Living Faithful in a Faithless Land: A Study of DanielSample

Week 2: Making a Stand for God

Daniel’s Praise Time

Read: Daniel 2:19-23; Psalm 37:1-5

SOAP: Daniel 2:20-22

“saying:

'Let the name of God be praised forever and ever,

for wisdom and power belong to him.

He changes times and seasons,

deposing some kings

and establishing others.

He gives wisdom to the wise;

he imparts knowledge to those with understanding;

he reveals deep and hidden things.

He knows what is in the darkness,

and light resides with him.'”

Into the Text

Imagine being in Daniel’s position. Your life and that of your friends and many others are in danger because of King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. God then reveals to you the dream and what it means.

Young Daniel was wise as he took time to pray. He praised God for who He is and what He has done. Daniel knew God was in control of the changing times and seasons as well as who was on the earthly throne.

God is greater than any earthly king. Daniel acknowledged that wisdom comes from God, who even reveals mysteries. He praised God for answering their prayers.

When we pray, we can often be quick to jump into our requests and prayers for others. It is a good practice to start our prayers by acknowledging who God is. Take an attribute of God and praise Him for it.

Another area we can often overlook is thanking God for answering our prayers. There is so much going on in this world that we can easily move on to the next thing without taking the time to praise and thank God for how He listens and answers our prayers. When we do this, we miss out on remembering the faithfulness and wisdom of our God who not only hears our prayers but answers them. Sometimes, He answers in ways we could not have even imagined.

Take some time today to praise God for who He is and all He has done in your life. Thank Him for the many prayers He has answered. Though not all of those answers will have been what you wanted, you can see with time how the “no’s” from God were for your good. We can trust that He answers our prayers.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, may your name be praised forever. You change the times and seasons of our world but also my life. You are light, and you overcome all darkness. Nothing is hidden from you. I delight in you. Lord, for you have heard and answered all of my prayers, even those you said no to. I commit my future to you. Amen.