Discovering Destiny (Part 72): What To Do When Trouble Shows Up At Your Door
Today, we continue our focus on THE YEAR OF DISCOVERY, as we learn to maintain our posture of faith after God has revealed His plans for our future. Yesterday, the king's decree went out, and Daniel's name was on it. Today, we see what Daniel did when the officers showed up.
Key scriptures for this year:
2 Peter 3:18 GNT
"But continue to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Savior, Jesus Christ. To Him be glory now and forever."
Luke 10:20 Mirror
"It's time for you to rediscover who you are from Heaven's perspective."
1 John 3:10 Mirror
"There is a very visible and vast difference between living one's life from your God identity or from a fallen man's mindset."
Proverbs 25:2 NKJV
"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter."
Jeremiah 29:13 NIV
"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
Scripture(s) we will study today:
Daniel 2:14-16 NLT
"When Arioch, the commander of the king's guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion. He asked Arioch, 'Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?' So Arioch told him all that had happened. Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time to tell the king what the dream meant."
Daniel 2:17-18 AMPC
"Then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, So that they would desire and request mercy of the God of heaven concerning this secret, that Daniel and his companions should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon."
Supporting scriptures:
James 3:17 TPT
"But the wisdom from above is always pure, filled with peace, considerate and teachable. It is filled with love and never displays prejudice or hypocrisy in any form."
Proverbs 15:1 TPT
"Respond gently when you are confronted and you'll defuse the rage of another. Responding with sharp, cutting words will only make it worse. Don't you know that being angry can ruin the testimony of even the wisest of men?"
Isaiah 28:16 AMPC
"Therefore thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am laying in Zion for a foundation a Stone, a tested Stone, a precious Cornerstone of sure foundation; he who believes (trusts in, relies on, and adheres to that Stone) will not be ashamed or give way or hasten away [in sudden panic]."
Hebrews 4:16 NLT
"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most."
Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT
"Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble."
Ecclesiastes 4:12 NLT
"A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken."
Matthew 18:19 TPT
"Again, I give you an eternal truth: If two of you agree to ask God for something in a symphony of prayer, my heavenly Father will do it for you."
Philippians 4:6-7 ERV
"Don't worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need, always giving thanks for what you have. And because you belong to Christ Jesus, God's peace will stand guard over all your thoughts and feelings. His peace can do this far better than our human minds."
Setting the Stage:
Yesterday, Babylon's best experts told King Nebuchadnezzar that no man on earth could tell him his dream. The king flew into a rage and ordered every wise man in Babylon executed. Daniel was not in the room, and he did not fail the test, but his name was on the list. So the king's men went looking for him.
Now picture the scene. There is a knock at the door, and it is Arioch, the commander of the king's guard. This is not a messenger. This is the man the king sent to carry out the executions. Daniel is a young man, a captive in a foreign land, with no family nearby and no lawyer to call. He could have run. He could have argued. He could have fallen apart. But the Bible says, "Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion." He asked one calm question: "Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?" And Arioch told him the whole story.
Then Daniel did something nobody else in Babylon had done. He went straight to the king. Think about that. The same king who had just accused his experts of stalling for time is now looking at a young Hebrew captive who is asking him for time. And Daniel made a promise he did not have the answer for yet: give me time, and I will tell you what the dream means. The king said yes.
Then Daniel went home. He did not call a meeting of the wise men. He called his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, and told them everything, so that "they would desire and request mercy of the God of heaven concerning this secret." Daniel's first stop was the king. His next stop was the prayer meeting. Here is what I want you to see today. Trouble may show up at your door, but you get to decide how you answer it. Daniel answered with wisdom, with boldness, with his friends, and with prayer.
So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. When You Walk In Divine Wisdom, You Do Not Panic.
Arioch came with orders to kill, and Daniel came with a question. He did not scream, he did not plead, and he did not attack the messenger. He spoke with wisdom and discretion, and that wisdom bought him the information he needed. Daniel's confidence was not in his ability or his strength. Daniel's confidence was in God and His grace. That is why he could stay calm with a sword at his door. James said, "But the wisdom from above is always pure, filled with peace, considerate and teachable." And Isaiah said the one who believes "will not be ashamed or give way or hasten away [in sudden panic]."
How this applies to you:
-- Trouble showed up at Daniel's door with a sword, and Daniel answered it with wisdom.
-- Panic makes noise. Wisdom makes progress. If you "freak out" and get loud, you might make a commotion, but you won't make any progress. Slowing down and seeking God's wisdom is much better.
-- Daniel's first move was a question, not a reaction. He asked, "Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?" Get the facts before you make your next move.
-- God planned your destiny before you were born, and panic was never part of the plan.
-- Some of you are dealing with a bad report, a hard conversation, or a phone call you did not see coming. Take a breath before you take a step. The answer will not come from panic.
-- Calm is not weakness. It is what confidence in God looks like under pressure.
