Loving Daniel Part 2

Welcome back! If you weren't with me yesterday and you want to know what Loving Daniel is all about click here. For everyone else, let's move on to chapters 7-12. I can hardly wait to share!

"I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed." (7:13-14)

I'll just start where I left yesterday - AMEN! Christ, as we already know, rules all. At the end of this place we call earth, His kingdom and dominion will be forevermore. He will be the indisputable King of Kings. We know He already is, but now everyone will have to "give Jesus his props" GLORY!

"...and he cast truth down to the ground. He did all this and prospered" (8:12)

"Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; But he shall be broken without human means" (8:25)

These are interesting verses. It looks like the bad guy is doing whatever he pleases and getting away with it. How often does it look that way in our lives? People are getting away with deceit, treachery and all manner of immorality. It breaks our hearts. Why aren't they being stopped or punished we inquire? But hold on....verse 25 speaks some hope for us. God will break them down. Let me say it again so we don't forget. God....will....break....them....down. We may never see it, but know it's coming by God's means, not ours. I can sleep well knowing that. How about you?

"O my God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and the city which is called by Your name; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies." (9:18)

Again Daniel displays humility. He clearly understands that it is not our righteousness that causes God to answer our prayers. It is God's mercy for us, His great mercy that makes that happen. I am so thankful for the twins, grace and mercy. Wherever would I be without them?

"At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision:"(9:23)

"And he said to me, “O Daniel, man greatly beloved.." (10:11)

This was spoken by the angel Gabriel. I tell you this gives me the shivers and brings tears to my eyes. To think that God, even before my prayer is fully off my lips, is commanding things to happen. WOW! The phrase that has me pondering still is "you are greatly beloved", which is repeated in Chapter 10. How, oh how do we become greatly beloved of God. We are all beloved but greatly beloved seems so special. I can imagine that Moses and David were greatly beloved. What about Enoch? I think he too was greatly beloved. How do we get there? I'm not sure but I'm starting my journey towards it with the verse God keeps giving to me over and over in many situations and formats: "I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless" (Genesis 17:1). How do you think we become greatly beloved of God?

"...Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself"

He was cut off for me. He was cut off for you. Never, ever forget that. May it be foremost in my mind and yours as we live each moment of our day. It's a sacrifice that should grip our hearts always. Always. It should drive our actions, thoughts, emotions and reactions. Jesus, my Messiah, was cut off for me. If you cannot say you believe He was cut off for you, I urge you to visit here to help you know who He is, what He did and why He is important to your life.

"And he said, “O man greatly beloved, fear not! Peace be to you; be strong, yes, be strong!” So when he spoke to me I was strengthened, and said, “Let my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.” (10:19)

I've talked about greatly beloved already. This is the third reference to Daniel being greatly beloved. Makes me ponder it even more :) These words are spoken by what my study Bible believes is the preincarnate Christ (read Christ appearing to someone before He took on human form and came down to earth). Can you just imagine Christ saying to you "Peace, be strong." Daniel said he had been strengthened. My response? Ya think?!! I imagine I would be too if Christ appeared to me and said Peace be to you and then told me to be strong. But you know what? He has said it to us. He has said it in His word in numerous places. Just do a word study on peace and strong. You'll be studying for a long while but you indeed will be strengthened.

"...the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits." (11:32)

There is that word strong again. Those who know God shall be strong. Why? Because He gives us strength for what is needed. Those who know God will carry out great exploits. How? By God's plan and His strength that He supplies to us. It's all about Him. It always has been and always will be. I pray to know Him better and more intimately everyday. If you see me carrying out great exploits, know that it is God working through me and providing me with the strength I need.

"At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book." (12:1)

This is an End Time prophecy (end time meaning when Christ returns for His people, Satan is defeated and the earth as we know it perishes so that a new earth can be established with our Supreme King, Jesus). The book is what we refer to as the Lambs' Book of Life. It's the book where your name gets written when you accept Christ as your Savior (again if you need more information on that visit here). I know I will be delivered because my name is in the book. Have you made your reservation? If you have, may I step on your toes? Have you helped others make their reservation? Let's commit to doing that, me and you. God wants us to, commands us to. He wants to see every name of every person He's created in that book. Let's make sure some more names get added.

