Always Give Thanks to God

Always Give Thanks to God

Daniel 6:7 – All of the royal administrators, prefects, regional authorities, scribes, and governors have concluded that the king should establish and enforce an edict that anyone who prays to any god or man for the next 30 days (except to you, your majesty) is to be thrown into the lion’ pit. 8 – Therefore, your majesty, establish the decree and sign the written document so it can’t be changed, in accordance with the laws of the Medes and Persians that can’t be repealed.

Verse 9 – So King Darius signed the edict contained in the written document. 10 – When Daniel learned that the written document had been signed, he went to an upstairs room in his house that had windows opened facing Jerusalem. Three times a day he would kneel down, pray, and give thanks to his God, just as he had previously done.

The decree was a foolish one. We may live in more modern times, but our leaders still sign foolish decrees that end up placing us in very difficult situations. When Daniel learned this document was signed that would have a 30 day time limit, he could have adjusted his lifestyle temporarily to accommodate the decree and keep himself safe, but he did not. There were so many things God had done for him. This decree was not to be the deal breaker between Daniel and God. Daniel decided to continue giving thanks to God as he had always done, no matter the consequences.

We can continue giving thanks to God too! Our leaders may sign foolish ideas into law that may tempt us, under threat of harm, to change how we worship God. But, compared to God, these laws will always be temporary. God says this about Himself in Revelation 1:8 – “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” God is so many moves ahead of our temporary laws it defies understanding. Let’s trust in God and continue to give thanks to Him. We may face the lion’s den as a result – but think of the prayers of thanksgiving Daniel prayed after spending a night with the angel that kept the lion’s mouths shut!

When Nebuchadnezzar was King of Babylon he issued a similar decree forcing people, under threat of death by fiery furnace, to worship a golden image he had set up. Daniel’s friends refused to worship the image and were thrown into the fire, and God delivered them. Daniel 3:28 – Nebuchadnezzar spoke up and announced: “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego! He sent his angel to deliver his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king’s command and were willing to risk their lives in order not to serve or worship any god except their own God…”

We serve the same God of Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego. There is no other god who can save like our God. May we never stop praying to our God in praise and thanksgiving!