BY BRUCE GREEN
RELIGION —
Last week we looked at the dilemma Daniel and his friends were in (1:1-7). This raises a question worth thinking about: What would we do if God called us to be a Daniel? What would we do if God called us away from our family and friends to be part of a situation where no one knew Him? That’s hard for us to get our head around because most of us (and qualify this any way you need to), have it fairly easy.
Yes, we have our share of problems and challenges — I’m not denying that. But when you think about it, most of what we have are prosperity problems. Is your job difficult or are there people hard to work with? That’s a prosperity problem — because you have a job. That’s a totally different situation than what faces people who despite their best efforts can’t find employment. You have a tough class at school or an exasperating professor? That’s a prosperity problem — because you have the opportunity to go to school. That’s radically different situation than what faces people without that option.
We don’t live in a war zone like Ukraine. We don’t live in Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban. We don’t live in a place where being a Christian means being persecuted. None of us are like the four men I read about who were fleeing Nigeria due to desperate circumstances. They stowed away on the rudder of a large tanker. It took them nearly two weeks to get to Brazil where they arrived barely alive from the lack of food and water. But they thought the trip worth it because they had no hope where they were.
Compared to these situations, we do have it easy. It’s okay to acknowledge that. There’s nothing to feel guilty about or apologize for. It’s where God has placed us. But we do have the responsibility to recognize a few things. We should acknowledge that God has blessed us. After all, it’s not a crime to be born on third base, but it is seriously wrong to think we got there by hitting a triple. We should also understand that we’ve been blessed that we might be a blessing. We haven’t been blessed so we can spend our time and energy trying to make our life easier and more comfortable — we should be seeking to help others with their burdens.
Finally, when the season arrives when we’re not as blessed, may we demonstrate some faith and maturity. Instead of going into a panic and asking everyone to pray that everything be restored to its status quo, what if we followed Paul’s example in Philippians 1? Paul is imprisoned, unsure whether he will get out. His prayer isn’t that God will sustain his life or set him free from prison. His passion is that he will have “sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death” (1:20). Now that’s a prayer request you don’t hear very often that needs to be at the top of every disciple’s list.
This is the kind of thinking God uses to change the world. This is the way Daniel and his friends approached their difficult circumstances and why they ended up as victors rather than victims.
Next week: At Work in Babylon
You can find more of Bruce’s writings at his website: a-taste-of-grace-with-bruce-green.com