"Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows open toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just has he had done before"
~ Daniel 6:10
~ Daniel 6:10
My life group has recently completed our study on the book of Daniel. I think we all at some point in time have read Daniel, but have rarely taken a closer look into this book. How great his character was- I think he definitely shows all of us up! We, the ladies of the group, have to continually remind ourselves that he was incredibly young- most likely only a teenager! This is when I stand in awe and sit back and say, "WOW"! When I was a teenager I was not getting on my knees three times a day to pray... Ah, yes, I think I was more worried about who liked me and didn't like me and did put I put deodorant on this morning? And please tell me that my hair isn't sticking up in weird places (unless I wanted it that way- which by the way some of my school pictures looked, it's questionable). Those were my prayers.
I love that it highlights his consistency. So often I plan to make time with God in the mornings and more often then not, I hit "dismiss" on my alarm. And now to think of it- that's exactly what I'm doing- I'm dismissing God. As if to say, "you know what, I can come to you at any time- I'll just meet you at the end of my day tonight. Does that sound good?" It never happens. I find another excuse, like "I'm too tired, or gee that episode of Northern Exposure is much more interesting than this- I think I'll just keep watching." Sounds like I need to take a few pointers from Daniel when it comes to quality time and consistency.
To go back in the chapter a bit, the decree was made that if anyone prayed to their god in a 30 day period, the king would throw them into the lions' den. There are many things that strike me, but one of them is that this decree has been made and yet Daniel does not alter his prayer schedule to make it less discreet. Not only that, but take a closer look: it says, "giving thanks to his God" in verse 10. I love that it points out that he's not just petitioning for God's grace and mercy, but more so that he's giving thanks in the midst of what's going on outside his home. If you look further on in Daniel, take notice of his prayer in chapter 9. Notice the structure, it is not just "please bring my people to the promised land". No, instead most paragraphs begin with "Lord, you are righteous; great and awesome God".
So what have I taken away from this great study? Not just the continued faith in believing God, but maybe rather than beginning our prayers with a petition, I should start with His character first. We all like to receive compliments and I don't think God is any different. I think I also need to continually realize how important my time with God truly is. I want to be able to look back and say, yes, I was consistent in my time with you Father and it was good.
I love that it highlights his consistency. So often I plan to make time with God in the mornings and more often then not, I hit "dismiss" on my alarm. And now to think of it- that's exactly what I'm doing- I'm dismissing God. As if to say, "you know what, I can come to you at any time- I'll just meet you at the end of my day tonight. Does that sound good?" It never happens. I find another excuse, like "I'm too tired, or gee that episode of Northern Exposure is much more interesting than this- I think I'll just keep watching." Sounds like I need to take a few pointers from Daniel when it comes to quality time and consistency.
To go back in the chapter a bit, the decree was made that if anyone prayed to their god in a 30 day period, the king would throw them into the lions' den. There are many things that strike me, but one of them is that this decree has been made and yet Daniel does not alter his prayer schedule to make it less discreet. Not only that, but take a closer look: it says, "giving thanks to his God" in verse 10. I love that it points out that he's not just petitioning for God's grace and mercy, but more so that he's giving thanks in the midst of what's going on outside his home. If you look further on in Daniel, take notice of his prayer in chapter 9. Notice the structure, it is not just "please bring my people to the promised land". No, instead most paragraphs begin with "Lord, you are righteous; great and awesome God".
So what have I taken away from this great study? Not just the continued faith in believing God, but maybe rather than beginning our prayers with a petition, I should start with His character first. We all like to receive compliments and I don't think God is any different. I think I also need to continually realize how important my time with God truly is. I want to be able to look back and say, yes, I was consistent in my time with you Father and it was good.
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