He Got Down on His Knees and Prayed (Daniel 5:17-6:18)

He Got Down on His Knees and Prayed (Daniel 5:17-6:18)

How devoted am I to the practice of personal worship?  How faithful am I to the practice of giving God my time and my attention above all else?  What are the distractions and excuses that I allow to get in the way of my regular time in the Lord’s Word and prayer?  Or even when I do set aside the time, am I hurrying through the motions, quickly wrapping up in order to get to more “pressing” matters?

The faithfulness of Daniel speaks to me today.  I know that my regular posting of these devotions can give the impression of my super-faithfulness to my morning time with God, but that is not always an accurate picture.  I slip.  I hurry.  I make excuses.  And above all I deal with the temptation  – an awful temptation in ministry – to approach the Word primarily as a tool to serve and teach others, rather than sit humbly under its personal instruction for me that day.

Daniel let nothing get in the way of his three times a day with the Lord.  Not even the threat of death.  Wow.  That’s commitment.

But why does the Lord call me to such personal daily Sabbath-keeping?  Certainly it’s not about me proving myself or earning spiritual favor.

The thought that draws me back again and again to faithfulness in my daily time with God is the awareness that my God, my Savior, my Lord, simply wants to spend time with me – and knows that I need it.  My Savior, who knows more about the challenges and opportunities that lie before me this day, doesn’t want me heading into them without Him.  He wants me to face what lies ahead assured of His love, comforted by His presence, taught by His wisdom, and filled with His Spirit.  Just as a parent wouldn’t send a child off to school on a cold winter morning without bundling up with coat, hat and mittens (ok, my Midwest roots are showing!), so the Father doesn’t want to send His children into the day without being wrapped in His redeeming, protective, life-giving love and grace.

And so we give Him the time to bundle us up.  We give Him our time for His Word and prayer.  As we’ve been focusing on in worship:  Constant in prayer, grounded in the Word.

So I am praying for a faithfulness like Daniel.  My prayer is for the Spirit to move me to faithfully give of my time, my attention, my devotion to my Lord each day.  May He so bless you as well.

What is the Word leading you to pray about today?

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