Category Archives: Prayer

Why Am I So Discontent?

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Hoping To Hit It Rich

One of the most embarrassing financial decisions I ever made was getting into the beef jerky vending machine business! It was like the late ‘90s, as I recall; and, I spent $10,000 for 20 machines. I trusted the company to place them in high-traffic areas; but, it didn’t work out that way! My kids benefited— the boys, especially, enjoyed lots of beef jerky snacks! Then, there were all the “Publisher’s Clearing House” and “Reader’s Digest” sweepstakes entries I filled out religiously in hopes of striking it rich! But, perhaps my most embarrassing financial “scheme” was one of those “Chain Letters” where you write 1000 strangers, asking them to send you $10; and, then they send 1000 letters. And, if no one breaks the chain everyone will have like a million dollars in 30 days—it didn’t work! I lost a lot of money on postage! Yeah, I did that! Only once! I was dirt poor; and I was easily manipulated! Don’t judge me! HaHa!

Greed Masqueraded

Now, let me tell you why I’m willing to embarrass myself with those true stories! I wanted to illustrate how greed & covetousness can masquerade themselves! I’m NOT saying that buying into the beef jerky vending business; or, any kind of vending business is greedy! I’m NOT saying that filling out the “Publisher’s Clearing House” entries is greedy and covetous! But, FOR ME, it was! All those activities, FOR ME, were a hoped-for “get rich scheme.” I was greedy and covetous! I saw someone wearing a t-shirt once that read, “All I Want Is A Little Bit More Than I’ll Ever Have.” That was ME!

The Lie About Stuff

I had bought into that worldly attitude that to be happy, I needed more STUFF! That’s the assumption behind most advertising, isn’t it— “You can’t be totally happy ‘til you own our product. If you wanna enjoy life, you need this & you can buy now, pay later, on our easy credit plan!” It’s my hope, over the next few posts, to search the Scriptures with you and seek the Holy Spirit’s help to determine what we ought to value in life! There’s no denying that God has a lot to say about money and wealth and stuff; and, generally speaking, this is what He says: “Everything belongs to ME!” It all belongs to HIM! None of our stuff is truly ours! How much do we leave behind at death? ALL of it!

God Owns It All

Consider these Scripture verses— “To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it” Deut 10:14. “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,” declares the LORD Almighty” Haggai 2:8. “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it” 1 Cor. 10:26. We are NOT owners! We are “stewards” and “managers” of God’s stuff! Let me tell you why that’s so important— If you think YOU own your stuff, you’ll use your income to build your “Little Kingdom”; when it’s God’s will that you leverage it to build His “BIG Kingdom.” You’ll be guilty of robbing God. That was one of Israel’s sins: “Will a man rob God?” He ASKS, “Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse” Malachi 3:8,9. It’s a serious crime to “rob” God— they were cursed! Please pray over this & search the Scriptures! If you do so, you’ll be challenged to rearrange your financial resources as would a steward who manages someone else’s money! Because none of it is yours!

What A Healthy Church Looks Like

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A Holy Spirit-Empowered Organism

God’s work is never accomplished in the strength of the flesh! The book of Acts describes the early church as a supernatural, Holy Spirit-empowered organism. What we read, in the 2nd chapter, is the result of a healthy church living in obedience to Jesus. After His resurrection, He gathered the disciples; and, He commissioned them to go & do something— He commissioned them to make disciples of all nations! 

Wait For God’s Spirit

But, He told them 1st to go to an upper room, in Jerusalem, and, WAIT for God’s Holy Spirit to indwell them & empower them! And, that’s exactly what they did! In the power, of the Holy Spirit, they began to make disciples! It says:  “Those who accepted the message were baptized, and that day about 3,000 people were added to them. And they devoted themselves to the Apostle’s teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers. Then fear came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude, praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved” (Acts 2:41-47). 

