When was the last time you felt God telling you to get a grip and see what is really important?
“Probably at least three times yesterday. The later I am the more compelled I feel to make sure everything is just right, and I left here or Dana’s in a hurry 5 – 10 minutes late three times.”
Spiritual maturity is rarely more obvious than in our ability to discern the difference between true peril and a gnat in our lip gloss.
As you consider our times, what is the desire of your own heart?
“I try to want all of those noble traits, but deep down I really just want to have fun.”
God will show each of us individual ways we can join Him in His work in our times, but He will use Daniel today to show us the first thing on our list. Reread Daniel 9:1-3. What did Daniel do after he realized the 70 years could be coming to an end? (See v. 3)
“He turned to God and pleaded with Him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.”
We tend to pray when we don’t know what else to do.
Pray when we don’t know what to do! Pray when we do! Pray, pray, pray! 
The ninth chapter of Daniel is home to one of the most powerful prayers in the Old Testament. Please read Daniel 9:3-19 and document words or phrases that fall under these three headings.
| God’s faithfulness | Israel’s sins | Expressions of Daniel’s urgency |
| “keeps His covenant (4)” | “we have sinned (5)” | “pleaded with Him (3)” |
| “God is merciful and forgiving (4)” | “we have not listened (6)” | “great disaster (12)” |
| “(God’s judgment was faithful as well) (11 & 12)” | “shame… unfaithfulness (7)” | “disaster (13 & 14)” |
| “brought people out of Egypt (15)” | “we have sinned against You (8)” | “anger and… wrath (16)” |
| “all Your righteous acts (16)” | “rebelled (9) not obeyed (10) sinned (15)” | “desolate sanctuary (17) desolation (18)” |
| “righteous… great mercy (18)” | “sins and iniquities (16)” | “listen!… forgive! (19)” |
Give an example [of what you would say to God in response] of your own:
“If I see a new insight/a new layer in a passage, thank Him and maybe pause to discuss it a bit (e.g., the recurring references to an adulterous woman in Proverbs has far more meaning to me when viewed as the temptress Babylon from sessions 1-6)”
Dearest Rachel –
For all that these daily homework assignments didn’t give you much room for your voice (and in any event, you were usually scrambling to fill everything in on the day before – or of – your weekly study sessions), there are almost always a question or two where you display flashes of your personality in them, even as the lessons you describe as having learned border on the universal. Consider how, in the midst of your last-minute preparations, you find yourself sensing God telling you to slow down and remember what’s truly important – even if it was only a matter of making sure everything was copacetic at home before leaving. Give yourself credit for that honey – by comparison, will leave a place without giving it a moment’s thought anymore (and for that matter, I used to tease you about your constant “one more thing” as we would try to go anywhere).
And to think I complain about not hearing from God; no “Arthur, King of the Britons” moments. That’s not how He generally communicates, but if I can’t be bothered to listen for the “still, small voice,” it’s not like He’s going to hit me upside the head.
Meanwhile, even as I could hear Cyndi Lauper’s voice as I transcribed your next response, I certainly remember and can confirm regarding your love of fun and preference for the easy path in life. Although, I don’t see any reason to be ashamed of that – just the fact that it was a pop song at one time should serve as evidence that this isn’t a characteristic unique to you. On the other hand, compared to me, you had a more elastic definition of what constituted ‘fun,’ or were just able to make even some of the more onerous tasks in life fun in a way that I never could (and still can’t – most of things I do in your absence are merely tolerable necessities, done because they have to be, and because I find any joy in doing them. Then again, that may be a much stricter standard of ‘fun’ and ‘joy’ than you would have applied).
As for your last comment about finding new insight or meaning in a passage, well… I guess that’s what these letters are for, honey. While I can’t physically talk with you about these things anymore (and to be honest, you’d probably be embarrassed that I’m going over them at all, let alone in front of the whole world like this), I think they need to be shared when they’re encountered. Think about it; if you or I are struck with a “huh, I never thought about that” response despite our regular perusals of His letter to us, how much more so might someone reading over your shoulder – who isn’t nearly as familiar with the material – respond?
With that being said, I hope you can forgive me for setting these things out for others to read over your shoulder. Maybe interacting with scripture, even in such a roundabout way – combined with the insights conveyed by either of us – will get them to think about such matters, too.
Letters to Rachel 