Week 4: The Worth of Prayer

Scripture: Daniel 6: 10 NRSV

Although Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he continued to go to his house, which had windows in its upper room open toward Jerusalem, and to get down on his knees three times a day to pray to his God and praise him, just as he had done previously.

The Worth of Prayer

Many people do not take advantage of the opportunity to have communication with God, because of them not being connected enough to hear God communicate back with them. Rev. Dr. Marcus D. Cosby, Senior Pastor of Wheeler Ave Baptist Church in Houston, Texas; supported my argument with his statement “that the issue with the church is not unanswered prayers, but rather unuttered prayers.” Suggesting that Christian Believers are waiting on God to answer prayers that we have yet to pray. We speak to our friends because we can see their reactions, but the truth of the matter is that the people who we talk to are often people who we will later regret telling information to. We often have great expectation that God will deliver us from and keep us in the middle of things that we haven’t prayed about. The reality is that we don’t often depend on the power of prayer because we seem to have forgotten that it was through prayer that we were kept thus far along the way.

The bible lifts up many different passages that talk about prayer, and a few even dictate the prayers of the elders of the faith. Prayer is an important piece in the life of the believer, and I would argue that we cannot be successful in our pursuit of Heaven or relationship with God without prayer. The Hebrew writer describes them as our “Great Cloud of Witnesses”. These prayers have encouraged me and have called me to see the worth of prayer in all things. The prayers of these great people led to the deliverance and mighty move of God.

1.      Noah prayed before building the ark

2.      Abraham prayed before stepping out into new territory.

3.      Joseph prayed when he was in prison

4.      Moses prayed before confront Pharaoh

5.      Joshua prayed when he was getting ready to go to war

6.      Samson prayed before taking out the Philistine army

7.      Job prayed after experiencing the devil taunting him

8.      Hannah prayed for a child to be born through her barren womb

9.      Jonah prayed for forgiveness while in the belly of a Fish

10.  David prayed before pursuing the Amalekites

11.  Jeremiah prayed about a revelation for freedom

12.  The Disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray

13.  Jesus went into the Garden to pray

14.  Peter and John went to the temple to pray

15.  Paul and Silas prayed their way out of prison

16.  Paul even told the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing

17.  James reminded us that the prayers of the righteous availeth much

It is important for everyone  to put prayer into our daily practice, because if prayer could work for them, I’m sure that prayer will work for you! Our nation could benefit from prayer. We don’t have prayer in public school, schools are becoming more of a carnal place of education, our nation is in an uproar due to the decisions of its leadership, But If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Some places in our lives are falling apart because we don’t pray. Things are in an uproar because we don’t pray. Many of us have tried everything to fix our situations but prayer. Some of us even use prayer as a lifeboat, but to be honest prayer should not simply be a situation based resource. We should pray when things are good or bad; when we feel blessed and we feel stressed; when we are in plenty and lack; in sickness and in health. No matter the situation or the circumstance, we need to always remember to pray to the Lord our God. It is better for us to talk to God about everything than to talk to people about anything because God is a keeper of our every secret, will listen to our every concern, be there when we need him and help make us better. This can only be realized in an active prayer relationship with God, and an example of this is found in the text through the lens of our brother Daniel.

Daniel was clearly favored by God, and was admired by those in authority. How else would a (Black man) Jew receive recognition of power in a (White America) Persian/Babylonian controlled area? Because of who he was and where he had come from, he wasn’t supposed to be able to rise to power and succeed but God still favored. God looked passed the demographics and made ways for him. The thing about favor is that simply because someone really favors or likes you, you have to deal with the rough reality of someone else hating and having a great disdain for you. Without you accomplishing anything, without you doing anything, without you saying anything, without ever meeting them; there are people who don’t like you simply because God favors you; and the reality is that some of them don’t even know why. It may seem uncomfortable, and unappealing, but thanks be unto God that Greater is he that is in me than all the Haters that are in the World! I’d rather have the favor of God because the favor of man is temporal whereas the favor of God is eternal. That’s why the songwriter reminds us to Build our hopes on things eternal and Hold to God’s Unchanging Hand!

