By Liu Lei, China

These years I’ve struggled with high blood pressure and poor health, spent a lot of time resting at home, and just performed some duties I am capable of. In July of last year, our watering supervisor heard that I used to water newcomers and assigned me to watering duty. I was so excited to be fulfilling this duty again and I was determined to do my duty well. When I saw that the two supervisors were around thirty years old, of good caliber, and learned the principles quickly, and that Sister Xin Xin was energetic and a quick study, I couldn’t be happier in my heart. I was sixty years old, and still had the opportunity to fulfill my duty with these young brothers and sisters—I felt like it made me younger as well. I would ride my bike to the gatherings I hosted for newcomers, and was always humming hymns as I walked along—I was really enthusiastic about my duty. After some time, I felt I’d grown both in my understanding of principle and in my progress in life. I liked this duty even more. But in the wake of my excitement, some new issues arose. My blood pressure was really high, I was in poor health, and I would feel exhausted after a day of work, wanting nothing more than to lie down and rest. Xin Xin and the others could continue summarizing the aberrations in their duty after gatherings, and make arrangements for the following day. I wanted to get more done like my younger co-workers, but soon after dinner, I’d feel drowsy and start to doze off, so I’d end up going to bed early. At one point, I hadn’t gotten good sleep for three days in a row, and my body just couldn’t handle it. I knew I couldn’t perform my duty properly, so I had to ask Xin Xin to host a gathering in my place. I felt quite dejected after that—I couldn’t even perform my regular duties and had to ask someone else to help; it seemed likely I’d be dismissed soon. Sometimes when our supervisor would fellowship on principles for watering newcomers and good paths of practice, Xin Xin and the others would get it right away, be able to apply the principles in different situations and use them practically in their duties, whereas I would have to ponder them over for quite some time, and sometimes needed the supervisor to fellowship with me further. During that time, I always felt uneasy and couldn’t get a peaceful night’s rest. I worried that due to my advanced age, my poor health, how slow I picked up on things and my forgetfulness, if there came a day when I could no longer do my duty, would that be the end of the road for me as a believer? Would I still be able to attain salvation? I constantly felt despondent, and couldn’t focus on my duty. I wasn’t doing nearly as well as Xin Xin in my duty. I was just so sick of being old, defined myself as being old and useless, and was always worried that I’d be reassigned. I envied all those young people, and thought how great it would be if I could just turn back the clock twenty years and regain some youthful vitality! Then I could expend myself for God until the end, and wouldn’t there be hope for me to enter God’s kingdom? When I thought of these things, I couldn’t help but worry about my destination.

One day, my leader visited me where I was staying and said to me: “On account of your advanced age and high blood pressure, we’re reassigning you to general affairs, that way you won’t have to run around all the time.” I had a hard time accepting the news—I really liked my watering duty and had never thought of giving it up, but now I was suddenly being reassigned. I was getting older and older, and I’d be even less likely to be able to do watering in the future. It felt like someone had poured a bucket of cold water on my head, extinguishing that fire of enthusiasm in my heart. My brothers and sisters read me God’s words and fellowshiped His will to me, but I wasn’t listening. Sitting there, I felt paralyzed and could barely sit up straight. That night, I lay in my bed, tossing and turning. I thought of how energetic and full of vitality the young brothers and sisters were, how quickly they understood the truth and principles, they were worthy of being cultivated—these youngsters had their whole futures ahead of them. Whereas for an old man like me, my health prevented me from expending myself for God, I couldn’t understand much truth, and wasn’t that worthy of being cultivated. What’s more, I was also sick and my body could give out at any time. God certainly didn’t look well on an old man like me, and it was unclear if I would have a good destination. If only I was just twenty years younger and could devote myself entirely to expending myself for God! The more I thought, the worse I felt, I was really depressed. It felt like there was a heavy stone weighing on my chest, my chest felt so tight I could barely breathe. I was so distressed by being reassigned that I couldn’t get a wink of sleep all night.

