Focus passage: Book of Daniel
It had started as a simple Boy Scout camping trip, but things had gone all wrong. The weather turned violent with high winds and blowing snow. The scouts and their leaders panicked and things looked hopeless. Yet, Tom kept his head. He relied on his scout training and built a shelter with a campfire near to the van. Others started calming down and the smoke showed the rescuers where they were. One scout made the difference between life and death. So it was with Daniel. He was taken in the first wave of captives and never gave up his faith in God. He didn’t picket or hold protests, He just stood firm in his faith in God. This man of faith had a big impact on the people of God and on the nation of Babylon. We think that it takes an army to change a world when all it takes is one Godly person.
605 BC – A Young man with a conscience Dan. 1:8 He was just a teenager taken hundreds of miles from home as his home nation became a vassal to the Babylonians. He would learn their language and culture, but he would not break God’s food laws. This shows the first reason that he was great. He would not compromise the ways of the Lord. He stepped forth and his friends were willing to step out with him and all benefited.
604 BC – Faith turns disaster into opportunity Dan. 2:24 The king has a dream and doesn’t trust his advisors. He wants them to interpret the dream without telling them what it was or he will kill them all. Daniel is facing death so he turns to prayer. God answers the prayer giving Daniel the dream and the meaning. What had been a disaster became an opportunity to witness to the power and majesty of God. The whole kingdom sees the power of God.
538 BC – An exemplary life promotes jealousy Daniel 6:5 At the age of 80, Daniel’s reputation of being trustworthy and extremely loyal to His God is known by all. Those jealous of him can find no fault in him. They set a trap that will put him in a lion’s den for worshiping the true God. Daniel sees the trap and worships God openly. God is more important than life. His values and faith have a great impact on Jew and Gentile alike and glorify the Lord because of Daniel.
538 BC – A leader prays for his people Dan 9:2 In the year Daniel faced the lion’s den, Daniel is on his knees praying for his people. 70 years have passed and it is time for the people of God to return to the Promised Land as Jeremiah had foretold. Daniel had on his heart, the needs of his people and the future of the Jews. He was too old to return, but he called upon God to show mercy to His people without delay. God listened to his prayer and within a short time, the Jews could go home to Israel.
In Daniel, we see the power of one Godly man. At the same time that the Kings of Judah were leading people from God, the teenage Daniel was standing up for the Lord before Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. He refused to deny his God and God used Daniel to bring glory to God’s name. Here in this pagan place filled with idols to the gods of Babylonia, Daniel worshiped God and was used by God to do miracles so that the pagan kings acknowledged the Hebrew God as the God of Gods. He was willing to die for his Lord and led others to the same level of faith. One person can be powerful if that one man or woman is willing to give the Lord their heart soul and mind. They can influence nations and rulers. They can defeat the demons and the false gods of the world because by prayer and obedience, they harness the power of the one true God. We think that it will take an army to change the world. Daniel shows us what one man or woman can do if they are willing to keep the values and worship of God central in their life.
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