Among LionsSample

CONTEXT: God saves Daniel from the lion's den. King Darius sentences the administrators to death instead.

Early the next morning, King Darius ran to the lion’s den to check on Daniel. The king was amazed to find him alive without even a scratch. He immediately ordered Daniel to be pulled out of the den and the men who conspired against him thrown in along with their entire families.

While Daniel’s life was marked by his faithfulness and devotion to God, God was equally devoted to Daniel. Time and again, we’ve seen God provide, protect, and save Daniel.

Sometimes, we read Bible stories like this and wonder if God still does miracles, and if so, would He do them for us? The same God who provided, protected, and saved Daniel is the same God who is alive and active in our lives. Sometimes, we forget about what God’s done for us. We take Him for granted or attribute what He’s done to our own abilities. But the truth is God is just as mighty to save us as He was to save Daniel! We don’t have to figure out the details, fix things ourselves, or work harder. Like Daniel, we simply need to be faithful and devoted to our God, who loves us more than we can imagine.

After Daniel was pulled from the den, notice what he didn’t do. He didn’t tell the king who was responsible for this situation. He didn’t try to get even. The Bible doesn't even suggest that Daniel was angry! Didn’t Daniel care that these men had tried to kill him? Of course, he did. But he didn’t waste his energy on revenge. He trusted God to save him, and he trusted God to bring judgment in His time.

That’s a hard one, isn’t it? We see injustice happen and feel like God doesn’t care when He doesn’t intervene in how we think He should. We take it into our own hands to get even when we feel like God is taking too long to distribute judgment. Spiritual maturity comes when we are not only able to trust God with what we can see but with what we can’t. Daniel understood that completely trusting God meant just that…completely trusting Him with the good and bad, the seen and unseen.

CONSIDER THIS:

1. Do you think God can/will save you? Where have you seen God provide, protect, or save you throughout your life?

2. If you’re honest with yourself, do you completely trust God to deliver judgment in His time, or do you feel compelled to take control?

3. Write a prayer inviting God to help you let go of control as you learn to trust Him fully.