There happened to be a watering workers gathering the next day, and I saw the supervisor, Zhao Liang, ride by my house. Seeing him riding to the gathering was a real gut punch. If I hadn’t been reassigned, I’d be going there with him, but now that ship had sailed. Why did I have to be old and sick? Thinking of all that, I felt so empty inside and didn’t know what I’d do going forward. I sat there idly on my stool, staring out at the sky through the window. My prospects as a believer, I thought, were not good and I had no hope of entering God’s kingdom. The more I thought, the worse I felt, and tears came streaming down my face. So, I prayed to God: “O God! I haven’t been able to truly submit to and accept this reassignment. I know this is being rebellious toward You and makes You disgusted. O God! Please guide me to know myself and submit.” Later on, Zhao Liang saw I was in a bad state, and read me a passage of God’s words. “You should learn to submit when your duty is adjusted. After you have trained in your new duty for a while and have achieved results in performing it, you’ll find that you are more suited to performing this duty, and you’ll realize that choosing duties based on your own preferences was a mistake. Doesn’t this resolve the issue? Most importantly, the house of God arranges for people to fulfill certain duties not based on people’s preferences, but based on the needs of the work and whether someone’s fulfilling that duty can achieve results. Would you say that the house of God should arrange duties based on individual preferences? Should people be chosen for duties based on the condition of satisfying their personal preferences? (No.) Which of these aligns with the principles of the house of God in utilizing people? Which aligns with the truth principles? It is choosing people according to the needs of the work in God’s house and the results of people fulfilling their duties. You have some hobbies and interests, and you have a bit of desire to perform your duties, but should your desires, interests, and hobbies take precedence over the work of the house of God? If you doggedly insist, saying, ‘I must do this work; if I’m not allowed to do it, I don’t want to live, I don’t want to perform my duty. If I’m not allowed to do this work, I won’t have enthusiasm for doing anything else, nor will I give my full effort to it,’ doesn’t this show there is a problem with your attitude toward performing duty? Isn’t that completely lacking in conscience and reason? In order to satisfy your personal desires, interests, and hobbies, you do not hesitate to affect and delay the work of the church. Does this accord with the truth? How should one treat things that do not accord with the truth? Some people say: ‘One should sacrifice the individual self for the sake of the collective self.’ Is this correct? Is this the truth? (No.) What kind of statement is this? (It’s a satanic fallacy.) This is a fallacious statement, a misleading and disguising one. If you apply the phrase ‘One should sacrifice the individual self for the sake of the collective self’ to the context of performing your duties, then you are resisting and blaspheming God. Why does this blaspheme God? Because you are imposing your own will onto God, and that is blasphemy! You are trying to exchange your personal sacrifice for God’s perfection and blessings; your intention is to make a deal with God. God does not need you to sacrifice anything of yourself; what God demands is that people practice the truth and forsake the flesh. If you can’t practice the truth, then you are rebelling against and resisting God. You performed your duty poorly because your intentions were wrong, your views on things were incorrect, and your statements completely contradicted the truth. But the house of God has not stripped you of the right to perform duty; it’s just that your duties were adjusted because you were not suited for this duty, and you were reassigned to a duty that is suitable for you. This is very normal and easy to understand. People should treat this matter correctly” (The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Twelve). After reading the passage, Zhao Liang offered this fellowship: “When God’s house reassigns people, it is not depriving them of the chance to do their duty and be saved, but is just making reasonable arrangements based on the church’s needs. You’ve been feeling unwell, you’re more advanced in age and have high blood pressure. If something happened to you while riding to fulfill your duty or on the way to various gatherings, it would not only be bad for the church, but for you as well. It’s best for you to return to your home church and do your duty there. Let’s first submit, accept it from God and learn a lesson.” I felt so ashamed after hearing Zhao Liang’s fellowship. Even after believing in God for so long, I still didn’t submit in the slightest. I liked fulfilling my watering duty and was as enthusiastic as the youngsters, but seeing as I was over sixty years old and had fallen ill, I just didn’t have the energy, memory or ability to learn new things that they had. If I was allowed to continue watering, it would negatively affect the results of watering newcomers. The church had reassigned me to a more suitable duty based on the results of my work and my health issues. I had to be reasonable and accept and submit. So, I prayed to God, saying I was willing to submit to His arrangements, and would do my best to cooperate in my new duty. Later on, I started wondering, why didn’t I submit when I was reassigned? Why did I become so dejected? In my seeking, I came upon this passage of God’s words. “There are also elderly people among brothers and sisters, who are aged from 60 up to around 80 or 90 and who, because of their advanced age, also experience some difficulties. Despite their age, their thinking is not necessarily so correct or rational, and their ideas and views do not necessarily accord with the truth. These elderly people have problems just the same, and they’re always worrying, ‘My health isn’t so good anymore and I’m limited as to what duty I can perform. If I just perform this little duty, will God remember me? Sometimes I get sick, and I need someone to look after me. When there’s no one to look after me, I’m not able to perform my duty, so what can I do? I’m old and I don’t remember God’s words when I read them and it’s hard for me to understand the truth. When fellowshiping on the truth, I speak in a muddled and illogical way, and I haven’t any experiences worth sharing. I’m old and I don’t have enough energy, my eyesight isn’t very good and I’m not strong anymore. Everything is difficult for me. Not only can I not perform my duty, but I easily forget things and get things wrong. Sometimes I get confused and I cause problems for the church and for my brothers and sisters. I want to attain salvation and pursue the truth but it’s very hard. What can I do?’ When they think of these things, they begin to fret, thinking, ‘How come I only started believing in God at this age? How come I’m not like those who are in their 20s and 30s, or even those in their 40s and 50s? How come I only came across God’s work now when I’m so old? It’s not that my fate is bad; at least now I’ve encountered God’s work. My fate is good, and God has been kind to me! There’s just one thing that I’m not happy about, and that is that I’m too old. My memory isn’t very good, and my health isn’t that great, but I have a strong heart. It’s just that my body doesn’t obey me, and I get sleepy after listening for a while at gatherings. Sometimes I close my eyes to pray and fall asleep, and my mind wanders when I read God’s words. After reading for a bit, I get sleepy and doze off, and the words don’t sink in. What can I do? With such practical difficulties, am I still able to pursue and understand the truth? If not, and if I’m not able to practice in line with the truth principles, then won’t all my faith be in vain? Won’t I fail to attain salvation? What can I do? I’m so worried! At this age, nothing is important anymore. Now that I believe in God, I have no more worries or anything to feel anxious about, and my children are grown and they don’t need me to look after or raise them anymore, my greatest wish in life is to pursue the truth, perform the duty of a created being, and ultimately attain salvation in the years I have left. However, looking now at my actual situation, dim-sighted from age and confused in mind, in poor health, not able to perform my duty well, and sometimes creating problems when I try to do as much as I can do, it seems as though attaining salvation isn’t going to be easy for me.’ They think these things over and over and grow anxious, and then think, ‘It seems as though good things only ever happen to young people and not to old people. It looks as though no matter how good things are, I won’t be able to enjoy them anymore.’ The more they think about these things, the more they fret and the more anxious they get. They not only worry about themselves, but they also feel hurt. If they cry, they feel it’s not really worth crying over, and if they don’t cry, that pain, that hurt, is always with them. So, what should they do? In particular, there are some elderly people who want to spend all their time expending themselves for God and performing their duty, but they’re physically unwell. Some have high blood pressure, some have high blood sugar, some have gastrointestinal problems, and their physical strength cannot keep up with the demands of their duty, and so they fret. They see young people able to eat and drink, to run and jump, and they feel envious. The more they see young people do such things, the more distressed they feel, thinking, ‘I want to do my duty well and pursue and understand the truth, and I want to practice the truth, too, so why is it so hard? I’m so old and useless! Does God not want old people? Are old people really useless? Can we not attain salvation?’ They’re sad and unable to feel happy no matter how they think about it. They don’t want to miss such a wonderful time and such a great opportunity, yet they’re unable to expend themselves and perform their duty with all their heart and soul like young people do. These elderly people fall into deep distress, anxiety, and worry because of their age. Every time they encounter some difficulty, setback, hardship, or obstacle, they blame their age, and even hate themselves and have no liking for themselves. But in any case, it is to no avail, there is no solution, and they have no way forward. Could it be that they really have no way forward? Is there any solution? (Elderly people should also perform their duties as much as they’re able.) It’s acceptable for elderly people to perform their duties as much as they’re able, right? Can elderly people not pursue the truth anymore because of their age? Are they not capable of understanding the truth?” (The Word, Vol. 6. On the Pursuit of the Truth I. How to Pursue the Truth (3)). God gave voice to every elderly person’s inner thoughts. The elderly also want to expend themselves for God all the time, but their bodies can’t take it. They don’t have the energy or the memory to learn like young people do, so they can only do the duties they are capable of, but they worry that they do too little and God will not remember. And because they are of advanced age, have poor vision and are thus unable to comprehend much truth, they get dejected, anxious and worried about their future and destination. I was in just the kind of state that God exposed. I saw that most of the people that God’s house cultivates are young, of good caliber, energetic and quick to learn, while I was much older, and despite having the drive to do my duty, my energy and memory were no match for the youngsters. After fulfilling their duties all day, the youngsters were still full of energy, and could review the problems and deviations in their work as well as their path of practice, whereas I had to go to bed early. Sometimes when my body couldn’t handle the workload, I had to ask others to water newcomers in my stead. When supervisors fellowshiped useful principles and methods, the younger ones would get it right away and apply everything to their duties, whereas it took me much longer to gain any comprehension. Compared with the younger brothers and sisters, fulfilling duties was much more of a strain for me. I was pretty unhappy with the situation, and blamed myself for being old and unable to do much in my duty. Even if I pursued the truth, I didn’t comprehend much and God must have been displeased. I lived in misunderstanding of