Good resolutions are great at the start of a new year: eat less junk food, waste less time on social media, do more exercise. Unfortunately, science shows that most people fall back into their old ways within a couple of weeks. Frankly, I don’t even need science to tell me that. I know from experience. What we truly need to change our lives is not so much strict rules, but rather a clear vision. A dream.
Martin Luther King
One man who is known worldwide for his dream is dr. Martin Luther King jr. Every year, this American Baptist pastor and civil rights leader is remembered during MLK Day. This year, the event takes place on 15 January. Martin Luther King’s dream still inspires millions of people today in the same way it inspired him in 1963.
As a Christian believer and pastor, Martin Luther King was inspired by the Word of God. This is also reflected in his famous ‘I have a dream’ speech. Listen to some of his words:
‘I have a dream.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream that one day “every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.”
This is our hope, this is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.’
Martin Luther King knew that it would not be easy to see his dream fulfilled. There would be fierce resistance and even violence. Yet, this didn’t stop him. In fact, it strengthened him even further. As Derek Prince states: “When you know what you can expect, you can decide how to react.”
What is your dream?
As a young man, as a student both of Eton College and of Cambridge University, Derek Prince didn’t have a dream or vision. His number one preoccupation for finding the answer to this question: what is it that makes life worth living? He realized that he longed to be challenged, to find something he could give his life for, something worth living for and dying for. How about you?
Derek Prince found the answer in knowing Jesus Christ. Only in an intimate relationship with God, real purpose for living and true vision for life can be found. In one of his sermons, he says:
I want to speak to you about what I believe will give motivation, meaning and purpose to your life. I want to take the Lord Jesus Christ Himself as the example. What was the real motivation in the life of Jesus?
Now you could probably answer in various ways. But I see that the great overruling motive for everything He did was to do the will of God. That was how He started, that was why He came, and that was how He ended. It never varied. I think if there is any strength and stability in my life it arises from the same motivation. It is my sincere desire to do God’s will.
In John chapter 6 verse 38, Jesus says:
“For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.”
Ultimately God is going to do things the way He intended to do them. There may be delay, there may be opposition, but it is going to come out the way God said it would. God is going to work out His will. And when you are committed to and united with the will of God you are as unshakable and as unsinkable as God’s way. You can face any situation, any threat, any opposition, with perfect inner calm and tranquillity because it cannot defeat you. It cannot defeat you because it cannot defeat the will of God. So in any situation where your peace is threatened and where you feel fear or doubt beginning to rip you, don’t begin by weighing up the situation. Begin by making sure that you are committed to the will of God. Then you can face the situation differently.’
We have a dream
Martin Luther King dreamed that ‘the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.” And it will! One day, the Lord Jesus Christ will return to this world in glory. This ‘dream’ has the power to change the way we live today and to empower us today as we face challenges that oppose it.
It also motivates us as Derek Prince Ministries, to continue reaching the millions of people who haven’t been reached with the gospel yet and to teach the untaught from the Word of God. Our committed outreach workers around the world face oppression and even jail, but they will not give up on this vision.
Thank you for sharing with us in the pursuit of our dream of reaching the lost. Following the words from Martin Luther King: ‘With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together....’
You can read more about our global outreaches on our website or read recent stories from our outreach workers.
We'd love to thank you for that support, and encourage you to continue praying for our ministry by sharing this video of Ruth Prince (who went to be with the Lord in 1998). In her talk, she speaks about 'seeying beyond' - words that speak of vision and a dream to reach the lost. This short clip will surely bless you.
Inspiration for 2024
If you want to be inspired in your faith, check out these resources. You will enjoy them!
