MIDWEEK MEDITATION

1 In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 2 And the Lord gave Jehoiakim king of Judah into his hand, with some of the vessels of the house of God. And he brought them to the land of Shinar, to the house of his god, and placed the vessels in the treasury of his god. 3 Then the king commanded Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the people of Israel, both of the royal family and of the nobility, 4 youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in all wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king's palace, and to teach them the literature and language of the Chaldeans. 5 The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate, and of the wine that he drank. They were to be educated for three years, and at the end of that time they were to stand before the king. 6 Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. 7 And the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego.
But Daniel resolved…
                                                Daniel 1:1-8a
 

Nameless, faceless, helpless. Daniel and his friends were simply unknown captives who were ripped from their lives and herded across the country to an unknown land. They had lost everything: their home, their family, their hopes and dreams. But they hadn’t lost their faith. Even when all was taken away, God remained with them. 

When Daniel arrived in Babylon and learned his life was to be spent building the empire that destroyed his life, he resolved. He saw God’s hand in the situation and so he learned to thrive in his new life even as he engaged his faith. He took a risk to honor God and God rewarded him. 

When life has flipped upside down and oppression is all around, we need to resolve in our hearts like Daniel and his friends. Resolve to follow God into the unknown and to live our lives by faith as it exists, not as we wish it were. 

May you resolve in your heart to follow God this week.