在急難時刻，祂仍是平安之君 @ 老鷹的故事

In intense times . . . He's still the PRINCE OF PEACE

Dear John,

We are definitely facing intense times in the world around us. Do you agree?

I ask because of some thoughts that came to me during a recent trip to Cuba . During that time, the Lord spoke to me about how we should respond in difficult, challenging days.

I have shared these thoughts with close friends and with the staff of DPM-USA. And as we enter the Christmas season and then launch into the uncharted waters of a brand-new year, I want to share them with you.

Hopes for a Massive Revival

On our trip to Cuba in October, Mark DeVito and I (Mark is the Chief Financial Officer for DPM-USA) met with the director of the DPM work there. We also spoke in churches in some key areas of that nation.

At one church, a prominent Cuban evangelist (I’ll call him Renaldo—not his real name) introduced me as the speaker that night. After the service, Renaldo and I were talking informally with the hosting pastor and a number of other people.

As we talked, Renaldo expressed his belief that Cuba is being prepared for a massive revival.

The irony of his statement is that much of Cuba has just been devastated by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike (and then Paloma in November). At the same time, the nation continues to groan under the weight of extensive poverty, increasing government regulation, and the continuing repression of religious expression that has been its lot for almost fifty years. Yet, Renaldo spoke in glowing terms of the move of God he is expecting to see across Cuba .

As we talked, I shared with the group a paradoxical scripture that came to my mind. Habakkuk 2:3 says:

“For the vision is yet for the appointed time; it hastens toward the goal, and it will not fail. Though it tarries, wait for it; for it will certainly come, it will not delay.”

因為這默示有一定的日期，快要應驗，並不虛謊。雖然遲延，還要等候；因為必然臨到，不再遲延。

We discussed the seeming contradictions of this scripture. The vision is for the appointed time toward which it is hastening, yet we have to wait for it because it seems to be tarrying, despite the promise that it will not delay.

After much discussion, we reached this conclusion:

The revival anticipated for Cuba will certainly come. And it will come at the time God has appointed for it. Our job is to be ready when it comes.

Habakkuk in Context

A few days after my return to the States, reflecting again on that paradoxical scripture, I decided to turn to Habakkuk to see the context in which that verse appears.

I only got as far as the first few verses of the first chapter of Habakkuk. In verse 3, Habakkuk asks a probing question of the Lord:

Why do You make me see iniquity, and cause me to look on wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before me; strife exists and contention arises.

你為何使我看見罪孽﹖你為何看著奸惡而不理呢﹖毀滅和強暴在我面前，又起了爭端和相鬥的事。

Obviously, Habakkuk was facing desperate times in his nation, and he was perplexed by what he saw all around him. We can certainly relate to this!

The margin notes in my Bible cross-referenced Psalm 55:911 and Jeremiah 20:18. In Psalm 55, David makes an observation similar to Habakkuk:

…For I have seen violence and strife in the city. Day and night they go around her upon her walls; and iniquity and mischief are in her midst. . . . oppression and deceit do not depart from her streets [plaza].

因為我在城中見了強暴爭競的事。他們在城牆上晝夜繞行；在城內也有罪孽和奸惡。邪惡在其中；欺壓和詭詐不離街市。

Jeremiah, always more dramatic in his expression, asks the Lord this question in 20:18: “Why did I ever come forth from the womb to look on trouble and sorrow, so that my days have been spent in shame?”「我為何出胎見勞碌愁苦，使我的年日因羞愧消滅呢？」

The common thread? Habakkuk, David and Jeremiah all were forced to look upon alarming, desperate situations surrounding them. Yet it was in these circumstances that the vision of the Lord and His purposes would come forth. Desperate times would be the context for the revelation of God’s glory and victory.

Two Significant Thoughts

Two things occurred to me as I read Habakkuk 1:3.

First, God calls us and uses us in the midst of difficult times. We might complain like Habakkuk and Jeremiah did, or simply observe as David did, expressing a preference to serve the Lord in less tempestuous times. But those were the days in which they lived. It was no accident. God had called them for a time He knew would be filled with challenges and difficulties. And the same is true for us today.

Second, rather than complaining about the difficult times we face, should we not count it a privilege to be alive in difficult days? The Lord has called us in challenging times. God knew when we would be born, and He placed us on the world scene at this difficult moment. It is our destiny to be alive in these times.

Think of the words Mordecai spoke in Esther 4:14: “And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?”

We have a choice. We can either complain about the difficult circumstances we face. Or we can shift our attitude to recognize the great honor and privilege of serving our Lord in turbulent times.

From Challenge to Victory

Derek Prince lived through some pretty intense times himself. One of my favorite articles by Derek is called “A Stormy Christmas in the Holy Land .” It tells of the threat on the lives of Derek and Lydia and their eight adopted daughters. So severe was it that they had to flee from their home in Jerusalem under cover of night with only the clothes that were on their backs. It doesn’t get more intense than that. (If you’d like to have a copy of this story, please check the appropriate box on the response form.)

Derek found Christ amid the intensity of World War II. In 1948, he was an eyewitness to the conflict and drama that accompanied the Jewish state’s miraculous rebirth. And he was fully engaged in ministry during the cultural convulsions of the ’60s and ’70s. Derek knew what it was like to live and serve during challenging times.

Usually at this point in our letter to you, we include a topical excerpt from Derek’s teaching. There is certainly no shortage of Derek’s material that we could select for our theme, but may I offer a suggestion instead? Take note of our special complimentary offer for this month. It is a series by Derek called “Titles of Jesus,” and we believe it will do much more to encourage you than this letter or any excerpt we could print. In that series, you will hear Derek expound fully on the life of Jesus—the One Who was our example in facing and conquering challenging circumstances.

The CD series we are offering begins with a familiar Christmas focus—“Wonderful Counselor” and “Prince of Peace” as the first two of ten titles Derek covers. However, the series progresses through other titles of Jesus to end on a note of ultimate victory—“King of kings and Lord of lords.” Surely that will be a most helpful focus in moving us through the challenges we face to the victory awaiting us in Jesus Christ.

As always, we want to express our immense gratitude to you for your partnership and help for the vision we are fulfilling together—“reaching the unreached and teaching the untaught” through Derek’s materials. As you help to spread Derek’s biblical teaching throughout the world, you are encouraging dear brothers and sisters in Christ to build a firm foundation in the Word of God. By doing so, you are helping to bring about the ultimate victory of Jesus in their lives—and in your life as well in these days of intense challenge and privilege.

Blessings this Christmas season . . .

All the best,

Dick Leggatt
President, DPM - USA

P.S. Thank you so much for keeping your connection to this ministry strong this past year. With your ongoing help, we’ll continue to extend the teaching legacy of Derek Prince to you and the world in 2009.

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