If we don’t know anything about Daniel, verse 10 gives us the understanding that Daniel’s routine is prayer. No matter where he is, what the situation, or even the law; Daniel finds value in prayer. Nothing in the world would cause Daniel not to pray. He had a regimen that included him opening his windows towards Jerusalem three times a day to pray. The King James Version of this text notes Daniel regimen of prayer as his custom. I would like for you to consider, what is your custom? What is the thing that you do on the regular? The thing you rehearse when all is well in your life. That thing you turn to for comfort when things aren’t working out like you wanted them to. What is your custom? Your custom is the place in which you hide the value of your life, and the issue with the church is that too many Christians no longer find worth in prayer. Too many of us don’t want to talk to God, don’t want to come to the altar, don’t want to boldly profess Christ, or make it our business to go against what is popular to do what is right. You, as a believer are a foreigner in this earth, so whatever your custom is, it should reflect where you belong and not where you currently are. Daniel tried to teach us that, by praying with his windows open towards Jerusalem, because he knew his home wasn’t Babylon but the City of our God. Although, we are only temporary residents, we need to bring our Heaven Culture to this hurting world and represent our God here until He brings us back home. It is important that we learn how to be more committed to where we are going, and begin to reflect the culture of where we wish to be, rather than letting the culture of where we are temporarily, infect and change us. Don’t let your posture in this place limit you to the heights of this place and not let you reach the place that God has prepared for you.

There Are Some Things Only Prayer Can Get You Into

We see this in the text, Daniel is chosen as President (other translations may say a Governor).  He is one of the three put in this position and could possibly have been the only one of Judaic descent. He was in a position that would prove the ability of the Jews and their God. Daniel had a weight on his shoulders and he carried it well. He was interpreting dreams, leading the people and most importantly, serving the Lord, his God. Some of us can relate to Daniel. Some of us are the first one in our families to go or finish college; or maybe are the first ones to make it out of your hometown; or maybe the first to get a good job; causing to be the glimmer of hope to someone who sees it all happening. Someone, somewhere is saying they can be the next president, governor, pastor, teacher, doctor, lawyer, businessman/woman and etc. because they are watching you. And I know that there are some of us who have always been responsible with money; always had great grades; always applied for jobs with the right credentials; and etc; but there are a few of us who haven’t and have still reaped benefits we didn’t deserve. It was prayer, that got you into the school when your GPA and Test Scores were below the mark. It was prayer that got you that job you didn’t qualify for.

It was prayer that put you in some rooms beyond your character and experience. It was prayer that elevated you before you deserved it. It was prayer that got you that recognition you didn’t deserve. It was prayer, and sometimes it wasn’t even our prayers, but the prayers of someone else on our behalf. These prayers will put you in some places that you would’ve never imagined or understood. Daniel was put in a highly-regarded leadership role in a country where he was supposed to be a captive. As a captive, he was supposed to be seen as worthless and as a peasant. He should’ve never amounted to anything. His future should have included death or further imprisonment, but because he was faithful to his God, God made a provision for him to be looked at as more than a slave or a captive. He was allotted opportunity in a place that shouldn’t have given him anything but agony. And, while Daniel is proving to be a blessed individual, there is an uncomfortable place that he has also inherited as a result of his prayerful devotion to God. It was Daniel's prayerful devotion to God which caused for him to put in a place which looked like a death sentence.

He was put into a place to where he was never to be seen again because of him defying the decree set by King Darius. King Darius signed a decree that said no one could pray to any other Deity or Persons but them. He got this idea from the Satraps as a part of their plan to get rid of Daniel. They didn’t like Daniel, and devised a plan to get rid of him. Now that they had the plan, and they knew Daniel’s custom; all they had to do was wait. Prayer literally got Daniel into this tough situation. The decree told him not to pray, and he still prayed. He knew that the consequence was death, but he still prayed. And what I like about this is that Daniel didn’t take a stance of praying quietly in a secret place. Daniel prayed boldly, with his windows open towards Jerusalem as was his custom. Daniel is trying to teach us a valuable lesson, He’s saying that when you know the worth of prayer you will sacrifice your life for it. To know that there is a tangible connection we can have with God, is worth dying for.

