At the end of 1998, I accepted the kingdom gospel of Almighty God. But since I was busy earning money all day long, and seldom read God’s word or attended meetings regularly, I had no true knowledge of God. It was not until I personally experienced God’s wonderful protection in an accident that I had some understanding of God’s authority and power and truly appreciated that only God can save us.

One afternoon of the first lunar month in 2001, the sky was clear, under which I together with over a dozen workers were busy building a house for a farmer. Sounds of power saws, laying bricks, and mixing mortar mingled with people’s laughter and chants, creating a bustling atmosphere at the site. After a while, the sky gradually turned gloomy and the wind began to blow, and soon it started to rain. Rain beating down on my face, I involuntarily shivered with cold. Then came a yell of the employer, “Get down to take shelter, gentlemen, lest you catch a cold.” Hearing this, my co-workers all hurried downstairs one after another.

At that moment, I was working over seven meters high above the ground, using the plumb to test whether the wall I had built was vertical. After hearing the employer, I got flustered, slipped and fell headlong before I could react. At that moment, my mind went blank and I thought, “I’m finished; as there are so many stones and bricks on the ground, even if I escape the death, I would be disabled.” So scared at the life-and-death moment, I cried out to God, “Almighty God, help me!” Right then, a miracle happened, when I was about two meters above the ground, with my head downward, my body was suddenly flipped over as if supported by someone. I miraculously landed weightlessly in a sand pit which was 1.5 feet away from where I was supposed to land.

Frightened, I sat in the pit, panting heavily. Meanwhile, all people present were scared stiff. The employer, pale with fright, quickly ran toward me, hugged me abruptly, and shook my body, trembling out, “Mr. Liang, are you all right? …” Still dazed by what had happened, I subconsciously waved my hands, answering, “Don’t worry. I’m fine.” When I finally recovered myself and looked around, I gasped in shock and thought, “That was close! There are stones, bricks and tiles all over the ground, except the sand pit I am sitting in. Had it not been for the vital somersault, I would have died.”

When my co-workers helped me up, I found that I was only slightly scratched by some debris in the pit. Seeing this, all people came up to me and started talking, among whom my cousin jokingly said, “When did you learn Kungfu? You are actually safe and sound after falling from such a high building. What a miracle!” And then one of my co-workers gave me a thumbs up, saying, “Mr. Liang, you are so lucky, it must be your ancestors who protected you, once I had two co-workers falling from the height of two or three meters, of whom one broke his limbs and the other died, while you actually did a somersault and fell into the sand pit. Such a terrible accident and you could survive, you’ll surely be blessed in the future.”

Hearing their words, I knew clearly it was God’s protection for me. As God’s word says, “Great are the deeds of Almighty God! How wondrous! How marvelous!” At these thoughts, I was so moved, tears welling up in my eyes, and then I said in excitement, “It was my God who protected me from dying or being disabled, and not my ancestors. When I was about to hit the ground, I felt like someone supported me and flipped me over, so that I didn’t fall headfirst on the stones and bricks. It’s God’s wondrous deeds that let me survive.”

When hearing my words, all people were stunned. One of them looked at the height of the building and then nodded, saying, “It’s true! How wondrous! The God you believe in is really almighty. Falling from such a high building, you could still speak to us, safe and sound, it was really your God who protected you. If it were someone else, he would have already died.” Then the employer’s wife said excitedly, “Mr. Liang, the God you believe in is indeed the true God. Thank your God for protecting you, if something untoward had happened to you, my family would be finished.” Then another co-worker followed, “It seems like believing in God is really good. Before, I heard a believer say that God is almighty and can save people from disasters but I didn’t believe it at that time. Today I’ve seen personally that God is indeed almighty. Mr. Liang, I want to believe in God with you.” (Later he and his wife both accepted the kingdom gospel of God.) Hearing their praise for God’s almightiness and wondrous deeds, I was moved and prayed to God silently, “O God! Thanks to Your protection, I survived. It’s You who gave me a second life, Your love for me is so great, and I’m willing to follow You faithfully to repay Your love.”