The Normal Way Of The Spirit

The church grew spiritually & numerically! This is the normal way that the Spirit of God works.  When a church gets spiritually healthy, Jesus uses them to add disciples— a healthy church is loyal to God & to one another in their devotion to sound doctrine. The text says “…they devoted themselves…” to the teaching of the Apostles! That word “devoted” literally means to be “loyal” or “attached” to something—the church was LOYAL to the teaching of the Apostles; so, they were LOYAL to sound doctrine! That’s a mark of a healthy church—it’s “Word” centered! It’s “gospel-centered”! That means it exposes “error”—all teachings contrary to the Apostle’s! Any church that fails to expose error; and, fails to align with the New Testament teachings of the Apostles is unhealthy! And, we do so out of loyalty, and, attachment to God first; but, also to the rest of the members of our local church!  

It’s A Challenge To Stay Healthy

As a faith community, we show loyalty to each other; and, Biblical love for each other when we insist that everything we teach & preach— in classes, in Small Groups, in the pulpit— is consistent with the Apostle’s teachings in the New Testament! Can you imagine the challenges, of this church, in Jerusalem? Adding 3,000 new believers in one day is both a Pastor’s “DREAM” & a Pastor’s “NIGHTMARE.” All the variety of backgrounds! Their ignorance of basic Bible doctrines! What a mammoth task to disciple them all in their new faith— but, they were “devoted” or “loyal” to each other & that made all the difference! May God continue to strengthen our commitment to Him, knowing that as He does, He’ll also strengthen our commitment to everyone who calls MBC their church home!  Amen

More Like Jesus, Less Like Me

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Where Is Your Walk With The Lord?

Have you ever tried asking someone, “How are you doing spiritually?” They always say, “Good, Good,” right? Probably not a very good question. It’s not likely to get the real answer you’re looking for! Next time, try this instead: “So, where are you at in your walk with the Lord? And, on what criteria do you base your answer? How are you measuring your walk with Christ?” When we enter into that kind of conversation with someone, we need those “qualifying” or “follow-up” questions too! On what basis can we say we’re doing “good” when someone asks us how we’re doing spiritually?

If You Love Me

Do we measure our spiritual progress by the things we DO? Be careful! Don’t quickly dismiss the things we DO & SAY, that, “it’s only what’s in the heart that matters!” If our heart is right with God, it will impact the things we DO, right? Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will KEEP my commandments.” At the same time, we can DO all the RIGHT things for the WRONG reasons, can’t we? We can DO things to be SEEN of men; and, Jesus called that hypocrisy! I received a phone call, some time ago, from a young man who was saved years ago in my youth group in Colorado. He was on the pastoral staff of a church in Oregon; and, he called to ask if he could conduct an interview with me for a seminary class he was taking! The interview was based on how I lived my life according to the “spiritual disciplines.”

Habits Of Devotion

If that’s a new term to you, suffice it to say that “spiritual disciplines” are practices found, in Scripture, that can promote spiritual growth. They are “habits” of devotion, like prayer, fasting, public & private worship, meditation & making disciples— all activities that we’re commanded to do, right? Jesus practiced them! But, I prefaced my answer, in the interview, with this caution:  “We are NOT GODLY just because we practice certain spiritual disciplines!” That was the great error of the Pharisees! They believed they were godly BECAUSE they did certain things! You can’t separate what you’re DOING on the OUTSIDE by who you ARE on the INSIDE! What you do matters! But, WHO you are matters even more! Here’s the point— spiritual growth happens as you become more like Jesus; and, less like you!

Become Like Your Teacher

It is our goal, as a local church, that our community of believers would become mature disciples of Christ in their personal spiritual development. That’s a core value! That we’d all grow in spiritual maturity! As disciples of Christ, that we’d all become more like Him! That’s what a disciple does! He becomes like his Teacher! And, we believe that individual spiritual development occurs BEST in the context of a local church! Faith grows best where it is challenged, not isolated! And, crucial to that is the realization that being a disciple of Christ does not begin with something we DO; but, with something that Christ already DID! He redeemed our broken relationship with the Father by His death on the cross! He took my sin! And, He paid the penalty that I should have paid so that I might receive forgiveness! That’s the Gospel! And we never graduate from the Gospel! We will always need a Savior! I have been a believer for 53 years, and I still need a Savior! Not until we have our resurrected, glorified, spiritual bodies will we be complete in Jesus!

