Winter is here in the Gorge, I think, officially.  Weather is foggy, moist and making you want some real winter – snow with the sun shining off it.  The wind blows here all the time – except when it is very hard and the breeze would be a relief and when it is exceptionally foggy where it could blow it away!

So, I baked a pie!  Frozen berries from our garden to help remind us that we really do like it here........even in foggy weather.

All the animals are hunkered down, inside.  Nice and warm, and dry.

Starting to feel better after this last go round at the hospital.  My mind still fuzzes up, though and it is hard to concentrate more than a few minutes -- still haven’t got my thank you cards written – not to mention Christmas cards.  Have to get it done, but just can’t focus on it yet.

I did get a very nice card signed by the nurses that cared for me, what a positive uplifting thing for me.  I really appreciated it!  

Daniel 2:17-19 Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions:

¹⁸ That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

¹⁹ Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.

An exciting book, Daniel.  In the case above, the King had a dream that disturbed him, greatly.  But having awakened he could only remember how he felt, not what the dream was and he really wanted to know.  We’ve all been there, that feeling of dread, but can’t remember why.

He called for his advisors, all the ‘wise men’ of his kingdom and asked them to first tell him what the dream was and then interpret it.  They couldn’t do it, they said no one could do it only the ‘gods’ could do it – verse 11 And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.   And of course they could not turn to any, since they had no ‘gods’ that were in fact God.

Upset, the King decided to kill them all, the captive children of Judah included.  Daniel took exception to this and asked for an audience with the King.

He then went back home and the four men prayed that Daniel would be given the dream and interpretation – which was given to him by God.

Verses 25-28 Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.

²⁶ The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?

²⁷ Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king;

²⁸ But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and the visions of thy head upon thy bed, are these;

Daniel made it very much known that he was able to give the dream and interpretation, ONLY because God had given it to him.  The King obviously recognize the dream after Daniel told him what it was, he accepted the interpretation and placed Daniel in charge of all the men of ‘wisdom’ in the kingdom.

Daniel was a great man of God; he was faithful to God and to His commandments.  He never wavered.  He had faith in God and knew that God would direct him.

So how can we become like Daniel?  How can we have the great faith that Daniel possessed and was able to not only keep himself and his people safe, but proclaim the truths of God at the same time?  Is it even possible for us to attain that kind of faith and commitment to God?  Can we have that kind of wisdom where we can deal with others in such a manner that they see the truth, God’s truth?  Can we have that gift of wisdom?

The gift comes from God.  It comes with hard work of studying His Word; listening to Him in prayer; meditating on His Word and allowing Him to reveal Himself to us. 

James 1:4-6 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

⁵ If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

⁶ But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.

Faith, in faith we believe that Jesus died for our sins.  We have faith that through Him we will be with God – and Him – throughout eternity.  That same faith, derived of the truth given to us through His Word and His people, should allow us to grow – in even more faith and to reach out and ask for His guidance.

Colossians 1:23 If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven;

We are grounded in the faith.  We may not be as famous as those that are named in His Word, but that does not mean we cannot be effective in our everyday life in living for Him. 

We need to stand fast in our beliefs, in our knowledge that God is God, Jesus is His only begotten Son, who like God the Father always was and always will be – equal with God, and while we may not fully understand how God works in three persons – our faith in Him tells us it is true.

God had given us so many things to help bolster our faith.  As Daniel studied and applied God’s Word to his heart and life in order to serve Him, so must we apply God’s Word to our heart and then live for Him.

Daniel had faith in God; he believed that GOD had given him the dream and interpretation.  He didn’t ask, ‘God is this really from you?  How can I know?  What will happen if I am wrong?’

He knew it was from God because of his relationship with God; then acted on that belief, in faith, and in so doing saved many lives and was placed in a powerful position that allowed him to influence lives and the policies of the King.

Using Daniel as an example we can do similar things and help others find God and make Jesus their personal Savior.  The wisdom, the faith is there for the asking and then the acceptance.  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.   We but have to believe in God and have faith that He is there for us to make a difference in our world.

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again