Daniel 6:26-27 ”For He is the living God and enduring forever, And His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, And His dominion will be forever. He delivers and rescues and performs signs and wonders In heaven and on earth, Who has also delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.” God does amazing things in our lives, and even those who believe in different things and different gods must acknowledge that He is mighty and powerful, faithful forever, and reigning over all the earth. Darius, a foreign king who worshiped idols of rock and stone understood that Daniel’s God was alive and eternal. What his god was powerless to do, the True and Living God, YHWH, was pleased to do. And as Daniel was delivered from the power of literal lions, I declare that I and my family are delivered from the power of metaphorical and spiritual lions, to the glory of God who rescues and performs signs and wonders in heaven and on earth! He is faithful, kind, and loving, and I am just scratching the surface of knowing who He is! Amen, amen! ps. I love this picture because Daniel’s focus is not on his peril, but on his God. Turn away from the lions and look toward your Light!
I sang in a concert last night for a CD I did with some folks from a church. All the proceeds from the CD go towards a shower trailer for some of the homeless people who live in the city near the church. It was a lot of fun! We ended the set with some Christmas songs and before we sang I made the comment that most of the Christmas carols are songs of joy and celebration yet we still sing them like we’re going to a funeral… and then we sang much more jazzed up and joyful renditions of some of the traditional songs. I think some people were a little shocked, but most had smiles on their faces. Anyway, I don’t understand why so many Christmas songs are so slow and minor and melancholy. They’re about joy and celebration and angelic hosts singing “Halleluja!” And I don’t think the angels were crying as they sang, either. Have you ever thought about the words of the songs? Was it really a silent night? It probably was in the fields, until the angels started singing. It probably was in the inn’s barn, until Mary went into labor. And it probably was almost everywhere, except where the Christ child was born. Can you imagine the entire earth holding its breath as young Mary pushed and cried to bring this incredible gift into the world? And can you imagine the awe and then the mighty roaring cheer that arose from the ranks of the angels and the rocks on the ground when Yeshua screamed his way into our existence? To see the Word made flesh and God become Man, how shockingly wonderful! Hark! The herald angels sing! Why do melancholy as the song rings? They’re singing gloria! Joy to the world! The Lord is come! Shout it from the rooftops! Dance in the aisles! This isn’t a day for sorrow and sadness. It’s a day to sing joy! Our savior has come! He is here! The darkness cringes into its corners and slinks away to lick its wounds, knowing that its time has come. JOY! Luke 2:13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!”
Wow! It’s been a while since I posted here! My computer crashed and I still haven’t recovered all the files. But there have been lots of other things going on to add to the hecticness. So many excuses, primarily about time (or lack of time). Some days I feel like I’ve been thrown onto the battlefield with no clothes, no weapons, and no training. On the positive side, I finally have the opportunity to deal with some of the craziness in my past that affects aspects of life now. Not everyone understands that, which makes things a little tricky, but that’s okay. Mostly, I’ve been reading the Psalms. I also read about Samuel and Hannah. For Hannah, I wonder if it was hard to leave her son at the Temple? Did he understand why he was staying when she was leaving? When Samuel heard God’s voice, I wonder if it overwhelmed Him (once he realized who was actually talking to Him)? I think it’s interesting that Eli recognized God’s hand, even though God hadn’t spoken to the priests in a long time. I wonder if he was jealous of Samuel’s favor with God. Did you notice that God’s voice was human-like? When He called to Samuel, Samuel thought it was another man calling him. I wonder if God was grinning as Samuel ran back and forth trying to answer what he thought to be the call of Eli. He certainly was patient, realizing that the boy had never heard his voice and didn’t know who it was. I think it’s easy to forget that God is like that. He doesn’t expect us to know everything right off the bat or to get it the first time. Sometimes He calls and waits, and then calls again until we recognize His voice. I wonder how many times He calls me and I miss it?