And with that I'll say - God Bless and if I never meet you here on earth, I'll see you on the day of deliverance. Meet you in the air!

Loving Daniel Part 1

I've been reading through the book of Daniel. Really it's the first time I've read it all the way through. I am sad to say that is true of many books in the Bible. But the Lord is leading me through each one that I've neglected, in His order. I'm not sure yet which Old Testament book is next but I think it is Hosea. That seems to be what He keeps leading me to.

But I digress. I wanted to share with you some verses from Daniel that really touched my heart. Some have me pondering them still, waiting for some revelation from God, if He wants to do so. I'm going to list the verse(s) (all are NKJV) and my observations. Feel free to comment with your own "takings away" if you will :)

We'll do this in two sections since Daniel has 12 chapters. We'll do chapters 1-6 today and 7-12 tomorrow. Shall we begin?



"Now God had brought Daniel into the favor and goodwill of the chief of the eunuchs" (1:9)
"As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams" (1:17)
Daniel didn't need to figure out how to get in the chief of the eunuchs good graces. There was no planning or plotting to be done. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego did not have to figure out how to study and what to study or get in a study group with the other young men. Daniel didn't have to check out a book on how to interpret dreams and visions. What was required? Trusting God. God took care of the rest. This is a life lesson I've relearned over and over. I pray I stop circling the mountain like the Israelites and just TRUST HIM!

"So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation. Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven" (2:16-19)
Three things stood out in these verses. First Daniel didn't immediately petition God for revelation. He asked for time. With important decisions, don't be hasty. This leads to the next point. Don't forget your prayer coverage. Daniel got his friends together to pray for this request he needed to make of God. Yes, God hears our prayers and He answers. But there's something to be said for many of us to be knocking at the gates of heaven in one accord. Daniel knew this and God answered Yes. Finally, Daniel did another important thing. He praised God. May I never forget to give Him the praise when He responds to me.

"But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because I have more wisdom than anyone living, but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your heart" (2:30)
One word - humility. "Umm, king it's so not about me. God did this." It whispers to me, Mari point to Jesus. Every time, point to Jesus.

"The dream is certain, and its interpretation is sure" (2:45)
It was certain and sure because of it's source. God is certain and He is sure. He's never going to change His ways. So anything that comes from Him is believable. You can "take that to the bank".

"Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” (3:16-18)
You might be familiar with this set of verses. I've read these verses before. What struck me deeply this time was the spiritual maturity of these teenagers. They knew God was able to deliver them from this situation, the burning fiery furnace. But they also acknowledged that rescuing them might not be part of God's plan. They were prepared to accept that. They were going to be faithful to their God, my God, regardless of God's actions. In my sanctified imagination, I can just see in my mind that if they had perished in that furnace, they'd have gone to heaven with praise on their lips. Am I that mature in my trials? Every time? Are you?

"Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.” (3:29)
I wrote one word in the margin of my bible - AMEN!

"Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down" (4:37)
God had demonstrated to Nebuchadnezzar that he can bring down those who are prideful. I never want God to have to "put me down". I want to already be down on my knees praising Him. I want to already be bowed in reverence to Him. I'm not always in this position, but that is my desire. And I know it is His as well.

"I have heard of you, that the Spirit of God is in you, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom are found in you." (5:14)
When we have the Holy Spirit in us, actively working and reigning on the throne of our heart, it is evident. See what God provides through the ministry of the Holy Spirit; light, understanding and excellent wisdom. I love that he doesn't just say wisdom. He qualifies it as excellent wisdom. What makes it excellent? It comes from one who is excellent - God Almighty.

"I make a decreethat in every dominion of my kingdom men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel.

For He is the living God,

And steadfast forever;

His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed,

And His dominion shall endure to the end.

He delivers and rescues,

And He works signs and wonders

In heaven and on earth,

Who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. " (6:26-27)

I can't even add anything, except my one word again - AMEN!

Be blessed by The Living God!