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Monday – 25 November 2013
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Verses:
Daniel 1:1-6, 8-20
Daniel 3:52 - 56
Luke 21:1-4
Daniel 1:1-6, 8-20
Daniel’s Training in Babylon
1 In the third year of the reign
of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to Jerusalem
and besieged it.
2 And the Lord delivered Jehoiakim king of
Judah into his hand, along with some of the articles from the temple of God.
These he carried off to the temple of his god in Babylonia and put in the treasure house of his god.
3 Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of
his court officials, to bring into the king’s service some of the Israelites
from the royal family and the nobility— 4 young
men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of
learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the
king’s palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the
Babylonians. 5 The
king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. They
were to be trained for three years, and after that they were to enter the
king’s service.
6 Among those who were chosen were some
from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself
with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission
not to defile himself this way. 9 Now
God had caused the official to show favor and compassion to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my
lord the king, who has assigned your food and drink. Why should he see you
looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my
head because of you.”
11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the
chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah,
12 “Please test your servants for ten days:
Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the
young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with
what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this
and tested them for ten days.
15 At the end of the ten days they looked
healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal
food. 16 So the guard took away their
choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.
17 To these four young men God gave
knowledge and understanding of all kinds of literature and learning. And Daniel
could understand visions and dreams of all kinds.
18 At the end of the time set by the king
to bring them into his service, the chief official presented them to
Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with
them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they
entered the king’s service. 20 In every
matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he
found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole
kingdom.
Daniel 3:52-56
52 Blessed art
thou, O Lord the God of our fathers: and worthy to be praised, and glorified,
and exalted above all for ever: and blessed is the holy name of thy glory: and
worthy to be praised, and exalted above all in all ages.
53 Blessed art
thou in the holy temple of thy glory: and exceedingly to be praised, and
exceeding glorious for ever.
54 Blessed art
thou on the throne of thy kingdom, and exceedingly to be praised, and exalted
above all for ever.
55 Blessed art
thou, that beholdest the depths, and sittest upon the cherubims: and worthy to
be praised and exalted above all for ever.
56 Blessed art
thou in the firmament of heaven: and worthy of praise, and glorious for ever.
Luke 21:1-4
21 And looking on,
he saw the rich men cast their gifts into the treasury.
2 And he saw also
a certain poor widow casting in two brass mites.
3 And he said:
Verily I say to you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
4 For all these
have of their abundance cast into the offerings of God: but she of her want,
hath cast in all the living that she had.
INSIGHTFUL
WISDOM
UNDEFILED!
But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal
rations of food and wine. – Daniel 1:8
Today, information is king. We are not even content when we go to
websites only to find out that the information we read has not even been
updated – since five minutes ago!
This is the buffet laid before us – unending dishes of the latest
trends, bottomless picks of knowledge, fancy plates of fame and fortune. They
all look sweet to the eyes, and our souls salivate at the sight.
But Daniel, in today’s reading, knew something that we all could
learn from. No matter how attractive the royal offerings looked, he knew his
foundations. He discerned that what was laid before him would lead him to
compromise his faith. So he stood his ground and held on to his non-negotiable.
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the
will of God.” Let us, like Daniel, resolve to not defile ourselves with the
world’s ways; rather, to strive to live blamelessly before God. – Mich
Prayer:
Lord, please renew my mind
that I may think like You and follow Your ways. Amen.
Wise Words:
“Apart from God, every activity is merely a passing whiff of
insignificance.” – Alfred North Whitehead
Source:
New
International Version (NIV)
Douay-Rheims
1899 American Edition (DRA)
Living Water 2013
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