Again, the pastor and his wife paid me a visit. They often visited my home out of their caring feelings for a newcomer. They don’t mind whether you are a believer or not and it seems that their only task is to bring the gospel to everyone they meet.

At first I went to church just out of curiosity for the origin of Western cultures. There are many Catholic and Christian churches here, as well as many church schools. In the beginning I didn’t know why some cars have signs with a red knot, and then I was told that they were the certifications of one’s good charity works. When packing for my journey to Canada this time, I picked out some of my old clothes and donated them to poverty stricken areas through a domestic charity organization. They thanked me but gave me no token of remembrance of my good will. In this aspect, Canada is very different from China.

Every time during the pastor and his wife’s visit, I would be moved by some of the stories they told me. This time it was a story of a fellow believer in their church. This Canadian man used to be a prisoner who was sentenced to 45 years imprisonment in the United States. He became a believer of Christianity in prison and began to feel repentant of his crime. Then his sentence was reduced to 20 years, and finally he was sent back to Canada to finish out the remainder of his imprisonment. After being released from prison, he joined their church and became a pious and faithful brother. He also started a small business as a roofer and donated all his income to the church. He told them that it was God who gave him a second chance to live a life that he had originally planned to spend in prison.

I hope we continue to hear more such stories, whether in the East or West, the ones where people conduct righteous deeds out of their belief in God and are themselves finally redeemed.