The Daniel Prayer
Notes
Transcript
Preparing for Prayer
Preparing for Prayer
Over the past year or so we have really learned a lot about prayer and I don’t think we can ever stop learning when it comes to our communication with God.
Prayer is so important in the lives of a christian. There is no way for us to grow in our relationship with God without it.
I want us to take 5 weeks and dig even deeper into this most important part of our Christian life.
I want us to look at what we can call the Daniel prayer. Daniel was a praying manno doubt and as we look at his prayer life I hope and pray that we can apply some things we learn in our own prayer life.
I want us to look at:
Daniel’s Preparing in prayer
Daniel’s Prompting in prayer
Daniel's Pleading in prayer
Daniel’s Prevailing in prayer and
Daniel’s battling in prayer
So this morning we are going to start with Daniel’s preparing in prayer.
The Daniel prayer is one that is unique, requires commitment and that requires us to be prepared.
We learn from the example of Daniel’s prayer. At this time we are going to be looking at Daniel he was living in Jerusalem at the time.
He was 14-15 years of age when his nation Judah came under God’s judgement. God sent the Babylonians to attack Jerusalem and in that first attack Daniel was captured along with hundreds of others.
They were marched 800 miles east and was kept in slavery by King Nebuchadnezzar.
At that very moment everything about Daniel’s life was changed. His culture, his customs, his language, his clothes everything that he ever knew was changed.
Think about that if the same thing happened to us today and you were captured and taken to Russia, China. Doesn't really matter just somewhere that was foreign to you.
It would be pretty messed up right you would have nothing you are familiar with.
Daniel’s life was turned upside down and everything changed except one thing and that was his devotion to God.
we will see here that prayer was the core of Daniel’s life it was at the center of his life.
We are going to look at Daniel 6:10 but I want you to understand where Daniel was at now. At this point Daniel was serving under the 3rd Persian Emperor.
He was serving as Prime Minister and the enemies hated Daniel they wanted to destroy him. So they came up with this plan that anyone who prayed to any other God other than the Emperor himself would be thrown in the lion’s den.
That is what is going on now. Daniel knew what was taking place here so let’s look at V-10.
Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
Notice there at the end the word aforetime. That means as he had done before. So this was not a one time deal for Daniel this was something he was costumed to doing. It was a habit in his life.
We are going to just look at this one verse and I want us to notice how Daniel prepared to pray.
Daniel had a prepared place to pray
Daniel went to a specific place he went to his house to pray.
It is very important that we have a specific place that we know that we can go, where there are no distractions and where we can just focus on talking to God.
In that prepared place you may have some specific things at that location. May want a bible there, glasses there, pen and paper there.
If that prepared place is at your house in a certain room and you go to that prepared place to pray and you don't have what you need there, you may get up go get glasses and see that you need to sweep the floor or feed the dog then get distracted.
It is very important that we have a specific place to talk with God and have everything you think you may need or not need in that place. Like a cell phone. Will never fail when you start to pray I promise it will ring or you will get a text. No TV.
If it is not your house, may be your car, may be your office, may be the church, there is no reason you cant come to the church and go to the alter, go to SS room.
If you don’t have that prepared place today start working on that get you a prepared place to meet with the Lord.
2. Daniel had a prepared time.
We know the bible tells us to pray without ceasing and that we should do throughout the day. But what I am telling us this morning is that we need to have a prepared place and a prepared time.
The bible tells us that Daniel prayed 3 times a day. Now I do and I know that God understands that you may not be able to make it to your prepared place 3 times a day.
But let me suggest something to you. If at all possible come up with a specific time where you know that you can get alone with God.
With the majority of the people the best time is the early morning hours. If you have kids before you have to get them ready for school, if you have to get ready for work get up plenty time before you need to be gone.
It doesn't matter how busy we are we can set a time aside.
In the bible we see over and over that there was a time and those times were usually in the early morning hours.
I believe that is important because we can start the day off on the right track. Before we get distracted by everything we have to do or that comes up unexpected through out the day.
God called Moses up to Mt. Sani early in the morning, he called Joshua early in the morning, David met with God early in the morning and most importantly remember what Jesus would do.
After his rough days ministering, healing people, teaching people even after those hard days the bible tells us he would get up early in the morning to pray.
And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.
See the time Jesus prayed, but also notice he had a prepared place. a Solitary place.
If prayer was that important for Jesus in the morning how much more important should it be for us.
I am not saying it has to be morning its just an idea. It could be at lunch time for you, late in the evening when everyone is sleeping. I just feel that it is much better to start your day off with prayer.
3. Daniel prepared an atmosphere
Daniel had his windows open towards Jerusalem. Jerusalem was 800 miles away but what that tells me is that Daniel still had a longing in his heart for his home.
I am sure he never stopped missing home. I am sure he missed the place where he worshipped the true God freely the God of Abraham, Jacob and Issac and now he was in a country where they were worshipping pagan God’s.
Daniel created that atmosphere by opening up his windows towards Jerusalem it reminded him of the one true God and his longing for home.
We need to be opening up our windows of our heart towards home also. Our heavenly home know that this life is not all their is. One day we are going to our true home.
Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;
For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding.
These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
This world is not my home I m just a passing through my home is laid up somewhere beyond the blue.
Your atmosphere may not be opening your windows, it may be playing some great christian music as you pray, it may be in the dark, may be in the light, just make sure you prepare an atmosphere that will also lead into this next thing and that is.
4. Daniel prepared his attitude
Notice that Daniel Got down on his knees to pray. There is just something about bowing down on your knees to God.
I am not and God has never said that we have to be on our knees to pray. But there is just something special about doing that.
I have noticed the older we get t he harder that is to do but I still try and do it when ever possible.
There was something I read in the commentary about this specifically and it gave the example that when we get on our knees to pray it is also an acknowledgement that we are bowing our hearts to God.
If we are going to pray the Daniel prayer that we are studying now. We have to prepare an attitude of worship and submission to God.
Next time you pray make sure our attitudes are in line and prepared to talk to God.
Notice the last part of that verse that has to do with part of his attitude and that was an attitude of thankfulness. “ gave thanks before his God”
Think of all that Daniel has been through, he was captured as a teenager, separated from his family and friends, dragged off to a Pagan country, under the authority of a cruel emperor.
He was stripped of everything he knew, his name was changed to honor a pagan god, his clothes was changed, they tried to change his food, his life was threatened over and over, he was always a slave.
But no matter what his circumstances were he found reason to be grateful and thank God.
He cultivated and attitude of Gratitude.
What about you are you thankful no matter what is going on in your life.
One way we can always give thanks is not look at God through the lens of our circumstances but to look at our circumstances through the lens of God’s love and his purpose.
Examine our attitudes and make sure when we go to the Lord in prayer that we are going to him with the attitude of worship and gratitude no matter what the circumstances are.
We need to make the commitment to pray until heaven is moved and nations are changed.
To pray in this way we have to prepare to pray.
So starting today will you prepare a place, a time, an atmosphere and your attitude.
