the book
A few days ago, one of my team members at the Holy Land came into my office to talk about "stuff." He told me about the steps he was taking to get his GED, about ways that God had been working in his life, and about goals for the future.
One thing that was really cool is that, last year, his reading level tested at a 7th grade level, but this week, it was tested to be post-high school! His advisor had turned to him and asked what he'd been doing during the year to increase his score so dramatically.
"Nothing really," he replied. "The only thing I've been doing differently is reading the Bible a lot."
Cool, cool! I asked him to tell me more about that, like what version he reads (since they're written at different vocabulary levels), how much he reads, etc. It's plain 'ol NIV and he reads two pages a day. His goal is to read the Bible 8 times in 20 years. Huh, so not exactly challenging material and not exactly a speed-reader. I think this proves to a point that it is God who caused the growth and increase in his reading skills, and what a neat testimony that leaves!
In my reading this morning, I covered only two pages. Made me think of him. :-)
These are some things that jumped off the page at me:
Daniel 7:13-14 -- "And behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom...."
Daniel 8:16 -- "And I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, and it called, 'Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.'"
I think these are interesting because of the references to God as a man (context reveals the references are to God). These aren't the only places it happens, either! A setup for the Messiah coming as the God-Man? A reminder that we are made in God's image? An incredible glimpse at who He is?
Daniel 9:1 -- "In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede...."
Ahasuerus the Mede! This is the guy that Queen Esther was married to. I don't know if that makes Ahasuerus her son by birth or just a step-son, but it reveals a possibility that he had exposure to the Jewish faith while growing up. Perhaps this is a reason that he was so sensitive to Daniel's God after the incident with the lions' den?
Daniel 9:2-3,17 -- "In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that ... must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.... 'O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary which is desolate.'"
Here's what's interesting. Seventy years out, Daniel started praying for God's glory to re-inhabit Jerusalem and the temple! If I had known that seventy years was the timeframe before the end of the captivity and the return to Jerusalem, I would have started praying in the 69th year and just let the city rot until then. But not only did Daniel pray, he fasted and wept and dressed in sackcloth and ashes and confessed all his sins and the sins of the nation. Hardcore stuff. And because of his prayer, God prepared the "glorious land" for the return of His people. I.e. Cyrus and Ezra and Nehemiah.
Daniel 9:23 -- [spoken by the angel Gabriel] "At the beginning of your please for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved."
Greatly loved. Wow.
One thing that was really cool is that, last year, his reading level tested at a 7th grade level, but this week, it was tested to be post-high school! His advisor had turned to him and asked what he'd been doing during the year to increase his score so dramatically.
"Nothing really," he replied. "The only thing I've been doing differently is reading the Bible a lot."
Cool, cool! I asked him to tell me more about that, like what version he reads (since they're written at different vocabulary levels), how much he reads, etc. It's plain 'ol NIV and he reads two pages a day. His goal is to read the Bible 8 times in 20 years. Huh, so not exactly challenging material and not exactly a speed-reader. I think this proves to a point that it is God who caused the growth and increase in his reading skills, and what a neat testimony that leaves!
In my reading this morning, I covered only two pages. Made me think of him. :-)
These are some things that jumped off the page at me:
Daniel 7:13-14 -- "And behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom...."
Daniel 8:16 -- "And I heard a man's voice between the banks of the Ulai, and it called, 'Gabriel, make this man understand the vision.'"
I think these are interesting because of the references to God as a man (context reveals the references are to God). These aren't the only places it happens, either! A setup for the Messiah coming as the God-Man? A reminder that we are made in God's image? An incredible glimpse at who He is?
Daniel 9:1 -- "In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede...."
Ahasuerus the Mede! This is the guy that Queen Esther was married to. I don't know if that makes Ahasuerus her son by birth or just a step-son, but it reveals a possibility that he had exposure to the Jewish faith while growing up. Perhaps this is a reason that he was so sensitive to Daniel's God after the incident with the lions' den?
Daniel 9:2-3,17 -- "In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that ... must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes.... 'O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary which is desolate.'"
Here's what's interesting. Seventy years out, Daniel started praying for God's glory to re-inhabit Jerusalem and the temple! If I had known that seventy years was the timeframe before the end of the captivity and the return to Jerusalem, I would have started praying in the 69th year and just let the city rot until then. But not only did Daniel pray, he fasted and wept and dressed in sackcloth and ashes and confessed all his sins and the sins of the nation. Hardcore stuff. And because of his prayer, God prepared the "glorious land" for the return of His people. I.e. Cyrus and Ezra and Nehemiah.
Daniel 9:23 -- [spoken by the angel Gabriel] "At the beginning of your please for mercy a word went out, and I have come to tell it to you, for you are greatly loved."
Greatly loved. Wow.