Three days later, while I was working, my chest suddenly ached so severely that I couldn’t straighten up, let alone walk. Unable to go on working, I went to the hospital for an examination. When I told the doctor what happened to me three days before, he said, “You are so lucky. Yesterday a young man of your age who also fell from a building during work died despite emergency treatment. Your pain may be caused by an internal injury. If you do have an internal injury, it’s hard for you to fully recover and you’re probably unable to do the heavy work in the future.” Hearing such words, my heart suddenly sank and I thought, “I’m still young and have a family to support. If I’m really injured internally and cannot work, how could I live? With these thoughts, I felt like a knife had been twisted in my heart.

After returning home, I realized that I fell into a wrong condition and hurried to fall down before God, praying, “O God! My chest is aching and after hearing the doctor, I feel weak within, fearing that I really couldn’t do the physical labor to support my family. O God, it’s You who gives me life. I’m willing to completely entrust myself to You, may You guide me to understand Your will so that I won’t complain but obey Your sovereignty and arrangement.” After prayer, I thought of a hymn of God’s words I learned before, “Almighty God is an all-powerful physician! To dwell in sickness is to be sick, but to dwell in the spirit is to be well. So long as you still have one breath, God will not let you die.” These words of God gave me confidence and strength. I said to myself, “Yes, isn’t it God’s great power that I’m still alive? Without God’s protection, I would have died after falling from the seven-meter-high building.” My life and death are in God’s hands, to say nothing of my illness. I must have faith in God. No matter what the result is, I’m willing to obey God’s manipulations and arrangements and mustn’t complain. After I completely entrusted myself to God, I saw God’s blessing. When the result came out, the doctor told me that apart from some soft tissue injuries, there was nothing serious with me. And miraculously, a few days later, my chest didn’t ache at all. Thanks be to God!

Later I read these God’s words, “Almighty God, the practical God! You are our impregnable fortress. You are our refuge. We huddle under Your wings, and calamity cannot reach us. Such is Your divine protection and care.” Pondering over God’s words and recalling this terrifying experience, I truly appreciated that God’s authority and power transcend natural laws and rules. And meanwhile, I understood that our life and death are in God’s hands and that only when we look to God and rely on Him in crisis, can we escape danger. Thinking of this experience, according to the inertia, I couldn’t do a somersault when falling sheer from a height of seven meters. However, God supported me with His almighty hand and flipped me over so that I could land safely in the pit which was 1.5 feet away from where I was supposed to land, keeping me away from those stones and bricks. All those deeds, impossible to man, were indeed done by God without any difficulties—God’s sovereignty is this wondrous.

From this experience, I also deeply appreciated that our human life is actually so fragile. We are so insignificant and powerless in the face of disasters, no matter how much wealth we possess, they cannot save us from disasters, and only God is the very present help and reliance for us. In this accident, without God’s protection, I would either have died or be crippled for life, then no matter how much money I possess, what use would it be? Then I thought, “Though believing in God, I was busy earning money all day long and paid little attention to having meetings and reading God’s words, however, God didn’t give me up and still saved me from the disaster. This made me think of God’s word, “He does not want to sacrifice a single soul, and He does not wish to lose one single soul more; man, meanwhile, cares not for his own fate. So who loves you most in this world? You do not love yourself, you do not know to cherish or treasure your own life—God has the greatest love for man” (“Do You Know God’s Love for Mankind?”). Yes, only God loves me most and only He cherishes my life. Thinking of the abundant love God gives me, I was so moved and tears started streaming down my face. I made a resolution in my heart, I’ll expend myself for God for the rest of my life to repay His love.

Since then, I read God’s words every day, lead a normal church life, and actively spread the gospel with brothers and sisters. I’ve enjoyed the happiness of the work of the Holy Spirit and being filled with peace and joy. All glory be to Almighty God!

Extended Reading:

It’s God Who Gave Me a New Life