I was formerly an area leader of the Joseph Church. In 1998, at a co-worker meeting, a senior area leader warned me in particular, “Brother Fu, the situations of the churches in your area are rather messy, so you have to work harder. Now the preachers of Almighty God are very aggressive and grow very fast in number. And their so-called little scroll is quite deceitful. You must guard the flock properly and not let any of them be taken captive. If you neglect your duty, you will have no crown.” From then on, I began to wantonly close all the churches in my area to outsiders. I said to the brothers and sisters, “Those who believe in Almighty God have departed from the Bible. Any belief apart from the Bible is heresy or cult. So, all of you, never come into contact with the believers in Almighty God, much less receive them. They are as dangerous as poisonous hooks. Once you contact them, you will become swollen and sore all over, and no doctor can cure you. If they read you their so-called little scroll, shut your ears to them. Once you listen to them, you will be bewitched, unable to escape no matter how you try….” In this way, I regarded the believers in Almighty God as enemies, did my utmost to resist Almighty God’s new work, and bound the brothers and sisters tightly in my hands.

One day in April 1999, a sister secretly told me, “Brother Zhang in our church is in contact with some believers in Almighty God.” At this, I immediately came to the worker in charge of the meeting places in that church and said to him, “I’ve heard that Brother Zhang in your church is in contact with some believers in Almighty God. Look into it. Warn him not to get close to the believers in Almighty God, because they have ‘evil spirits’ in them. You must keep a strict eye upon him lest he be taken captive.” Three days later, I went to that worker in charge of the meeting places again because I still felt uneasy about it. He told me, “Brother Zhang has stopped going with those people.” At this, my anxious heart was relieved, and I thought that the Lord had cared for and kept that church. Not long afterward, another sister told me that her younger brother had accepted Almighty God and asked her to listen to the message. I said to her, “Don’t go to listen. You must stand firmly on your ground. Apart from our Joseph Church, there is no true way. Only the house of Joseph is most blessed. Genesis 49:25-26 says: ‘…the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breast and womb. … Let all these rest on the head of Joseph….’ If you go astray, your many years of believing in God will be in vain.” Urged by me, the sister had no more contact with her brother. Thereafter, I resisted the end-time work of Almighty God more and more fiercely. Many believers in Almighty God had been ruthlessly driven away by me when they came to preach the gospel to the brothers and sisters in our churches.

One day in June 2001, I suddenly felt numb all over, and my legs became so weak that I was even unable to stand. My family hastily sent me to hospital. There I was given intravenous infusions and medicines. However, I did not get better, but got worse, and eventually I even lost all feeling in my legs—I became paralyzed. After a period of treatment, the doctor said, “You’ve got spinal tuberculosis. It is incurable.” At this, tears burst forth from my eyes. “I’m only forty-four years old. Will I just wait for death at home like this?” On October 26, I left the hospital with despair. Being paralyzed, I was unable to look after myself. I struggled hard in agony and called on God in despair, feeling that days wore on like years and that I would rather die than live. One day, some brothers and sisters told me, “The founder of our Church (Wei Zuqiang) will come to our churches.” At this news, I immediately felt that I could be healed because in our eyes the founder was God. I wished and wished, waited and waited. More than a month passed, but he still did not come. Later, some brothers and sisters told me, “The founder won’t come. He says that the situation of the churches in our area is too messy and chaotic, so he gives up the whole flock here.” The news was simply a head-on blow to me. I could not help crying out in my heart, “O Lord! Why is this happening? I had been utterly faithful to you over all these many years of believing in you. In order to protect the flock, I did my utmost to resist ‘Eastern Lightning.’ How come I end up like this? O Lord! Where are you? The house of Joseph has been most blessed by you. Why do you not care about us anymore? Have you really left us and done a new work? …”