Daniel & The Invisible God

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(Note: This concludes our series of posts on the life of the Prophet Daniel)

An Urgent Plea Not To Give Up

As I bring this series of posts— on Daniel’s life— to an end, I conclude with an urgent plea not to give up because you don’t get an answer to your prayers according to your timeline! Instead of quitting, follow Daniel’s example and devote more time to more prayer & fasting! Daniel shows us that because we pray in the spirit, we can’t see with our physical eyes, the spiritual responses our prayers stir up!  If we could see into the spiritual realm, our prayer effort would reveal invisible forces of good & evil opposing one another. Unseen spiritual forces are behind every movement!

The Battle In The Spirit World

Daniel couldn’t tell, just by observing the Persian Gov’t, that there was a war going on between an “angel of God” & a demonic “prince of Persia” (see Daniel chapter 10). But, if he could have pulled back the curtain that divides our realm from the spiritual realm, he would have observed the battle going on in the spirit world. We can only assume, from this text of Scripture, that Satan has “territorial” demons in places of influence, among government leaders, in every nation. That’s why the Apostle Paul later wrote Timothy in the New Testament; and told him to pray for kings & all those in places of authority.

Not With Flesh & Blood

The REAL ENEMY is not the people we may oppose politically! Our battle, according to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians,  is not with flesh & blood. We need God’s help to see the truth about this! We need to pray for our leaders to be saved! Knowing that our warfare is spiritual in nature, it is our prayers, humility, knowledge of God & perseverance that serve as our best weapons against the spiritual forces of evil in this world; and the unseen spiritual world behind the curtain that separates us. So, be inspired & encouraged! Daniel prayed! He humbled himself before God; and, he purposed to know God & to understand His ways!

He Prayed & Fasted & Waited

And, he persevered! For 21 days, the text says, he prayed & fasted & waited on God to fulfill His Sovereign purpose in His Sovereign time frame! Will you wait on God also? Will you trust His eternal wisdom over every life situation? Will you trust His timing; that God is never early, nor is He ever late! He who “knows the end from the beginning” has perfect timing in the way He answers every one of our prayers! Will you trust Him if His answer to your prayer is “no”? Will you trust the Word of God that tells us that His ways are higher than ours? If He answers “no” it’s for the best!

Focus On The Unseen

A Biblical response, to the war going on in the spiritual realm & to life’s problems that result, is to focus NOT on the seen; but, on the unseen! What you see going on in this world will mess with you! It will frustrate you! It will, at times, cause you to question God! It’ll even depress you because it will APPEAR that we’re losing! So, focus on the UNSEEN, not the SEEN! Focus on the invisible God, who is Sovereign, who is Omnipotent; and, who is All-Knowing! He has an unbeatable plan; and, He will get it done! Don’t focus on the political climate of our country; or, the rest of the world! That’s the SEEN! Focus on the UNSEEN God! Pray to Him! He’s the only One who can bring revival & clean up the mess humanity has made of this world! Are you struggling in this area of your life? Make it a matter of prayer! Turn it over to God!

War In The Spirit World

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(Note: This Continues A Series Of Posts On The Life Of The Prophet Daniel)

The Realm Of The Supernatural

It’s easy for us to go off on a tangent & obsess over the supernatural aspects of a Biblical text like Daniel chapter 10. We indeed need to be aware of what happens in the realm of the supernatural; but, ONLY in as much as the Word of God reveals it to us! Everything else is in the realm of speculation! Scripture tells us all we need to know about the spirit world. There is no other authoritative source on demons and angels! That said, there’s really no debate that the “…prince of the kingdom of Persia…” in v.13 & the “…prince of Greece…” mentioned in v.20-21 are “fallen” angels. While Scripture refers to demons as “princes” in other passages, not every occurrence of the title “prince” points to a demon.

Fallen Angels; Or Demons?

Even here, in v.13, Michael, the archangel—is called a “chief prince.” But, for several good reasons, it seems accurate to call “the prince of Persia” & the “prince of Greece” fallen angels or demons! For example, they oppose the angel of God sent to Daniel; and, Michael—God’s archangel—fought against them. Then, in v.20-21, the angel told Daniel that he was going to “…return to fight against the prince of Persia…”; and, when he was through with him he’d fight the “prince of Greece.” So, here’s my best shot at interpreting that—it seems like demons (at least some of them) are “territorial.” They seem to have spiritual responsibilities over countries, regions, and perhaps cities. And, somehow they seem to gain strength as they get a deeper foothold. 

