Devotions

As the book of Daniel is ramping up into future and end-time prophecy, we come upon Daniel Chapter Seven. As Daniel sees the vision and asks questions about the four beasts and kingdoms that would come upon the world scene, there is a recurring theme that is repeated at least four times in this chapter. That theme is that all this evil happens, until He (the Ancient of days) comes, and sets things in order, destroying the wickedness and replacing it with His everlasting, indestructible Kingdom.

I think that this should be the theme of any person's life:

• Until He Came - I was lost in my own wickedness. But He saved my soul when I called on Him.
• Until He Came - I had no power over my sin nature. But as I yield to the Holy Spirit, He changes my nature to be more like Christ.
• Until He Came - I had no direction in life. But as I seek Him daily, He guides me through studying and hearing the preaching of the Word.
• Until He Came - I had no hope for the future. But now I know that Jesus Christ is our Blessed Hope, and I look for His coming in the clouds to snatch us away before the tribulation.

Whether it be the things of the past, the things that I face today, or the things of the end times, there is no need to fear, when I focus on Him.

Daniel 7:21-22 "I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them; (22) Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom."

"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him." (Psalm 34:8)

1. O TASTE AND SEE – if I want to experience the goodness of God, I need to take action. These are action words – taste and see – in the sense that God’s goodness is available to be taken into my life, but like sitting down before a meal, I need to pick up a spoon and fork and dig in. I can do that by digging into the Word of God, spending time in prayer, hearing the preaching of God’s Word in my local church as much as possible, and applying what I learn to my life as the Holy Spirit instructs me.

2. THAT THE LORD – It's all about the Lord. Sometimes I can miss the goodness of the Lord by being distracted by other “good things.” One time, when I was in high school, I went to a youth activity of some kind, and we were having a meal. We had some vegetables that some of us brought and some french fries and chicken that we bought from McDonald’s. And then we got a whole bunch of dips – every different kind of dip that McDonald's had. And we went to drenching every french fry, carrot stick, and chicken strip, in various dips. One of my mentors who was there that night said something to me that I have often thought of since. He said, “I doubt you really know what food tastes like – you really only know what the dips taste like!” In context of our verse, I wonder how many of us really know how “the Lord tastes,” as opposed to Christian programs, movies, friends, fellowships, and traditions. If I want to experience the Goodness of the Lord, I need to get alone with God and do what it takes to remove distractions.

3. IS GOOD – This is an absolute statement concerning the very character of the Lord. He IS GOOD. It is not dependent upon circumstances. It is the nature of God that He is good. Even if I have the wrong perspective about it, it does not change the fact that God is good. However, if I will take the steps necessary to remove distractions and trust God, I can experience His working in my life and be blessed by the goodness of the Lord.