God, and couldn’t help but worry about my future destination. Now, I’ve realized that the elderly and the young might have varying amounts of energy and memory, but they are just the same when it comes to their corrupt dispositions. Young and old people alike are arrogant. Young and old people alike are selfish. When we encounter a situation orchestrated by God that we don’t like, we all reveal our rebellious dispositions. We are unable to submit to God’s sovereignty and arrangements. We always look after ourselves first in matters that pertain to our own interests, and reveal our selfish, despicable, corrupt dispositions. The elderly and youngsters alike have all been deeply corrupted by Satan. We all need to reflect on ourselves often, accept the judgment and chastisement of God’s words, and seek the truth to resolve our corruption. I thought that my age and the amount of work I did in my duty were the criteria God used to decide if I should be commended. I thought that God just didn’t like the old and I had a slim chance of being saved. My views and notions were so absurd! Now, I know that I must submit to God’s sovereignty and arrangements, do my best to fulfill my duty, and focus on reflecting on and knowing myself and pursuing dispositional transformation in my duty, as this is what accords with God’s will. After realizing this, I gained a sense of lucidity.

One morning during devotionals, I came across a passage of God’s words that had a deep impact on me, and helped me comprehend more of God’s will. “In God’s house and when it comes to the truth, are elderly people a special group? No, they’re not. Age is irrelevant when it comes to the truth, as it is when it comes to your corrupt dispositions, the depth of your corruption, whether you are qualified to pursue the truth, whether you can attain salvation, or what the probability is of you being saved. Isn’t that so? (It is.) We’ve fellowshiped on the truth for so many years now, but we’ve never fellowshiped on different kinds of truths according to people’s different ages. The truth has never been fellowshiped on nor corrupt dispositions revealed exclusively for either young people or elderly people, nor has it been said that, because of their old age, rigid thinking, and inability to accept new things, their corrupt dispositions naturally decrease and change—these things have never been said. No single truth has ever been fellowshiped on specifically according to people’s age and excluding elderly people. Elderly people are not a special group in the church, in God’s house, or before God, but are rather the same as any other age group. There is nothing special about them, it’s just that they have lived a little longer than others, that they arrived in this world a few years earlier than others, that their hair is a little greyer than others, and that their bodies have gotten old a little earlier than others; besides these things, there is no difference” (The Word, Vol. 6. On the Pursuit of the Truth I. How to Pursue the Truth (3)). Through God’s words I learned that in God’s house, the elderly are not a group to be singled out. They’re just a bit older, with a bit more wear and tear. Perhaps they don’t have the energy and vigor of young people, and they might suffer from certain diseases, but before the truth, there are no distinctions in age. As God expresses His words and does His work of judgment in the last days, He does not distinguish between the young and the old. Be it the elderly or the young, they’ve all been deeply corrupted by Satan, and all require God’s salvation. Whether or not someone can be saved is not dictated by their age, or what duty they fulfill; the key is whether or not they walk the path of pursuing the truth, This is decided by God’s righteous disposition. In the secular world, elderly workers are often held in disfavor. People find them slow on the uptake, weak and unlikely to be able to create value, so most bosses like young workers and disfavor the old. I had delimited God according to the notions of unbelievers, thinking that because young sisters and brothers could fulfill many duties and contribute so much, they had the most chance of being saved, while elderly people did insignificant duties and accomplished little, so they were not held in God’s favor, and they had little chance of being saved by God. I hadn’t understood God’s righteous disposition and judged Him based on my own notions and imaginings. This was blasphemous to God! I also came to understand that God’s house is ruled by the truth, that God evaluates every person’s actions based upon the truth. It’s like how I knew this sister, she was young and smart, and she served as a leader, but she violated work arrangements and disrupted and disturbed the church’s work, and she also retaliated against and suppressed those that gave her suggestions. She was ultimately deemed an evil person and expelled from the church. But then I knew this other much older sister, who wasn’t educated and had average caliber, but she kept at her duty consistently—she had true faith in God and was loyal in her duty. These elderly brothers and sisters might not be as robust or have the best memory, but they do their best in their duties, and focus on reflecting and knowing themselves and pursue dispositional transformation in their duties. They may also be commended by God and have a chance to be saved. I also realized that aging is a natural and immutable process that is preordained by God, and so I should submit to it and just fulfill what duties I could given my current age. Actually, as long as I had the right attitude, and focused on seeking the truth in my new duty, couldn’t I also gain God’s enlightenment and guidance? Couldn’t I also come to know my corruption and deficiencies? Couldn’t I still pursue the truth? God hadn’t deprived me of my right to do my duty and attain salvation, much less was He treating me differently due to my age. But I was unthankful toward God and even mistakenly thought He disliked the old, defying His arrangements and orchestrations. I was completely unreasonable! When I realized all this, I felt quite remorseful. I couldn’t keep rebelling against and misunderstanding God, I had to put aside my anxieties and worries, and cooperate well in my new duty so as not to delay the church’s work.

