RTW September 8
Some Questions About Prayer
But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem.
Daniel 6:10a
My Takeaways
Something Old
Daniel 9:23
Delayed doesn’t mean denied.
Something New
Questions about my prayer life
- Where do I go when I hear bad news?
- Do I have a regular place where I pray?
- Does my life reflect a regular prayer life?
- Do I give thanks in times of crisis?
- Do I pray like my situation depends on me or like it depends on God?
Something to Do
I may not be the only one, but I am a someone who needed your perseverance message this morning. I have taken a position as a result of being obedient to God. Not many are excited about it and even more don’t understand it. That’s ok because I’m clear on where my direction is coming from. I will conduct myself in a manner that honors God, in humility, while I persevere. Thank you Wendy for your “impromptu” message this morning. The Spirit used your words to speak truth into my situation and my heart.
DeAnna….Beautiful testimony! Blessings!
My Takeaways: God Takes Care of His People
Something Old: Daniel and the Lions Den is a story that is very familiar to most Christians. What a great story to remind me of how being faithful to God is the way to go. God takes care of those who are faithful to him. But it even goes further. Daniel showed his faithfulness through his actions. My actions should always reveal to others the one who I put my trust in. Through my actions others can come to know God as it was in Daniel’s time.Through the witness of Daniel, his faith, and the faithfulness and power of God, an entire nation came to know and reverence the Lord. Daniel 6:26 “….For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and His rule will never end.”
Something New: The amazing pray of Daniel Chapter 9. Guess what else is in Chapter 9? The amazing prayer of Ezra, is in Ezra chapter 9 . Also the amazing prayer of Nehemiah, is in Nehemiah chapter 9 . I did not figure that all out on my own . Wish I could take the credit, but I discovered that through the many commentaries I read today. I thought that was really neat and an easy way to remember where to find these amazing prayers when I needed to read them again. Just as God answered Daniels pray, he hears and answers my prayers. Daniel knew how to pray because he studied scripture. He understood the reasons for Judas exile and new of the promise of restoration if the people repented of their sins. He wanted God to know that he was serious about the peoples sins so he put his words to action by wearing sack cloth and smearing himself with ashes. My prayers need to be like Daniel, not trying to charm God into giving me what I want , but by acknowledging my true situation and giving an admission of my need for God’s Divine help.
Something To Do: Pray like Daniel, Ezra and Nehemiah. Remember the words of James in chapter 5 verse 16 “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”