The LORD is my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life- of whom shall I be afraid? When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident . . . For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. Hear my voice when I call O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me . . . I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD. Psalm 27: 1-3, 5-7, 13, 14, NIV.
LORD, here we are once again seeking Your face! We want to look into that face of inexpressible beauty, and learn more of You. So please stay with us as we study Your Word. In the blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
As we continue our study in Psalm 27, we come to the “day of trouble.” We live in a constant cosmic warfare, granted. But there comes to many, if not all of us, a “day of trouble,” like no other! On that day, the only thing that keeps us breathing, the only thing that gives us hope, is the first-hand knowledge, that “Jesus never fails!” If you have not read yesterday’s devotional it might be a good idea to read it now, to create a bridge to connect to the following thought: “For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me[.]”
We will use the experience of Daniel to see what a “day of trouble” looks like. Some things that are worthy of mention are: Daniel knew the LORD before the day of trouble! He and God were friends before the day of trouble! He had decided to honor God and live for Him before, the day of trouble (Daniel 1: 8)! It was a custom of Daniel to take everything to God in prayer! When he, his three friends, and all the wise men of Babylon were in danger of being executed, because of king Nebuchadnezzar’s capricious behavior, we read in sacred Scripture, “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 . . .” (2: 17, 18). How important, in the day of our trouble, to know in whom we have believed, and what He is able to do for us! That is so important! I believe that the Christian should always be ahead of the game. If we know what the LORD can do for us, we need not fear what men can do to us! Hallelujah!
So when Daniel’s “day of trouble” came, he was ready for it! Just as prophecy had foretold, the “head of gold” (Babylon) had passed from the scene, and Medo-Persia, “the chest and arms of silver,” was now the world power. Daniel is a man of such extraordinary integrity, that a very unusual political maneuver takes place. The new government’s head of state, king Darius, decides to keep Daniel, the former prime minister of Babylon, as one of the three top executives of his cabinet! This is by no stretch of the imagination, the usual procedure, and the other members of the cabinet, are by no means happy about it! So they set a trap for Daniel. But the only way they can trap him, is in his faithfulness to God! Read this for yourselves: “The men said, ‘We shall not find any grounds for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God’ ” (6: 5)! What a noble tribute to the Creator!
As we mentioned earlier, Daniel was a friend of God. One of the things that friends enjoy doing is talking to each other. Sacred Scripture informs us that, “Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open toward Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray to his God and praise him, just as he had done previously” (6: 10). E. G. White describes prayer as, “The opening of the heart to God, as to a friend.” Emphasis provided. Daniel enjoyed talking to his Friend! So much so, that they met three times a day, to converse! It was this practice, that almost cost him his life. Obviously, Daniel’s love for God was dearer to him than life itself. The power of a love relationship with our Creator is impossible to calculate. The day of Daniel’s trouble was here, but he would not have to face it alone, ““For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling!”
We will continue this conversation!