Circumstances Can Point Others to Jesus
One of the major shifts I’ve seen in my lifetime is in the amount of time people stay in a job. My grandfathers basically worked for one company for most of their adult lives. My father worked at three places his whole life. There was a thing called loyalty to your employer that was important to see in employees. If someone looked at your resume and deemed you were a “job hopper,” it usually meant you weren’t going to get hired. Employers wanted their employees to become “part of the family” and to be proud and believe in the company they worked for.
Tonight as I was starting the book of Daniel, I was reminded of how Daniel was in the service of the King of Babylon until the reign of King Cyrus. It is believed Daniel was in the king’s service from age 16 to age 85. In this case, Daniel didn’t choose his vocation or path, but he diligently did his job without undermining his faith in God. King Nebuchadnezzar even spoke that Daniel must be serving the true God because of his ability to interpret dreams.
We live in a world that tells us we must love what we do. That it’s all about us. I stand amazed at the pushback from employees since the COVID shutdown that expects to be able to work from home and they feel it isn’t the company’s decision to make. I see people only doing the bare minimum to get paid. We hear the term “silent quitting” and workplace injustices are talked about on all social media platforms.
But when I read the book of Daniel, his reaction to his working circumstances looks nothing like what employment looks like today. Granted, Daniel wasn’t given a choice, but he made the most of what he was given… from age 15 to age 85. If he hadn’t made that choice, what a terrible existence he would have had for the majority of his life. God, give me a heart like Daniel who was faithful in the midst of adversity. I long to be someone like the four men in Daniel 1:17 “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.” I don’t mean EXACTLY these gifts but to be like Daniel — when faced with adversity, God would empower me to make a difference for his will. What an honor it must have been for Daniel to realize God was protecting them mentally and physically.
Show me God when you are using my circumstances to show others who you are. Give me the wisdom and understanding that only comes through you. Help me to be satisfied with my place in this world- the good that happens to me and the bad. Give me the perseverance needed to have a Daniel-like testimony of trust. Give me the power to have a servant’s heart. You show us here in Daniel how it opens Nebuchadnezzar’s eyes to the truth, you show us how Jesus also had a servant’s heart as he heeled and preached. Give me a heart that is so in touch with your will that anything less feels empty and meaningless.
