Focus

Breathe in clear thoughts of peace and reflection as you prepare to hear God speak to you through the scripture and the writer. Put aside all the things the world says you have to accomplish today and use this time to rest in God’s presence.

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Read

Daniel 2:1-19 (NRSV)

In the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed such dreams that his spirit was troubled and his sleep left him. So the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. When they came in and stood before the king, he said to them, “I have had such a dream that my spirit is troubled by the desire to understand it.” The Chaldeans said to the king (in Aramaic), “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will reveal the interpretation.” The king answered the Chaldeans, “This is a public decree: if you do not tell me both the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins. But if you do tell me the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. Therefore tell me the dream and its interpretation.” They answered a second time, “Let the king first tell his servants the dream, then we can give its interpretation.” The king answered, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see I have firmly decreed: if you do not tell me the dream, there is but one verdict for you. You have agreed to speak lying and misleading words to me until things take a turn. Therefore, tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can give me its interpretation.” The Chaldeans answered the king, “There is no one on earth who can reveal what the king demands! In fact no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean. The thing that the king is asking is too difficult, and no one can reveal it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with mortals.”

Because of this the king flew into a violent rage and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed. The decree was issued, and the wise men were about to be executed; and they looked for Daniel and his companions, to execute them. Then Daniel responded with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the king’s chief executioner, who had gone out to execute the wise men of Babylon; 15 he asked Arioch, the royal official, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Arioch then explained the matter to Daniel. So Daniel went in and requested that the king give him time and he would tell the king the interpretation.

Then Daniel went to his home and informed his companions, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions with the rest of the wise men of Babylon might not perish. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

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Reflect

Have you ever been asked to do the impossible? Your boss asks for a deadline that you cannot meet. Your family has appointments in five different locations at the same time and you can’t work out the logistics to get each person where he or she needs to be. Maybe you have been in a hospital room with a loved one and heard the doctor say, “It doesn’t look good.” Life has a way of demanding more of us than what we as humans can bear in our own strength and knowledge. King Nebuchadnezzar asked the impossible from his staff. They were quick to tell him that it was impossible because they did not have the strength or wisdom to meet his demands. They told him that only a god or goddess could meet his demands, but he might as well forget that option because “they don’t hang around with people like us.”

The good news of Christmas is that God sent Jesus for people like us. God came to earth and dwells among us. In this season of Epiphany, God is revealed in Jesus the Christ, who hangs around with us! While we may be asked for the impossible, we are not alone. We are not left to our own strength or wisdom. God is present with us! Daniel called upon God for help when the task was bigger than he was. We can also call upon the God we serve, who hangs around people like us.

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Pray

Loving God, thank you for being with us through it all. In our good times, our bad times, our joys, our sorrows, our strengths, and our weaknesses, your presence is always with us. Help us to recognize the impossible in our lives, and turn those moments over to you. Amen.

Go with God.