(Minghui.org)
Greetings to Revered Master, greetings to fellow practitioners.
I started practicing Falun Dafa in 2008. The following is my story.
1. The Prodigal Son Returns and Becomes a New Person
Before, I always liked to get drunk and pick fights. I thought this was fun and it made me happy. Later I started a business and pursued money and fame. My family life was a mess. I used alcohol to numb my emotions and continued to waste my life away.
One day a friend gave me a copy of the Bible and asked me to go to church with him, saying that it would solve my problems. My head hurt when I was at the church. When I got home, my wife gave me a copy of Zhuan Falun. She had practiced Falun Dafa before 1999 and gave up after the persecution started. However, she kept a copy of the book.
I read a few pages and felt really sleepy. As I fell asleep, I saw a large golden Buddha come to me and he said, “You should read Zhuan Falun with (your wife) because...” I suddenly woke up. It was so real that I didn't think it was a dream. I told my wife what happened and she broke down crying, “This is Master telling you to practice Falun Dafa!” I became a practitioner and so did my wife.
I returned the Bible to my friend. He heard about my dream and told me, “Then you should practice Falun Dafa.” This friend of mine used to practice Falun Dafa as well. Because of the persecution, he believed the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) propaganda and defaming statements. We stopped doing things with him, as he believed that he had reached consummation and didn't need to study the Fa anymore.
2. Clarifying the Facts at Work
My wife and I opened up a store in another city where we didn't know any practitioners. With just the two of us, our cultivation could not advance. Master was kind enough to arrange for someone who had been practicing for a long time to come and work for us. She often told us her experiences and how she cherished the opportunity to progress diligently. She often encouraged us.
I quit smoking and drinking. My drinking friends stopped asking me out because they knew that I practiced Falun Dafa. We got together occasionally and I would just drink tea or other beverages. After a while, no one tried to talk me into drinking anymore.
In the beginning, I was scared to clarify the truth. Gradually I understood that I must validate the Fa. When someone asked me why I stopped drinking, I would take the opportunity to tell him/her my great experience with Falun Dafa.
I wanted to help people quit the CCP but I was terrified. Also, I worried that I wasn't eloquent enough to persuade others. I wanted to break through this barrier.
“Cultivation depends on one's own efforts, while the transformation of gong is done by one's master." (Zhuan Falun)
Master arranged an opportunity for me. A customer of mine wanted to decorate his house and I tried my best to help him. I was considerate and put myself in his shoes. He was very happy with my work.
Seeing that I had his trust, I told him the facts about Dafa. I told him how corrupted society was and how common people like us suffered. He agreed. I continued to tell him how Falun Dafa was taught in over 100 countries and areas and that the self-immolation on Tiananmen Square was staged to frame Falun Gong. I told him how I had changed from someone society considered worthless to a successful and responsible businessman. My wisdom kept emerging as I wanted to tell him more of the truth. He expressed sincere admiration for Falun Dafa and agreed to quit the CCP with his real name.
A big man like me almost cried right then. I had improved myself and could finally save people. That was the first being I saved!
We treated customer service as the most important thing in our store. When the customer came in, a practitioner would greet him warmly to leave a good impression and her compassion. When the deal was sealed, we sent out workers to the customer's apartment. One of the workers was always a practitioner and he would clarify the truth and help the person quit the CCP. If the customer wasn't home, I would provide the last chance. The rule was that I must, after everything was done, visit the customer in person until he was satisfied. This way I had at least an hour to talk to the customer. Most of the time they would gladly quit the CCP.
Several practitioners in our store worked as one body to clarify the truth. Sometimes I slacked off in Fa study and all sorts of notions emerged. When I serviced the customers, I had the attachments of showing off, pursuing fame and profit. As a result, the effects of truth clarification weren't good and there were problems with our work.
This year, several times I forgot to clarify the truth when customers came, like something was stopping me. I would then see the beings behind the customers begging me to clarify the truth. It was what they had been waiting for for so many years and it was their only chance for the future. I should have clarified the truth to them but my notions stopped me from doing it.
One customer became very angry with my service and demanded that I go to his house to fix things. I knew that his knowing side was upset that I didn't clarify the truth to him and it wanted to hear it this time. In the end I still didn't open my mouth. I felt awful after I got home. I hated the cowardice in me. I wondered what had happened to me.
I shared this incidence at a Fa study group and everyone agreed that they experienced the same recently. Some of us were reluctant to clarify the truth and missed a lot of opportunities. We realized that we were slacking off. Fa study became a formality and sending righteous thoughts became dispensable. Our attachments to comfort and laziness prevented us from saving people and that was what the old forces wanted. The evil created all kinds of trouble, interfering with practitioners' clarifying the truth. The less we clarified the truth, the less we wanted to. We adjusted our mindsets and increased our Fa study and exercise time. With the help of sending righteous thoughts more frequently, we became diligent again.
3. Spread the Fa to Family Members
I am the third of five siblings. I have a twin brother. Before I practiced Falun Dafa, I was such a problem that none of my family ever wanted to go out with me, fearing that they would lose face. After I became a practitioner, I got rid of my bad habits, was devoted to my business, and my family was at peace. My business was successful and I bought a house, a car and a garage. It was Master's blessings.
My siblings couldn't believe their eyes and I took the opportunity to clarify the truth to them. Since they were my family and knew my past, they believed in the miracle of Falun Dafa and quit the CCP and its affiliates.
My twin brother believed in spirit possession and his family was in chaos because of the spirit. His wife later had tuberculosis and hemorrhaging and her life was at stake. My wife and I clarified the truth to them and helped them quit the CCP. As my twin brother, he believed me. He returned all the Buddha statues he had to the temples and burnt the rest and the offerings. They studied Falun Dafa and did the exercises with us. In seven days, my sister-in-law's illnesses were gone. They became practitioners and helped clarified the truth. They later bought an apartment that they could afford. They believed that it was a blessing from practicing Falun Dafa.
My family and I sincerely thank Master for offering us salvation. From now on I will be a steadfast practitioner and eliminate all my attachments. I will do only what Master asks and help save more people. Master said in “Fa Teaching at the 2009 Greater New York International Fa Conference”:
“That is why it's said that always cultivating as if you were just starting will surely result in achieving your ultimate rank.”
I will be a true practitioner during Fa-rectification, carry out my vows and go home with Master.
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