Tag: eternity

When God Orders the Steps – Daniel

~ Sowmya Gali

Daniel 12: 13

“But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age.”

Daniel was a young man when he was taken as a captive to Babylon during the first siege of King Nebuchadnezzar. We do not know the specifics of Daniel’s background. Which family he belonged to? Which tribe of Israel? We can only speculate that he may have come from a decent family with some education. King Nebuchadnezzar appoints Ashpenaz, his chief official to identify some young men from the captives of Judah, who belonged to the royal family or nobles, wise, endowed with intelligence and knowledge, good-looking and had the discernment, to serve in his court. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were among the young men who fit the requirements. They honored God by living honorably. They were to be trained for three years in all kinds of royal duties, after which, they will enter the king’s personal service.

Daniel served faithfully in Babylon under four kings: Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus. During the years in exile, God blessed Daniel and his friends, who entered into king’s personal service. Daniel was elevated to high position in the kingdom that even when Darius and Cyrus conquered Babylon, he was still a sought-after man. Each conquering king appointed Daniel to some high position where the kings sought Daniel’s advice. God protected him and placed him in high honor under four kings and three empires. King Darius was especially fond of Daniel and treated him like a friend.

Despite all the achievements that Daniel gained, his heart ached for Jerusalem and the restoration of the kingdom of Israel. God, in His divine providence, revealed to Daniel that He will restore Israel, the remnant will return to Judah, and rebuild the temple and the city of Jerusalem. However, Daniel will not have the privilege to return to Jerusalem and will not see the temple and the city being rebuilt. Daniel fasted, confessed on behalf of the nation and prayed that the nation of Israel would be restored. However, Gabriel came to him and explained the decree of God. Until seventy weeks would pass, there will be no restoration. Daniel calculated and understood the time until the restoration of Israel. God, in His grace, also revealed the ultimate judgment to Daniel that would come upon the world. The visions he sees not only pertain to the near future of his time but also the distant future.

In all this, Daniel understood the magnanimity of a Sovereign God. He understood the times he was living in and came to terms with the judgment that was imposed on them. Daniel, who had such a noble desire not for himself, but for his nation, was not permitted to return to Jerusalem. Despite his high and influential position under three empires, he never used his influence to return to Jerusalem and start rebuilding. He did not take matters into his own hands but allowed God to carry out His will for His nation. Daniel recognized that a Sovereign God is righteous in all His ways. When God’s will takes precedence, life or death doesn’t matter. The cares of this world don’t matter. For the future that awaits God’s saints is much more appealing than the temporal happiness that the world offers.

Dear Saints, how many times do we get frustrated and anxious about a noble cause? How many of us are fasting, praying and waiting on God for His answer, His will to be revealed to us? Are our needs taking precedence over kingdom needs when we pray? Daniel, in the days of evil, oppression and uncertainty, he chose to stand on the side of God. He did not succumb to the pressures of the culture. His faith was in a God who was righteous and faithful in all His promises. Despite our dire circumstances, are we willing to trust in a righteous God and wait on His promises to be fulfilled or are we taking matters into our own hands and trying to help God in achieving what we want? In the process, are we surrendering to an Almighty, All-knowing God who knows our every step? If we only trust in Him, He will lead us on the path that He ordered for us.

Psalm 37: 23

The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.

Psalm 37: 3-7

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Commityour way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.

He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

Broken Vessel

~ Sowmya Gali

Genesis 35: 2-3

So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “put away the foreign gods which are among you, and purify yourselves and change your garments; and let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.”

My son and his friend gifted each other an exact coffee mug for Christmas. They decided that whenever they meet, they will bring the cup along and drink lemonade or some juice from their cups. Unfortunately, my son’s cup broke. He carefully picked all the broken pieces together, brought them home and put it up on his desk. He declared that soon he will glue it back together. I broke the news to him that however well he glues it back, he cannot be drinking from that cup as it will not be able to hold any liquid without leaking. Best suggestion I could give him is toss it out and get another one like that. However, my son refused and stuck to his original plan.

Jacob, now Israel is on his way back to the land of his inheritance after spending more than 20 years in Paddan Aram, gaining wives, children, livestock, and servants. He made peace with his father-in-law Laban after running away from him without informing him. He made amends with his estranged brother Esau. God wanted him to go to Bethel where he first encountered God on his run from the wrath of his brother Esau. However, he took a slight detour to Shechem. As he encamped near Shechem, the troubles started brewing.

Dinah, Israel’s daughter was molested by the prince of Shechem. When he wanted to marry her, the brothers laid a condition that the men of the city of Shechem had to be circumcised. As the men were recovering, Simeon and Levi, the sons of Jacob, slaughtered the men of Shechem, looted them and captured their women and children. When Jacob heard of this, he was afraid that the neighboring people in the region, when they hear what had befallen Shechem, would pursue Jacob and his family and kill them.

Jacob and his family packed up their tents and started moving towards Bethel. Jacob knew that unless he arrives to that place that God wanted him to, he will not find peace and rest. Therefore, Jacob hurried to Bethel. Jacob insisted that if he has to enter God’s presence, he must get rid of all the idols and purify himself. He commanded his entire family to cast out the idols, garments and other pagan things from among their midst. As soon as they reached Bethel, Jacob built an altar to God.

One would assume that, Jacob, who now found God, would have a wonderful remainder of his life. He would enjoy the blessings that were pronounced upon him. Unfortunately, things took a dramatic turn. Rebekah’s nurse, Deborah, who may have helped raise Jacob, died. Rachel, his beloved wife, died giving birth to Benjamin. Isaac died at a ripe old age. Reuben defiled his father’s bed by sleeping with one of his father’s concubines. Jacob is a wounded and broken man at this juncture. He has arrived to a desperate point in his life that he realized that he can’t fix the circumstances in his life. He threw himself at the mercy of God.

Jacob, the deceiver, manipulated his way all through his life. He tried to fix problems in his own strength. He, already being a broken man, could not fix anything else. He couldn’t restrain his sons Simeon and Levi from the slaughter of the people of Shechem. His own son defiled his bed. His fixing of his broken life didn’t fix the problems he was going through. He needed God to fix his broken life. Despite his best efforts, Jacob, the broken vessel, continued to leak.

Dear Saints of God, we are broken vessels. We are navigating through this life with broken shards, temporarily fixed. Our best efforts will not fix the broken vessel and make it as it was before. We can’t be useful for the Kingdom in our broken condition. Some where there will be a small defect. All our efforts to put up a cheerful façade on the outside, when we are broken on the inside, will neither help us nor be effective in God’s work. Let us submit ourselves into the hands of our true Potter, who is well able to fix these broken vessels. He is well able to identify where there are leaks or missing pieces. He will make us whole again, harden us just right so we could be jars that can be filled with His Spirit, to be used by the Master for His Glory.