After that, I began to wonder why it was that despite knowing man’s duty had nothing to do with blessings or misfortune, I still couldn’t help but become worried about my destination after being assigned to a duty I was unsatisfied with. What was the source of my problem? During a gathering, my brothers and sisters read two passages of God’s words for me and I identified the source of my problem through His words. “All corrupt humans live for themselves. Every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost—this is the summation of human nature. People believe in God for their own sake; when they forsake things and expend themselves for God, it is in order to be blessed, and when they are faithful to Him, it is in order to be rewarded. In sum, it is all done for the purpose of being blessed, rewarded, and entering the kingdom of heaven. In society, people work for their own benefit, and in the house of God, they perform a duty in order to be blessed. It is for the sake of gaining blessings that people forsake everything and can withstand much suffering: There is no better evidence of man’s satanic nature” (The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Part Three). “Before deciding to perform their duties, antichrists are brimming with expectations deep in their hearts—toward their prospects, blessings, a good destination, and even a crown. They have the utmost confidence. They come to the house of God to perform their duties with such intentions and ambitions. So, does their performance of duty contain the sincerity, genuine faith and loyalty that God requires? At this point, one cannot yet see their genuine loyalty, faith, or sincerity, because they harbor an entirely transactional mindset before they undertake their duties; they make the decision to perform their duties driven by interests, and also based on the precondition of their overflowing ambitions and desires. What is the antichrists’ intention in performing their duties? It’s to make a deal, to make an exchange. It could be said that these are the conditions they set for performing duty: ‘If I fulfill my duty, then I must obtain blessings and have a good destination. I must obtain all the blessings and benefits that God has said are prepared for humankind. If I can’t obtain them, then I won’t perform this duty.’ They come to the house of God to perform their duties with such intentions, ambitions, and desires. It seems like they do have some sincerity, and of course for those who are new believers and are just starting to perform duties, it can also be called enthusiasm. But there is no genuine faith or loyalty in this; there’s only that degree of enthusiasm. It can’t be called sincerity. Judging from the attitude of the antichrists in performing their duties in this manner, it is wholly transactional and filled with their desires for benefits like receiving blessings, entering the kingdom of heaven, obtaining a crown, and receiving rewards” (The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Nine (Part Seven)). Through the revelation of God’s words, I saw that I was no different than an antichrist, and only believed and fulfilled my duty to gain blessings and enter God’s kingdom. Before putting faith in God, I just lived by satanic toxins like “Every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost,” “Never lift a finger without a reward.” I thought it was right and proper to consider my own interests. As long as something was beneficial to me, I would do it regardless of how much I suffered or what price I had to pay. After accepting God’s work in the last days, I heard I could gain eternal life and enter God’s kingdom if I expended myself for God and fulfilled my duty. Seeing that this great blessing could not be bought with money or valuables, I forsook my family, quit my job and began following God and fulfilling my duty. When God’s house assigned me to watering duty, I thought to myself: In watering duty I can read a lot of God’s words, and there are lots of chances to fellowship the truth, all of which would give me a good chance of gaining truth and attaining salvation. So I was motivated to do my duty well, hoping that I would attain salvation and enter God’s kingdom. I had the same attitude toward my duty as an antichrist. I just did it to gain blessings and was bartering with God. God must have been disgusted! I was highly motivated in my duty, but I was in poor health and wasn’t getting any younger. I just didn’t have the energy, strength or memory the youngsters possessed, and even needed help from others to do my duty. I would just slow down the work if I continued with the watering duty, and would influence the watering results. If I had any self-awareness and reason. I would have let go of my desire for blessings and made way for younger brothers and sisters. This would be advantageous for the church’s work. But all I thought about was how to attain blessings. I was using the duty God gave me to satisfy my desire for