Prayer, Mourning & Fasting

We need to keep that in mind as we pray for revival. It’s possible that our area could have a strong demonic foothold—not unlike the kind of opposition that Daniel faced in Babylon. Let me draw another point, from Daniel’s story, because of that: Our prayers may require fasting & extra time & effort because of spiritual warfare in the spirit world! In case you forgot, look back at v.2 to see the amount of time that Daniel devoted to prayer & mourning & fasting! It says 3 FULL WEEKS! We need to pray MORE! We need to pray LONGER! And, perhaps we ought to be giving ourselves to FASTING if we hope to break through the demonic front lines that war against us! Perhaps we need to let that thought soak in a while! To meditate on Daniel’s spiritual stamina!

Do You Have Spiritual Grit?

As I pause on that, I can’t help but think that our God deserves a higher level of devotion than we typically give Him. I’m ashamed to admit that I so rarely give Him my “1st Offerings.” It’s usually my leftovers that I give Him. What about you? Isn’t that also true of you? We usually give God our leftover time, our leftover effort, our leftover “piano”, and, a whole lot of leftover stuff we don’t even use anymore! Is it possible that we haven’t seen revival because we only pray for it if we have any leftover time? Daniel took a spiritual retreat for 21 days; and, just one note of interest—in v.13 it says God’s angel was delayed, by a demon, for 21 days. Daniel prayed ‘til there was a breakthrough! He didn’t quit! But it wasn’t by the strength of his flesh that he held on! Daniel was a man of God; a man who trusted God to work all things in life according to His perfect and sovereign plan! Let’s follow Daniel’s gritty example! Follow Jesus wherever!

Daniel: Treasured By God

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(Note: This continues a series of posts on Daniel’s life)

God Treasured Daniel

In the 10th chapter of the Old Testament book of Daniel, there’s an incredibly encouraging word, spoken by an angel, to Daniel:  “He said to me, ‘Daniel, you are a man treasured by God…’” (v.11).  God treasured Daniel; and, because God “…does not show favoritism…” we can be assured that we, also, are treasured by Him (Romans 2:11). He places great value on each one of us! As believers, we’ve been purchased by the precious blood of His Son, Jesus; and, we’ve been adopted into God’s family. We are actually said to be “…heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ…” to all the eternal riches of heaven (Romans 8:17). 

Delayed Answers To Prayer

He longs to communicate with us; just, as all parents enjoy talking with their children!  He takes time to listen to our prayers! But, this chapter, in Daniel,  sheds light on the fact that sometimes the answers to prayer are delayed by unseen spiritual forces! By way of personal application, don’t assume that God isn’t listening to your prayers! Remember, that the text says that God heard Daniel’s prayer from the 1st day he prayed it! Starting in v.13, the angel told Daniel that “…the prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me for 21 days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me after I had been left there with the kings of Persia…” Because Michael is also known to be an angel, in Scripture, it’s best understood that “spiritual warfare” was taking place here! The angel tells Daniel that Michael assisted him when a “…prince of the kingdom of Persia…” opposed him— this “prince” is best understood to be part of a demonic force opposing God’s work, at this time, in this place. 

Spiritual Warfare

Have you ever considered that the reason you’ve not yet received an answer, to a certain prayer, is because of spiritual warfare? It could be! God hasn’t ignored you! There’s a delay, which God has allowed, for the ultimate purposes of His Sovereign plan. Pastor Geoff Thomas put it like this: “Wherever there is a flock of Christ’s sheep there are wolves that want to destroy them. Whenever the Church advances, dark principalities are at work against it.” Daniel’s story may give us insight into delayed answers to our prayers.  It’s been said that God does, in fact, answer every prayer. He does so in 1 of 3 possible ways; He says “yes”, He says “no”, or He tells us to wait! In God’s eternal wisdom, He answers each prayer appropriately. 

