人生不设限·即使是盗版，上帝依然做工

南非惊奇之旅过后几年，一位小名叫韩韩的男士邀请我到印尼演讲，他是华裔，在澳大利亚的印尼人教会担任牧师。我先前也曾应他之邀去过印尼，这是第二次。

A few years later Han-Han invited me to return to Indonesia for another speaking tour. This time I provided my own caregiver and stuck to bottled water with no ice. A businessman in Indonesia, whom we knew as Pa Chokro, arranged for me to speak to nearly forty thousand people at stadium appearances in five cities. The events were also broadcast on television.

某个星期天上午，在一家教会办完三场演讲之后，我们休息了一下，因为当天晚上我还有三场活动。我又饿又累，但决定先处理饿的问题，填饱肚子再说。我们在附近找到一家中国餐厅，于是我的看护宝汉抱着我，跟当地一些社团领袖和本次巡回演讲的赞助者一起走进去。

One Sunday morning, after I had done three speaking engagements at a church, we took a break since I had three events that evening. I was hungry and tired but decided to address the hunger first. We found a Chinese restaurant near my last speaking venue. A group of local leaders and sponsors of our tour accompanied us. We walked in, with my caregiver Vaughan carrying me.

餐厅是混凝土的地板加上木质桌椅，看起来挺阳光的。我们刚坐下，一个年轻女人就走了过来，倚在门边。她流着泪，并用印尼语对我说话。我不知道她在讲些什么，但看得出来她在对我打手势，似乎想要一个拥抱。我对她的同情如浪涌出。

The restaurant was not fancy, little more than a concrete floor with wooden tables and chairs. Just as we were seated, a young woman came up to the door and leaned against its frame. She was weeping and speaking in Indonesian directly to me. I felt a wave of compassion for her. I had no idea what she was saying, but I could see that she was gesturing at me and in need of a hug.

在场的商人和社团领袖似乎都被她的言语打动了。他们解释说，这个女人——以斯帖——和母亲及两个兄弟住在垃圾场旁边一个以纸板搭建的破烂小屋里，他们每天在垃圾场觅食，并挑拣出塑胶卖给回收工厂。她对上帝有坚定的信仰，但是当父亲遗弃他们时，以斯帖绝望到打算自杀，她认为自己的人生已经不值得活下去了。

The businessmen and community leaders with me seemed to be touched by her words. They explained that this woman, Esther, had grown up in a tin-roofed shanty made of cardboard. She lived with her mother and two siblings at the edge of a garbage dump, where they foraged for food each day and collected bits of plastic to sell to the recycling factory. She had a strong faith in God, but when her father left the family, Esther despaired and considered suicide. She believed that her life wasn't worth living.

某次聚会时，以斯帖祷告，跟上帝说她以后没办法再到教会了。但就在那一天，教会的牧师让会众看我的DVD。那是盗版片，我的盗版DVD在印尼已经卖了15 000张。

Upset over the departure of her father, she considered taking her life. She prayed, telling God that she could no longer go to church. That same day her pastor showed the congregation one of my DVDs. It was a black-marketed copy, one of 150,000 made illegally and sold in Indonesia.

当我第一次从韩韩口中得知我的DVD在印尼被盗得这么严重时，我说：“不要担心，要赞美上帝!”我关心的是有多少人可以听到我的信息，而不是获利。以斯帖的故事证实，即使是不合法的盗版，上帝依然做工。

When I'd first learned from Han-Han that so many of my DVDs had been pirated and sold, I responded, "Don't worry about it, praise God." I cared more about people hearing my message than about making profits. Even on the black market, God was at work, as Esther would confirm.

通过翻译，以斯帖告诉我，我的DVD让她抵制绝望，找到了生命的目的，并心怀盼望。她认为：“如果力克能够仰赖神，我也可以。”以斯帖为了能有份工作禁食祷告了六个月。之后，她在这家中国餐厅找到工作，于是我们见到了彼此。

Through an interpreter, Esther told me that my DVD had inspired her to reject despair. She came to find a purpose and to have hope. She felt that "if Nick can trust in God, then I can too." She prayed for a job and fasted for six months. She'd found the job in that same Chinese restaurant, which brought us together!

