The Daniel DifferenceSample

Daniel’s Priority

How often do we make excuses for our lack of prayer? We point to our busyness, our distractedness, our responsibilities, and our temptations. And yet there are abundant examples of those who have overcome their circumstances to have faithful and fruitful prayer lives. Hopefully, you can think of a time in your life when this was the case. In the next few days we are going to focus on one of the best Biblical examples of this kind of person. Let's look at Daniel:

Read Daniel 1:1-7

Daniel certainly had some good excuses not to pray, as one situation after another could have left him feeling abandoned by God. He had just gone through the horrors of war and had been brought as a captive to a strange land filled with enemies. Immediately, he was thrust into an educational program requiring him to learn a new language and culture – with a king looking over his shoulder! Later in his life, he was a high governmental official with major responsibilities. Wealth and power were all around him. All of these circumstances could have been excuses for Daniel to have a lack of prayer.

And yet the Bible shows that Daniel made prayer a priority. The book of Daniel records two of his prayers verbatim in Daniel 2:20-23 and Daniel 9:4-19. We'll get more into Daniel's prayer life tomorrow, but for today just think about the fact that Daniel was a pray-er. No matter what was going on in his life, his heart was to go first to his God. He did not allow his circumstances to distance or distract him from God. Rather, his circumstances drove him to his knees. 

Listen to Anne Graham Lotz as she discusses Daniel’s fervent prayer life:

The results were amazing! We'll talk about those in the days to come. Daniel's life teaches us that it is both possible and worthwhile to be a pray-er, no matter what life has thrown at you. Are you ready to deepen your prayer life? Are you convicted that it is time to set aside your excuses and make prayer a priority, just like Daniel? 

***While we will discuss the many blessings of prayer in the days to come, find encouragement to be a pray-er yourself and make prayer a habit, just like Daniel, by joining the movement at www.If714.com.