July 30

Daniel 6:1-13

Nothing will stop me

On the same night that Belshazzar saw the writing on the palace wall, his kingdom was conquered by Darius—as Daniel had told him when he explained the message from God.

Darius chose Daniel, together with others, to help manage the daily affairs of his kingdom. Daniel did everything so well that Darius wanted to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

However, the other governors were jealous and tried to find something wrong with the way Daniel did things. But they could not find a single fault because Daniel was so honest and reliable. So they persuaded the king to make a law that no one was to pray to any god or person for thirty days except the king. Anyone who disobeyed the new law would be thrown into the lions’ den.

The king signed the law—not realizing that it was a trap to get Daniel killed. When Daniel heard about the new law, he went home. Then he went upstairs and knelt down in front of a window that faced Jerusalem. There he prayed to God—just as he had done every day.

Why did Daniel let everyone see that he was praying?

After hearing about the king’s law, Daniel could still have prayed three times a day—but in a small room where no one would see him. He did not even have to kneel for God to hear his prayers. He could have simply prayed silently. So why did Daniel pray where everyone could see him?

Even before Darius made a law to stop people from praying, Daniel had decided in his heart that he was going to pray at his window every day. Daniel was not going to pray in secret and let others think that he had stopped praying. Not even the threat of death could put out the light that shone from his life in a dark and sinful world.

Verse for today

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Matthew 5:14