It May Take Years

And when God does answer “no” it’s because He has counseled Himself to answer that way. He “… works all things according to the counsel of his will” Eph 1:11. We can never offer God wiser counsel than He gives Himself. Don’t quit praying for God to work! Don’t give up on revival just because God hasn’t answered your prayers thus far! God, in His eternal wisdom, may have very good reasons for allowing the spiritual warfare to take place all around us! This 10th chapter, of Daniel, gives us a rare peek behind the curtain dividing our realm from the spiritual realm. Daniel was given a rare insight into the battle & the warfare that’s normally invisible to us!  Don’t obsess over the spiritual aspect of this text. Rather, be aware of what happens in the realm, of the supernatural; but, only in as much as the Word of God reveals it to us! Everything else is speculation! Scripture gives us all we need to know to know about the spiritual realm.

Responding To Spiritual Warfare

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(Note: This Continues A Series Of Posts On The Life Of The Prophet Daniel)

How Prayer Works

On rare occasions, God pulls back the curtain that divides the realm of the “seen” from the “unseen” realm! This post is about spiritual warfare; and, specifically how the prophet Daniel responded to it! If you’re unaware of how prayer works, you might become discouraged by the “turnaround time.” You might talk to God about something; and, because you don’t get an answer immediately, you might conclude that He’s not listening to you! That would be a mistake on your part!

Unseen Forces At Work

In the 10th chapter of Daniel’s book, in the Bible, we’re introduced to the concept that there are forces at work that we’re unable to see because they are “spiritual”! Here’s what the Apostle Paul wrote the Church of Ephesus about these “spiritual” forces:  “Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens” (Ephesians 6:12). There are spiritual forces of evil at work in the “heavens”; but, we can’t see them because they are spiritual, not flesh! So, if we’re aware that there is a battle going on behind that “curtain” that divides our world from the spiritual world, we’ll adjust our focus!

Adjust Your Focus

Again, the Apostle Paul said, “So we do not focus on what is seen; but, on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18).  So, a Biblical response to life’s struggles is to focus not on the seen; but, the unseen! Whatever life situation we may be enduring, it is temporary. In God’s Sovereignty and eternal wisdom, the circumstances of life may change in a moment; or they may drag on for a while.  But God tells us to focus on the unseen rather than the unseen; by faith to trust God’s work that we cannot see. By faith, to believe His ways of doing things in our life is higher and better than anything we could plan. That’s how Daniel responded!

What’s Behind Life’s Struggles

Our challenge is to let God’s Spirit pull back that curtain & give you a glimpse— through the Scriptures— into the reality of the spirit world! And, the reality that the spirit world impacts our world! That there is a spiritual warfare behind all of life’s struggles! And, Daniel shows us some things about this spirit world; and, how we ought to respond! Just pick up your Bible & read the 10th chapter of Daniel. Pay close attention to the words the angel speaks to Daniel in v.12.  He tells him that God heard his prayers from the very beginning!   

Your Prayers Were Heard

“’ Don’t be afraid, Daniel,’ he said to me, ‘for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your prayers were heard. I have come because of your prayers.’” (v.12)  Though time had passed— perhaps 3 full weeks (v.12)— God actually HEARD Daniel’s prayer from the FIRST DAY he had begun to pray! In v.11, the angel told Daniel, “…I have been sent to you…”; and, v.12 “…I have come BECAUSE of YOUR PRAYERS…” I hope that encourages you! It does me! It might seem as though your prayers are going unheard! That’s what the enemy wants you to believe! Don’t listen to his lies! God hears your prayers the moment they’re formed in your heart! But, as we’ll see, there are reasons the “answers” to your prayers may be delayed! And you don’t need to know why! That’s not how God grows your faith! He grows you spiritually as you submit to Him, even when you don’t know what He’s doing!

Daniel: What Revival Looks Like

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(Note: This continues a series of posts on Daniel’s life)

Admitting Brokenness & Public Shame

I don’t know that there’s a more beautiful & spiritually moving prayer than Daniel’s prayer in the 9th chapter of the book named after him. There’s a humility & a brokenness that’s often missing from the hurried & self-centered prayers of our day! When revival occurs in the hearts of believers, this is what it looks like! Prayer, uttered by a revived saint,  admits brokenness & even public shame over their sin, selfishness, and idolatry—  “Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but this day public shame belongs to us:  the men of Judah, the residents of Jerusalem, and all Israel— those who are near and those who are far, in all the countries where You have dispersed them because of the disloyalty they have shown toward You. Lord, public shame belongs to us, our kings, our leaders, and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.  Compassion and forgiveness belong to the Lord our God, though we have rebelled against Him and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by following His instructions that He set before us through His servants the prophets.  All Israel has broken Your law and turned away, refusing to obey You” (Daniel 9:7-11). 

