Out of the Den….Daniel 6

Daniel 5 is a great chapter.  There was writing on the wall.  Revelation reigned and promotion pursued.  Daniel was put in a place of authority because of God’s hand.  All was good.

Then Chapter 6 hit….

An edict was given that no one should pray to any god except the king. The administrators and satraps of the King were not pleased that Daniel was raised to be an administrator over them. They especially didn’t like the fact that the king intended to set Daniel over the whole kingdom due to his exceptional leadership ability. Maybe it was jealousy, maybe it was envy….I really don’t know for certain. Whatever it was, they were trying to stop this man of God regardless of whether they played fair or not.

Daniel 6:10 NIV*

Yet, when many would have been shaken to core of their being, Daniel did as before and continued on the avenue of “righteousness.” He stayed “right in God’s eyes.” He sought the Lord and gave thanks in the face of adversity. He continued to pray, letting all see. He ran to and trusted in God.

How do we set in the face of adversity? How do we fair when unrighteousness places us in a den of trouble? I’ve had to ask myself, “How do I look when adversity comes? What happens when trouble looms or even simply when I don’t get my way? Do I trust God to see me through, even when I feel I’ve been wrongly placed in a situation (in my past, during childhood, in my marriage, in work, today)?  Do I, like Daniel, sit in His presence, offering prayers and thanks continually? What’s in my heart? What comes to the surface, flowing out of my mouth, or rolling in my head?” 

Do we continue to sit in the lion’s den, especially if it’s something of the past, awaiting the lion to devour us, or do we turn our eyes toward Jesus, our faithful Deliverer? Do we allow Him to provide for our deliverance from the den? Do we allow Him to be our protection, to be the One who covers over the situation and pulls us through it successfully?

Daniel stayed true, keeping his compass set on the Lord, even though others weren’t playing the game fairly. He found himself thrown into the lion’s den, yet he found solace and safety in the very place that “man” had intended for harm. The Lord protected him.

because he had trusted in his God. 

Daniel 6:23b NIV*

Trusting in God…shall we dare go there? Shall we dare go there when it’s something of the past, when it’s something we were innocent concerning, such a wrong committed to us in childhood? Do we dare go there when we’ve been sitting in the lion’s den for years?  Do we dare go there when someone wronged us when we were “doing nothing wrong?”

Are you ready to be rescued from the den? It’s time…and He is able. We no longer have to sit with the lions. we can be lifted up, rescued and brought to spiritual safety by our Father.

We have the same God as Daniel. He can take those situations where we’ve been wrongly placed or wrongly accused and can turn them into beauty.  He can provide a way out of that den of lions and we’ll find no wounds on ourselves.  He’ll protect us and deliver us.