OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL
DATE: SATURDAY DECEMBER 23RD, 2023.
THEME: THE REVEALER OF CONCEALED THINGS
MEMORISE:
And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that I, the LORD, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel.
Isaiah 45:3
READ: Daniel 2:1-19
1 And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him.
2 Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king.
3 And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream.
4 Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation.
5 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill.
6 But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof.
7 They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation of it.
8 The king answered and said, I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, because ye see the thing is gone from me.
9 But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you: for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me, till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof.
10 The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king's matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean.
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.
12 For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.
13 And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain.
14 Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch the captain of the king's guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon:
15 He answered and said to Arioch the king's captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king? Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel.
16 Then Daniel went in, and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would shew the king the interpretation.
17 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.
MESSAGE:
Our Bible reading for today tells the story of a king who had a dream he couldn't remember on waking up. He summoned his wise men to tell him his dream and the interpretation, but they couldn't. This made the king angry and he ordered the killing of all the wise men in his kingdom. This order would have affected Daniel and his companions as well, so he quickly asked for some more time as he was confident that God would reveal the dream and it's interpretation to him. Daniel prayed with his companions and God revealed the king's dream with its interpretation to him. This made Daniel say in Daniel 2:21: "And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding".
I have good news for students reading this now: that particular subject that you find difficult is the one in which you will get a record-setting score, in Jesus'name. Every believer operating in any sphere of life needs God to reveal concealed things to him or her. In 2 Kings 6:9-20, Elisha was the saving grace of the king of Israel. If it wasn't for Elisha, the king would have run into the ambush set for him by the king of Syria.
If you are a politician or just someone in governance, you need to pray to God to always reveal concealed things to you. Business men also need
God to reveal concealed things about their respective businesses to them. In fact, God promised in Isaiah 45:3:
And l will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places, that thou mayest know that l, the LORD, which call thee by the name, am the God of Israel?
There are hidden riches in secret places that you need God to reveal to you. He could reveal such to you as an idea, but the moment you pursue it, you would discover great riches in it. A man with financial challenges prayed to God for help and the Lord told him to start making honey-coated peanuts. The man obeyed the Lord and now flies around in his own private jets.
PRAYER POINT
Father, please reveal great secret to me that will change my life for good in Jesus name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 John 1-5
AUTHOR: PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 22: SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER
1 Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
that calls me from a world of care,
and bids me at my Father's throne
make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief,
my soul has often found relief,
and oft escaped the tempter's snare
by thy return, sweet hour of prayer!
2 Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
the joys I feel, the bliss I share
of those whose anxious spirits burn
with strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
where God my Savior shows his face,
and gladly take my station there,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!
3 Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
thy wings shall my petition bear
to him whose truth and faithfulness
engage the waiting soul to bless.
And since he bids me seek his face,
believe his word, and trust his grace,
I'll cast on him my every care,
and wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!
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