Sensitivity To Sin

Wow! What brokenness & transparency!  “…PUBLIC SHAME belongs to us…” he confessed in v.7; and, in v.8 he says it again, “…PUBLIC SHAME belongs to us…” Daniel’s greatness, in the eyes of God, was not because he was without sin! None of us are! It was Daniel’s sensitivity to his sin! He admitted the depth of his sinful depravity! He owned it! For our world— and, our NATION— to experience revival, it has to begin with the broken humility of God’s people! With us! We, the Church, have to take ownership of our sins— for our IDOLATRY; and quit pointing judgmental fingers at all the unbelievers around us!

Quit The Finger Pointing

We need to repent of our failure to love all the world’s people groups & every kind of sinner! Daniel didn’t just throw “…our kings, our leaders & our fathers…” under the bad sinner bus (v.8).  He said, “…WE have sinned against You… WE have rebelled against you…” (v.9).  I fear the American church has been too preoccupied with pointing fingers at political leaders when WE are the real problem! We should be looking in the mirror, spiritually speaking! God will only use a broken church to bring the world to revival! What this unbelieving world needs is for God to first revive church leaders across our land, as He did the Prophet Daniel, who will then faithfully call out the church to repentance! 

Concern For God’s Reputation

Daniel was concerned that Israel had hurt God’s reputation in the world! “LORD, bring revival to your people,” Daniel prays, “…for the LORD’S sake” (v.17);  “…make us a city called by YOUR name” (v.18);  “LORD, HEAR! LORD, FORGIVE! LORD, ACT…” (v.19). Did you notice that? “…for YOUR SAKE”, Daniel prayed, “We base our prayers on YOUR abundant compassion” (v.18). Do you pray like that? I’m afraid that, for most of my life,  my prayers sounded nothing like that! Is it possible that the reason so many of our prayers go “unanswered” is because we’re not offering “God-centered” prayers? Can we begin to pray, as Christ’s Church, that God would act in HIS own BEST INTEREST? And, for HIS GLORY? Will you trust Him? Trust Him that everything He does for His best interest is also in OUR best interest. He can be trusted!

How To Pray For Revival

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(This continues a series of posts on the life of the Prophet Daniel)

Prayer For Israel’s Well-Being

The 9th chapter, of the Book of Daniel, opens with a significant prayer for Israel’s revival & restoration to the promised land! It’s significant because it means that Daniel had a copy of the Book of Jeremiah’s prophecy & he realized that the period of God’s divine judgment, against Israel, had ended! In v.2, it says that Daniel “…understood from the books according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet that the number of years for the desolation of Jerusalem would be 70.” It had been 70 years since the 1st chapter, of the Book of Daniel, began with Babylon’s siege of Jerusalem! Israel could begin to return to the land from which they had been exiled; and, they could begin to pray for Israel’s well-being again!

Parallels Between Israel & U.S.

I’ve often felt that there are parallels between Israel’s demise; and, that of our own nation! So, we would do well to consider Daniel’s prayer for revival; and, apply it to our own nation! Psalm 9:17 says, “The wicked will go down to Hell & all the nations that forget God.” Our nation has lost its way! We’re on God’s radar for judgment! If there is any hope to turn this thing around it has to begin with the Church! For the world to experience revival, it must begin with God’s people! Before continuing to read this post, I want to ask you to PLEASE do something FIRST! Open your bible and read the 9th chapter of Daniel’s book! PLEASE read it FIRST before going any further!

Wrong Thinking About Prayer

Many of us have absorbed some wrong thinking about prayer! Read the prayers in Scripture; like, Daniel’s prayer here! Prayer is not a personal shopping list we bring to God with thoughts that He’s some kind of benevolent Genie who can’t resist our selfish requests! Prayer is not meant as some communication device— with the Almighty— to coerce Him to give us the things we wish for or desire! No, God intends to use our prayers to make us partners, with Him, to bring HIS WILL— not our own— into force! Did you notice how Daniel prayed? He came before God fasting in sackcloth & ashes! Prayer begins with humility! He humbled himself, it says, “to SEEK” God! The prayer for revival is “God-centered”, NOT  “self-centered.” In v.4, we see Daniel praying in awe of God! The prayer of revival is worshipful & reverent!

