This vision of the 2,300 sacrifices, evening and
morning, is accurate but confidential.
Keep it to yourself. It refers to the far future. I, Daniel, walked around in a daze, unwell for days. Then I got a grip on myself and went back to work taking care of the king's affairs. But I continued to be upset by the vision. I couldn't make sense of it.
Keep it to yourself. It refers to the far future. I, Daniel, walked around in a daze, unwell for days. Then I got a grip on myself and went back to work taking care of the king's affairs. But I continued to be upset by the vision. I couldn't make sense of it.
Unwell—the New American Standard Bible translates this as exhausted and sick. This was such a powerful vision that it literally made Daniel sick. When was the last time that you were so stressed by something that you felt sick? I know people who have such high stress levels that it has given them autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia. Stress is a killer. There was a PBS movie, “Killer Stress” made by National Geographic in 2008 discussing research by Robert Sapolsky that shows how chronic stress is threatening to our lives.
One of the things that typifies stress is worry or anxiety.
The Bible tells us about people with stress—like Elijah, who ran away to a hiding place by the brook Cherith when
he was stressed. Jesus taught his disciples in Luke 12:22-26 (NASB), “For this reason I say to you, do not worry
about your life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you
will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider
the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and
yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! And which of
you by worrying can add a single hour to his life's span If then you cannot do
even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters?” He also
said, “So do not worry about tomorrow;
for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own”,
Matthew 6:34(NASB)Paul wrote, Be anxious
for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let
your requests be made known to God, (NASB), Philippians 4:6.
What good advice…don’t worry, be happy. I can imagine that
if someone had given Daniel that advice, he would not have been happy! Stress
is a real thing—but learning to relax and give things to the Lord is good, too.
Some extenuating circumstances just can’t be changed overnight, but worrying
won’t change them either. Can you relax and give some of your stress to the
Lord? For several years I’ve tried to live by the phrase, “Don’t sweat the
small stuff…and most things are small stuff.” It doesn’t help others when I
shrug my shoulders, and give it to the Lord, but releasing that “small stuff”
and not stressing is good for all of us. Rest assured that Jesus loves you and
cares about even the little details of our lives…even when we don’t feel like
He cares—He does. He promised that He will never leave or forsake us and I
claim that promise every day. Can you?
Lord Jesus, thanks for caring about the small details in our lives and
for loving us so much that You actually died on the cross for us.
© 2012 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.
Scripture from The Message, except where noted.
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