Daniel 2:46-49 Video Devotional

Posted on Nov 5, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , , , ,

Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face and paid homage to Daniel, and commanded that an offering and incense be offered up to him. The king answered and said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings, and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery.” Then the king gave Daniel high honors and many great gifts and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court. – Daniel 2:46-49

Here we have the payoff to Daniel’s suffering over the dream and its interpretation. Daniel’s direct and respectful response to Arioch, prayer and trust in God, and boldness in front of Nebuchadnezzar was met with nothing else than spiritual fruit!

I am sure Daniel was much happier about it than Jonah, but just as surprised. Nebuchadnezzar repented! Though it initially seems like the king was giving glory to Daniel, he recognized Daniel’s God as the One with the power and Daniel as the recipient. This led to Daniel being given real influence and leadership over the kingdom, which would be huge, but lead to more opportunities to suffer. Daniel’s trust in God and obedience saved the day and put a target on his back.

This ending to the story tells us a few things: 1) Daniel’s way of interacting with non-believers is correct, and 2) influence leads to opportunity and suffering. We can learn today from how Daniel treated those who could be considered enemies. This matches with 1 Corinthians 13 – without love, our truth is useless. We have got to put that back at the forefront of our actions; everything we do must be filtered through loving actions and a respectful attitude! If we do that, our opportunities will only increase.

What Daniel did accomplished a lot for the kingdom of God. People were saved and influence was gained. But we need to be prepared as we work (or rush) for our chances to gain that kind of leadership; it will lead to suffering. I have had a few experiences lately of opportunities to have influence and lead, but they both quickly lead to me suffering emotional pain over the outcome of those circumstances. It was great to experience God using me, but in the end it hurt. That’s ok – even good, but we need to be ready for it. Again, obey God and trust Him to take care of the consequences – that’s our only chance for real success.


Daniel 2:12-16 Video Devotional

Posted on Oct 27, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , , , , ,

Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. So the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon. He declared to Arioch, the king’s captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel. And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king. – Daniel 2:12-16

Right at the start of this story, we see Daniel thrown again into the fire, this time simply because he was part of a certain group of advisors! He had nothing to do with the situation, but was looped in and, as verse 13 states, was hunted for death. It is really just predicament after predicament.

Note here that again, this had absolutely nothing to do with Daniel or his actions (even positive action). He is merely an innocent person thrown into a life and death situation. None of this was or even could have been his fault. I can imagine anyone in these situations becoming increasingly frustrated or even angry over constantly being looped into things that he had nothing to do with; yet, Daniel chose to respond with prudence.

Again, respect and love were how Daniel chose to treat the man who was literally hunting him for death. He reached out to Arioch directly and asked for clarification and immediately offered to give the king what he is seeking – an interpretation to his dream. There is no hesitation, annoyance, or desire to seek revenge on the man sent to kill him. Simply business – Daniel learns of the problem and calmly offers to fix it.

This can be a challenge for me; not responding to actual threats to my safety but responding to one of my children when they constantly interrupt me with questions during a movie. It doesn’t have to be a life-threatening situation; only an opportunity disguised as an irritation. This is a very real-life problem.

How often do we respond to people that are a thorn in our flesh (for whatever reason) when they come around the corner? Are you mean to them? Do you ignore them? Do you simply just wish in your heart they weren’t there? Or, like Daniel, do you choose to show nothing but love and respect and seek to serve their needs. That’s Daniel’s example. That’s our challenge.


Daniel 1:8-16 Video Devotional

Posted on Oct 20, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , , , ,

But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself. And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs, and the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who assigned your food and your drink; for why should he see that you were in worse condition than the youths who are of your own age? So you would endanger my head with the king.” Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, “Test your servants for ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the king’s food be observed by you, and deal with your servants according to what you see.” So he listened to them in this matter, and tested them for ten days. At the end of ten days it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king’s food. So the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables. – Daniel 1:8-16

Right away we jump into the first of the numerous conflicts between the Jewish examples (Daniel and his friends) and the Babylon assimilators. They are invited to eat food off the king’s table as an enticement to like Babylon culture and appreciate the generosity of the leaders so as to begin to like them. If the Jewish examples like the Babylonians, then the rest of the exiles will begin to trend that way as well. At least that’s the plan.

The conflict begins because the food form the king’s table does not match the Jewish kosher laws; it is riddled with food they can’t eat without breaking their vows to God – something Daniel and his friends have no intention of doing. It is clear that God comes first in their hearts. On top of that, they are confident that God will provide a way for them to be faithful while also providing a way through this ordeal that He allowed them to be in. Thus, they confidently suggest to the leaders that they eat only vegetables, offering a ten-day trial to prove that this will work out in favor of the Babylonian intentions.

The test works and Daniel and his friends look great on vegetables and are thus allowed to continue their faithfulness to God through food. They also begin to earn trust and influence in the Babylonian court. Off the bat, these men suggest wise ideas, make good, faithful decisions and see positive fruit.

Here’s the key – Daniel and his friends were put into a precarious position that one could have easily justified eating off the king’s table.  A lax attitude under pressure is a common struggle people face. But this passage shows that faithfulness is the key to success here. Only by being completely faithful (albeit in a gentle and respectful way), were these young men able to produce the fruit they did. They trusted God completely and stayed the course, yet chose wisdom and gentleness in their dealings. This is the formula to spiritual success in our actions. Stay unwaveringly faithful to God no matter what and treat those you are dealing with respectfully and with love.

God will bless your work in that – guaranteed. That won’t always mean it will be pain-free (Daniel is about to spend the night with hungry lions), but it will lead to His glory. Never compromise and never act with anger towards another.


Acts 17:22-28 Video Devotional

Posted on Aug 4, 2020 by admin in Video Devotional | Tags: , , , , ,

“So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’” (Acts 17:22-28)

This sermon is incredible in so many ways. What Paul does in reaching out to the Greek people is brilliant in both its efficacy as well as its poetry. What I love most about it is the introduction. Quickly and powerfully, Paul connects to his listeners with softness and respect. He acknowledges their different beliefs and doesn’t chide them for it, but honors them instead, recognizing their tomb to the unknown God and turning that into a positive strategy by offering to introduce them to that unknown God.

He spoke to them in their interests, culture and ways. So much today we tell people how they are wrong. We speak in memes, highlighting our point-of-view at the expense of others. We criticize and tear down so that we can build our argument. Paul brought peace instead of challenge, consideration instead of criticism and love instead of hate. This is a perfect example of being a peacemaker. Though some mocked him, others believed, but it was overall accepted by the Athenians. They listened and respected.

Amazing how this came from a man known for being a wrecking ball! It goes to show the value of being a peacemaker.


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