blessings. When I didn’t see any hope of attaining blessings from my new duty, I failed to submit, misunderstood God and even blamed Him. How could I be considered someone that truly submits to and has faith in God? I had been deeply poisoned by this satanic toxin of “Every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost.” Whatever situation I encountered, I would first consider whether I could gain profit or blessings from it, putting my own interests before the truth. I didn’t consider the church’s work at all, thinking only of my own interests. The fact that I had been chosen by God, enjoyed so much of the watering and supply of His words in my years as a believer, had comprehended some truth, and was able to fulfill my duty as a created being, this was all God’s enormous grace. Yet I didn’t give thanks to God or think of how to repay His love. If something didn’t go quite my way, I would misunderstand and blame God. I was being completely unreasonable! Thanks to God for exposing me in time, otherwise, if I maintained this transactional attitude toward my duty, not only would I not gain truth and attain salvation, God would despise me and cast me out. Realizing all this, I felt remorseful and reproached myself, so I prayed to God, saying: “O God! I have followed You for many years, but haven’t submitted to You in the slightest and have misunderstood Your will. I took the duty I ought to fulfill as a created being for a bartering chip I could exchange for blessings. How You must have despised this! O God! I am ready to repent to You, please guide me to live according to Your words.”

During devotionals, I came across a passage of God’s words that gave me a path of practice. “While they’re living, elderly people should strive even more to pursue the truth, pursue life entry, and work harmoniously together with brothers and sisters to perform their duty; only in this way can their stature grow. Elderly people must absolutely not presume themselves to be senior to others and flaunt their old age. Young people can reveal all kinds of corrupt disposition, and so can you; young people can do all manner of foolish things, and so can you; young people harbor notions, and so do elderly people; young people can be rebellious, and so can elderly people; young people can reveal an antichrist disposition, and so can elderly people; young people have wild ambitions and desires, and so do elderly people, without the slightest difference; young people can cause disruptions and disturbances and get cleared out of the church, and so can elderly people. Therefore, besides being able to perform their duty well to the best of their abilities, there are many things they can do. Unless you’re stupid, demented, and cannot understand the truth, and unless you’re unable to take care of yourself, there are many things you should do. Just like young people, you can pursue the truth, you can seek the truth, and you should often come before God to pray, seek the truth principles, strive to view people and things and comport yourself and act wholly according to God’s words, with the truth as your criterion. This is the path you should follow, and you should not feel distressed, anxious, or worried because you’re old, because you have many ailments, or because your body is aging. Feeling distress, anxiety, and worry is not the right thing to do—they are irrational manifestations” (The Word, Vol. 6. On the Pursuit of the Truth I. How to Pursue the Truth (3)). Through God’s words I learned that no matter what duty the church assigns me to, it is God’s will that I seek the truth through my duty, use the truth to resolve my corrupt disposition, practice dealing with affairs in my duty according to principle, and ultimately set foot on the path to salvation. Now, apart from doing all that I can in my duty, I reflect on any manifestations of corruption whenever I can, and write experiential testimony articles. When I meet with brothers and sisters, we discuss what notions the newcomers have and I fellowship on as much as I understand. I feel very peaceful and at ease practicing in this way. My biggest takeaway from this experience is that God treats everyone fairly. God evaluates all things using the truth, He does not care how old you are or what duty you do. He just cares if you walk the path of pursuing the truth. As long as you seek the truth and walk the right path, you have a chance of attaining salvation. God does not disfavor the elderly in the least. Whenever I think back at how I misunderstood God, I feel that I owe so much to Him and tears come to my eyes. At this age, I still have the chance to welcome the Creator, and have been lucky enough to hear God’s voice, receive the judgment and chastisement of His words, and expend myself for Him in my duties. What a great blessing this is! No matter whether or not I attain blessings or what my outcome will be, I will pursue the truth diligently and do all I’m capable of in my duty to repay God’s love.