听完她的故事之后，我给了以斯帖一个拥抱，并问她未来有什么计划。她说，尽管她没什么钱，而且一天工作14个小时，但她想要成为一个以儿童为对象的传道人。她想去读神学院，然而以她的情况来说，她也不知道要如何实现这个愿望。因为没钱，租不起房子，所以她住在餐厅里，睡在地板上。

After hearing this story, I gave Esther a hug and asked her what her plans were. She had decided that even though she had little money and worked fourteen hours a day, she would prepare herself to be a children's minister. She hoped to attend a Bible college, even though she wasn't sure how that could happen given her situation. She was living in the restaurant, sleeping on the floor because she couldn't afford a place to live.

听到这儿，我差点没从轮椅上跌下来。我在那家餐厅吃得不太舒服，所以真的无法想象这个可怜的女人天天睡在这种地方。我鼓励以斯帖另外找个地方住，追寻梦想，为了向儿童传福音而努力。

I nearly fell off my chair at that revelation. I hadn't felt really comfortable about eating in the place. I couldn't imagine this poor woman sleeping there. I encouraged her to find a different place to live and to pursue her dream to be a children's minister.

在场的人里面有一位牧师，在以斯帖回去工作后，他告诉我，当地的神学院学费很贵，而且光是要参加入学考试就要排队等上12个月，然后只有少数几位申请者可以过关。

One of the members of our group was a pastor. After Esther returned to her work, he told me that the local Bible college was very expensive, and it had a twelve-month waiting list just to take the entrance exam, which very few applicants passed.

一盘热腾腾的食物摆到我眼前，但我已没了食欲，一直想着这个睡在地板上的可怜女人。当其他人在作谢饭祷告时，我为以斯帖祈祷，结果我的祷告几乎立刻就有了回应。坐我旁边的牧师说，如果我能付点押金，他的教会可以提供以斯帖住的地方。我问他以斯帖是否付得起那里的租金，牧师向我保证一定在她的能力范围内，于是我同意了。我兴奋地想告诉以斯帖这件事，但是在她回到我们这桌之前，在场的某位商人说他愿意支付这笔押金。

A steaming plate full of food was placed in front of me, but I'd lost my appetite. I kept thinking of this poor woman sleeping on the floor. As the rest of the group prayed in thanks for the meal, I prayed for Esther. My prayers were answered almost immediately. The pastor seated next to me said that his church could provide Esther with living accommodations if I contributed the security deposit. I asked if Esther could afford to pay her rent, and the pastor assured me that she could handle it. So I agreed. I was very excited to tell Esther, but before she returned to our table, one of the businessmen said that he would make the down payment himself.

我告诉他，我想尽一份心力，但还是谢谢他的好意。

I told him I wanted to do my part, but I appreciated his offer.

就在此时，另一个人开口了：“我就是神学院的董事长。”他说，“我同意让以斯帖在这个星期参加入学考，如果她通过了，我会让她拿到奖学金。”

Just then another of our party spoke up. "I am the president of the Bible College," he said. "I will allow Esther to take the entrance exam this week, and if she passes, I will see that she gets a scholarship."

上帝的计划在我眼前展开。以斯帖以极为优异的成绩通过入学考，并于2008年11月从神学院毕业。她目前在印尼最大的教会之一做事，负责青年部，并计划在她的社区设立一家孤儿院。

God's plan unfolded before my eyes. Esther scored 100 percent on the entrance exam. She graduated from the Bible college in November 2008. She is now the youth director for a children's ministry in one of Indonesia's largest churches, and she has plans to create an orphanage in her community.

在这本书里，我一直在谈人生目的所拥有的力量，而以斯帖的故事就是那份力量的证明。这个年轻女人别的没有，只有对自己生命目标的强烈感受，以及对上帝的信心。而她的目的与信心创造出强大的磁场，把我和她的圆梦团队吸引了过来。

Throughout this book I've been telling you about the power of purpose. Esther's story is a testament to that power. This woman had nothing but a sense of purpose and faith in God. Her purpose and her faith created a powerful magnetic field that attracted me and an entire team of people willing to buy into her dream.