-- Solomon said, "Respond gently when you are confronted, and you'll defuse the rage of another." Your tone can turn a crisis into a conversation.
-- People who trust God do not have to lose self-control. The first thing I do when something unexpected shows up for Isabella and me is remind us both that, while this was a surprise to us, it wasn't a surprise to God. I say to Isabella, "Babe, God already knew this would happen, so God is going to give us the wisdom."
2. Grace Will Give You The Boldness To Ask For What You Need.
After Arioch explained the situation, Daniel did not hide in his house and hope the problem would go away. He went at once to see the king. Think about the nerve that took. The king was furious; the death squad was already moving, and Daniel walked into the throne room and asked for more time. Then he promised an answer he did not have yet. That is not arrogance. That is faith. Daniel knew he could not produce the dream, but he knew the God who could.
How this applies to you:
-- As believers who walk in love by faith, we face our issues head-on. We do not run from them, hide in the corner, or act as if they will just go away. Daniel did not wait for the problem to leave his door. He went straight to the king.
-- Being a Christian does not mean you have to be a pushover (a punk).
-- Daniel walked into the king's presence with no answer in his hand (yet). His confidence was not in his ability. It was in his God.
-- Daniel went to go see the earthly king, and then he went to go see his Heavenly King. God has given you access to the throne of grace so you can receive the wisdom to walk out your destiny.
-- Ask God boldly, and ask people respectfully.
-- The king had just accused the experts of stalling for time, and then he gave Daniel the time he asked for. That is favor.
-- Some of you are not getting what you need because you have not asked. Ask for the extension, the meeting, or the second chance. Grace gives you the boldness to ask.
-- Daniel promised the king an answer he did not have yet. That is what faith looks like before the answer shows up.
3. When The Pressure Is On, Surround Yourself With People Of Like-Precious-Faith.
Notice where Daniel went after he left the king. He went home to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. These were the same three young men who stood with him at the king's table in chapter 1 and refused to compromise. They went through the same school, the same test, and the same promotion. Now they were facing the same death sentence. Daniel did not carry this alone. He brought his friends into the fight. I have taught you this for years: when the pressure is on, you must surround yourself with people of like-precious-faith. Don't surround yourself with dream-killers. Solomon said, "Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed." And he said, "Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken." Daniel's cord had four strands, and Babylon could not break it.
How this applies to you:
-- Instead of broadcasting his problem to the whole city, Daniel took it home to his praying friends.
-- Not everybody can handle your crisis. Some people will panic, and they may even cause you to panic. So you need to pick the right friends: the ones who will not panic, but who will instead pray with you in faith, without a doubt, without wavering.
-- God planned your destiny before you were born, and He planned the people who would walk it out with you.
-- Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah stood with Daniel at the king's table in chapter 1. When the pressure came in chapter 2, they were still standing with him.
-- Your circle matters. Daniel needed friends who knew how to pray, not friends who knew how to gossip.
-- Develop Godly relationships before you need them! Once crisis hits your house, it's too late to go looking for friends.
-- Solomon said, "A man who has friends must himself be friendly." Daniel had friends to call when trouble came because he had already been a friend. Build those relationships before the knock at the door. Then when trouble shows up, you won't face it alone.
4. When You Face The Impossible, Pray From A Position Of Grace.
Here is what Daniel asked his friends to do. He asked them to "desire and request mercy of the God of heaven concerning this secret." They did not try to figure out the dream on their own. They did not command God or bargain with Him. They simply asked God for mercy. That is praying from a position of grace. You do not come to God trying to earn the answer. You come to God expecting His kindness. Jesus said, "If two of you agree to ask God for something in a symphony of prayer, my heavenly Father will do it for you." Four young men in a house in Babylon agreed in prayer, and heaven was about to answer.
How this applies to you:
-- When trouble is bigger than you, pray.
-- Daniel and his friends did not try to earn the answer. They asked for mercy.
-- God planned your destiny before you were born, and prayer is how heaven's plan meets your situation on earth.
-- Through prayer, God can do what you can't do. Through prayer, God can go where you can't go.
-- Paul said, "Don't worry about anything, but pray and ask God for everything you need." Worry rehearses the problem. Prayer releases the answer.
-- You are never hopeless because you are never helpless.
-- Tomorrow, we will see what God did in the night. The answer came before the deadline.
That's enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I stay calm when trouble shows up at my door!
I answer trouble with God's wisdom, not with worry!
Your wisdom in me is full of peace!
Grace gives me the boldness to ask for what I need!
I come boldly to Your throne of grace!
You surround me with people of like-precious-faith!
I am a destiny friend to the people You placed in my life!
When I face the impossible, I pray from a position of grace!
I am never hopeless, because I am never helpless!
In THE YEAR OF DISCOVERY, GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus' name. Amen!
This is Today's Word. Apply it and prosper!
Comments