Personal Confession Of Sin

Notice, that Daniel’s prayer gets personal (v.5). But, not in the sense of asking anything for himself! Rather, he confesses his personal responsibility for sin; and, for the nation— “…we have sinned, done wrong, acted wickedly, rebelled, and turned away from Your commands and ordinances. We have not listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name …”  He confesses two types of sin! He confesses sins of “transgression” (v.9); and, sins of “omission” (v.10).  “We knew Your Word & we still rebelled against it,” he said. Daniel shows us that the prayer of revival admits “brokenness”—  “public shame belongs to us” (v.7); and, he repeats that in the next verse!  He was sensitive to sin! He named it; and, he owned it! How desperately does the church today need to respond to her sin the way that Daniel did in his day.  The Apostle Peter tells us where revival begins:  “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God” 1 Peter 4:17.

Taking Ownership Of Our Wrongs

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(Note: This is the 23rd post in a series on Daniel’s life)

I Was Wrong

It’s been said that the 3 most difficult words in the English language are:  “I was wrong!” Husbands, how hard is it to say, “I was wrong” to your wife? But, let’s be fair, ladies, it’s just as difficult for you to say those 3 words too, isn’t it? We’ll do almost anything to avoid saying, “I was wrong”— we’ll say, “Man! I messed up” or “I fumbled that one” or “I goofed” or “I blew it”. We’ll say, “My bad” or “Oops! I made a boo-boo!” All of those are easier to say than, “I was wrong!” They minimize our wrong! I mean, how bad can a “boo-boo” be, right?  

Being Transparent About Sin

This post is about taking ownership of our sins. It’s about being transparent with God, and, with each other about our sins. If there is any hope for revival across our nation— and, God only knows how badly we need it— we need to learn how to say those 3 words: “I was wrong!”  “I was wrong, God! Here is my sin! I confess it! I agree with you about it!” For the world to experience a revival, it has to begin with God’s people! The Apostle Peter wrote: “…the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household…” It has to start with those who claim to be Jesus’ followers! We can’t pray for national revival & ignore our personal need for repentance! We dare not call out the sin of the lost & wink at our own failure to confess our sin!

Failure To Confess & Repent Of Sin

As we turn to chapter 9 in Daniel’s prophetic book, it begins:  “In the first year of Darius, the son of Ahasuerus, a Mede by birth, who was ruler over the kingdom of the Chaldeans: In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the books according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet that the number of years for the desolation of Jerusalem would be 70.” Let’s stop there, for a moment, and include some really important background! You might recall that Daniel’s story, in chapter 1, begins with Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar laying siege against Jerusalem & taking Daniel & many of the Israelites into exile! Do you remember why? They were being punished! They failed to confess & repent of their sin! They failed to tell God, “I was wrong!” And, God fulfilled a promise He had made to Israel 850 years earlier in Deuteronomy 28— Blessings, to Israel, for obedience! Curses for disobedience!

Don’t Test God’s Patience

Just as God had dispossessed the Canaanites & other people groups from the land because of their evil ways, God dispossessed Israel from the land because they became evil! One more thing to consider: Israel’s sinful disobedience was a gradual thing! Sin always is! As the nation, of Israel, became more and more evil, God sent prophets to warn them! He would extend grace & mercy if they would just repent & turn from their sin! But, there is always an end to God’s long-suffering; and, through the Prophet Jeremiah, God confirmed that judgment was coming! It was inevitable, irreversible & non-negotiable! He even told Israel to quit praying for revival; and, to pray for their captors instead! By way of application, it’s time Christ’s Church in America wake up! It’s time we confess our sin of idolatry! We’ve strayed so far from Jesus’ Commission to His Church; and, we’ve given great occasion for the enemies of God to blaspheme. Wake up, Church! Let us repent & return to the work of the Lord in faithfulness!