almighty God’s words, “The world is becoming more and more dazzling with its myriad temptations. When people see it, their heart is lured by it. Many people cannot free themselves from there. Those deceivers and sorcerers will deceive a large number of people. If you do not seek progress and have no ideal, you will be swept away by the evil waves. ” (from The Word Appears in the Flesh) From the words of God, I realized: Living in such a world dazzling with its myriad temptations, everyone puts money above everything else. If we do things against our conscience and don’t have the will to pursue the light and righteousness, we will bear the accusation of conscience, live in constant anxiety, and finally step onto the path of no return. God’s words are filled with His intention of saving man. God doesn’t want to see mankind He created being tempted and corrupted by Satan, but wants to awaken man’s heart with His words and save man from this evil world. God’s words made me see the light, and thus I made a resolution to believe in God seriously, listen to His word and no longer do things against my conscience.

Then I began to believe in God while continuing my business. Although sometimes I encountered the temptation of money, God was always keeping me. Once, when it was time to take stock at the end of the year, I found the stock was almost sold out. Then I took my cellphone and tried to call the fake goods dealer to order more knockoffs, yet the call failed to get through after I dialed the number several times. I realized that what I was doing was not approved by God. Meanwhile I thought of what Almighty God says, “…and do not do unpresentable things; do everything aboveboard and be able to bring it before God.” (from The Word Appears in the Flesh) God’s words made me understand God’s will: God hopes that I will do nothing unpresentable, do everything aboveboard, be able to accept the searching of the Holy Spirit and try to be a man who has conscience. When God’s words enlightened me within, the satanic philosophy “fullness for the bold and famine for the timid” popped up again from my heart. At that time I had a fierce battle inside, “What should I do, listen to God’s words or follow the interests of the flesh? If I practice according to God’s words, and do everything aboveboard and try to be a man straightforward, then I should no longer stock fake goods. If so, will my shop keep in business? But if I ignore God’s requirement of me and order fake goods continually, this is not only doing things against the conscience but even more forsaking the truth.” Right the time when I was struggling bitterly in my heart, I put the phone down and came before God to pray and ask Him to keep my heart, so that I could break free from the bondage of satanic philosophies and give up doing things that are against my conscience and the truth. After the prayer, my heart became peaceful little by little, and then I went to read Almighty God’s words, “I have many hopes, hoping that you will conduct yourselves well, conduct yourselves properly, perform your duty faithfully, be a man who has the truth and has humanity….” “On the surface it doesn’t look like such a big deal, but these things show whether you truly love God. If you love God you would be able to stand witness for Him; if you don’t practice loving God, it shows that you are not someone who practices the truth, there is no truth in you and no life, you are mere chaff! For every event you encounter, it is an event which God needs you to stand witness for Him. Although you are not facing an important event and bear no great witness, in the nitty-gritty of daily life, it is all a matter of bearing witness for God.” (from The Word Appears in the Flesh) Under the guidance of God’s words, I understood that every event we encounter in our daily life is an event of our standing witness for God. Every time we practice the truth to satisfy God, there is always a life-and-death war in the background. God requires us to be a man who has humanity, while Satan wants us to follow the interests of the flesh and do things against our conscience. If we want to satisfy God and be a real man, we should put aside the interests of the flesh and bear resounding witness for God. After understanding God’s will, I felt a great peace. The enlightenment and guidance of God’s words made me thirsty for being a man with great inner strength and have the faith and courage to walk toward the bright path of human life. Therefore, I knelt before God and prayed, “O God, I’m no longer willing to do those unpresentable things for the sake of making money. I’m willing to be a man who has normal humanity to comfort Your heart.” After my prayer, I felt very assured within. Then I took my phone and dialed the number of the authorized factory which I hadn’t contacted for a long time, and ordered auto repair parts for the next year.

Several days later, the fake fittings dealer went to my shop and asked me why I didn’t order goods from him at the end of the year, for he felt strange. I told him that I became a Christian and wanted to conduct myself properly according to God’s requirements, and that I would never order counterfeit fittings from him in the future. I also exhorted him to repent earlier and to make conscience money. After hearing my words, he said very angrily, “You don’t order goods from me, but there’s still someone else needing them. And I tell you, I’ve prepared these goods for you in advance. If you don’t want them, I’ll sell them to Xiaoliu. I hope you won’t regret!” When he finished speaking, I felt a little sad in my heart. But at the thought of God’s words, I was no longer restrained by him and so I refused him flatly. The dealer left my shop furiously and then sold that block of counterfeit fittings to Xiaoliu. They two even deliberately laughed at me loudly, “You don’t make such easy money; you will go bankrupt!” Hearing this, I prayed to God silently in my heart, asking God to give me strength and faith to practice the truth and satisfy God. Then I thought, “Even if my shop eventually goes bankrupt, I shouldn’t harm others and myself any longer!” When I made the determination to practice the truth and walk toward the right path of human life, I felt unprecedentedly free and released in my heart.

Soon it came to one day in the middle of June, and I was reading Almighty God’s word in my shop. Suddenly four or five police cars appeared in the street with their horns blowing. Several policemen got off the car and ran directly to Xiaoliu’s shop across to mine, handcuffed him and took him away. Later I learned that he installed some fake repair parts on the car of a customer, and the inferior fitting could not stand abrasion and broke off, which finally caused a car accident, with two dead and one injured. As a result, both Xiaoliu and the dealer were arrested. After hearing that, I was so scared that I broke out in a cold sweat, and at the same time I could not stop thanking God in my heart. If it were not for the protection of Almighty God’s word, I would have been the one who was arrested then! After experiencing this matter, I saw God’s faithfulness and salvation. Today, I come to realize that only the word of Almighty God is the truth on which man can survive in the world and that only if man lives by the word of God, will we truly step onto the bright right path!