Devotional for December 20th
He sets people free and saves them. He does miraculous signs and wonders. He does them in the heavens and on the earth. He has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.
Daniel 6:27
PAUSE: Things had really changed for the people of Israel. They had been taken from their home and were now living in Babylon as slaves to the king. But God had not forgotten about them. Daniel was one of God’s hard-working children. The king trusted Daniel so much that he put him in charge of the kingdom. This made the other men who helped the king jealous of Daniel. They tried very hard, but the king’s helpers could not find any fault in Daniel. They became very angry and came up with a plan to get rid of Daniel. They went to King Darius and told him that he should make a law that everyone in the kingdom should pray only to him. The law would state, “Anyone who does not follow King Darius’ command will be thrown into the lion’s den to be eaten by lions.” The king agreed and made the law. But Daniel believed in God and refused to pray to anyone other than God. The king’s helpers saw Daniel praying to God and reminded King Darius of the consequence for anyone who prayed to God rather than the king.
So the king had to give the order to put Daniel in with the lions. They put a large rock over the door to close off the mouth of the den to ensure Daniel could not get out. The next morning, King Darius went to see if Daniel was alive. He heard Daniel cry out, “My king, God sent his angel to close the mouths of the hungry lions. They did not hurt me.” Daniel was alive! The king was overjoyed. King Darius punished the men who tricked him by putting them and their families into the lion’s den. Then he wrote a letter to the world saying that the God of Daniel was the living God and God’s kingdom would never be destroyed. Because of God’s power in saving Daniel, many people came to believe and honor God that day. One day soon, God would send Jesus to die on the cross and save us all from the dark den of sin.
PRAY: Thank you, God for blessing and protecting us. Please help us to put our trust and faith in You each and every day. Please help us to love and worship You above anything else. Amen.
FAMILY ACTIVITY: Make a lion cookie! You will need a cookie, popcorn, yellow icing, and black gel icing. First, ice your cookie. Let the children put popcorn all around the edge to make the mane. Help them draw a face and whiskers using the black gel icing. Eat and enjoy!
