READING: Daniel 5-7, 2 John 1
“. . . just as he had done before.”
Daniel 6:10
Daniel was a gifted man, and others in political power under King Darius did not like him. They did not want him to rule over them, so they set in motion a plan to rid themselves of him: they enticed the king to declare that anyone who petitioned any god other than the king would be thrown into the lions’ den. Because it was a law of the Medes and Persians (Dan. 6:8), it could not be changed.
Daniel, though, would not be deterred from praying to his God. He knew the law had been signed, but still Daniel went to his home, where “the windows in its upper room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before” (Dan. 6:10). Knowing that his actions could cost him his life, still he did “just as he had done before.” Indeed, the men found him “petitioning and imploring his God” (Dan. 6:11).
The challenges of this text to me are several. First, do I pray as regularly as Daniel did? Is prayer in my DNA? Second, will prayer mark every day of my life, as it apparently did for aged Daniel? Third, would I continue to pray—even openly—if I knew it could cost me my life? I have much room to improve.
ACTION STEPS:
- Pray at least three times today.
- Thank God for prayer warriors you have known.
PRAYER: “Lord, please teach me to pray.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Daniel 8-10, 3 John 1
