WITNESS

About seven years ago many of my associates in the business drank and gambled.  Once, on a business trip to the city, I ran into a friend and he invited me to play cards at his house.  Instead of going to buy wholesale merchandise, I agreed to play cards with him, and ended up staying at his house for seven days and seven nights.  During the entire time we neither slept nor ate. We only drank wine to quench our thirst. 

At the end of the seven days, I wanted to go home, but he persuaded me into staying longer and waiting for another card player.  Meanwhile I went for swimming for about an hour.  Exhausted and famished, I got out of the water and ate some shrimp dipped in wine.  About twenty minutes later I vomited everything I had just consumed.  The expected person had arrived by this time, so we play cards again.  After about two rounds, I felt so weak that I ate some fruit and drank a couple glasses of wine.  I fell asleep and felt a cold sweat.  I was trembling even under five down comforters. 

My friend was so afraid that he took me to the hospital.  A doctor warned me that I drank so much that pretty soon they would have to take me to a morgue.  My white blood cell count was too high so that I had to stay at the hospital for treatment.  After my recovery, keeping the doctor's warning in my mind, I dared not to drink wine any more.  At one time on my way to attend a wedding, I drank some beer.  By the time I arrived to the bride's father's house, I collapsed, and they sent for an ambulance to take me to the hospital.  Because it was my sister-in-law's wedding, I decided to go back to the wedding later.  When I arrived, I drank a glass of water and felt my body weaken again. 

The doctor told my wife that my liver was already hardened so that the recovery would be difficult.  Possibly I would have only three years left to live.  I was in a Home for Recovering Alcoholics for 41 days.  After I came out of the center, I didn't drink for about four months.  But in one occasion, while went hunting with my neighbor, I couldn't refrain myself from taking in the alcohol.  From that time on, my addiction became worse.  I could finish six bottles of wine in two hours.  At night I could see mosquitoes getting drunk and passing out around me from all the alcohol in my blood.  I neglected my family and my job, and lived for my drinking.  So my wife left me without telling me.  Everyday I got so drunk that I didn't even realize that everybody in the family had moved out.

At this point I didn't feel safe at home anymore because if I happened to die, no one would even know, so I sold the house and moved to another city to do business.  I started to drink again, and half a year later, I couldn't even walk a few steps without trembling all over.  At that time there was a brother from the True Jesus Church living in the city.  He saw the condition I was in and invited me to attend the church with him, hoping that the Lord would cure my sickness. 

After a period of time of going to the church regularly, I decided to get baptized.  Four or five days before the baptism, I received the Holy Spirit.  I was baptized on November 1st, 1981.  Right before the baptism, a friend tempted me with wine.  I decided that this would be the last time.  I drank two bottles and before I could even walk five steps, I vomited it all out.  My whole head was red. Other people smelled the odor of alcohol around me.  The Lord had pity on me.  When I was baptized, I saw the blood of Jesus Christ. 

After the baptism, I was chastised by God because I was not aware of my sins.  By His love and power I was completely healed and blessed.  Now my life is stable and I am very zealous for the church.  My wife had returned and encouraged me to join the theological program of the church, to help me to understand the Bible.  I thank the Lord for saving my life and giving me another chance.