There Are Some Things Only Prayer Can Sustain You In

While Daniel’s position put him in a place where death could be his portion, God sustains him there. Have you ever been in a place where your practice of faith and prayer don’t match your current location? I can imagine that’s what Daniel was going through, his desire was to get back to Jerusalem, and to get back to serving and worshiping God. But instead he finds himself in a place of discomfort and a place where death was common. Have you ever been there? That uncomfortable place where you realize that all of your own efforts cannot get you out of this mess.

1.      You prayed for promotion, and got a pink-slip.

2.      You prayed for the provision and don’t have two pennies to rub together.

3.      You prayed for a blessing and got something that feels like a burden.

4.      You prayed for a happily ever after and got a Nightmare on Elm Street.

5.      You prayed for freedom and are living more in bondage.

6.      You prayed for sustenance to make it through the week and you gas light turns on before you finish praying.

7.      You prayed for good health and got another bad report.

8.      You prayed for peace and have chaos on every side.

9.      You prayed for meals to sustain you and you end up with an empty fridge.

These situations cause us to realize that only thing you could do is look up to heaven and begin to pray. Through prayer, we can see God’s hand at work and how God will bring us out of the places that we’ve gotten ourselves into. The reality of the matter is that we know Daniel is devoted to prayer, and we can’t see why God would allow this to happen to him. But the text is silent about Daniel’s time in the lion’s den. The text told us of his custom prior to the den and because that was his custom out of the den, I would argue that this was his custom in the den as well. The text doesn’t say that Daniel was complaining, or was afraid; but it does shed some light on a gentleman who was not an active prayer warrior, by the name of King Darius. King Darius, the one who signed and sealed the decree is afraid for Daniel’s life so much so that the King paces the floor for the entire night.  But Daniel knew the Lord could deliver him out of this as he had been a deliverer before.

There Are Some Things Only Prayer Can Deliver us From

            As soon as day broke, King Darius ran down to the lion’s den to see about Daniel. This confused me because it made me think of some thoughts that I had to consider. Whether there had been anyone who had ever survived the lion’s den prior to Daniel, to which the answer is no. Whether there was anything wrong with the lions in the den, and again the answer is no. There is no reason for the King to have believed that Daniel was alive other than Daniel’s devotion to his God. The king even stated in verse 19 that he hopes that Daniel’s God delivered him. They are some people who nearly caused your death that are rooting for your survival. King Darius was truly distressed, bothered about the possible death of Daniel but God had another plan. In verse 20, Daniel responds, Oh King live forever. Now, while you may not see the value of that statement, id like to suggest to you that I have never heard or known for a dead man to talk. Daniel was alive and well. The angel of the Lord had shut up the mouth of the lion and didn’t allow any harm to come to Daniel.

Daniel was delivered out of the place of death because he believed in the God he prayed to. I know you may have heard this story before and you thought you knew what this point was about, but I’d like to suggest there is more victory in this story than Daniel leaving the den alive and well. The true blessing in this text is the results of that deliverance. King Darius made a decree in verses 25-28 that told the people that all of the people in the land need for the fear and believe in the lord of Daniel because he delivers. I know you thought God forgot about you, I know you thought God didn’t look out for you; but if we can be honest and admit God delivered us when others could be delivered as well. You didn’t go through that situation for you, but so someone else could see God’s deliverance and believe in your God. That’s the worth of prayer, and that is also why we should always tell our testimonies of how God delivered us.

As a child, I remember having testimony services at church and having to listen to everyone testify about the goodness of God. Most of the testimonies had been told before because through living, people see more pieces of the story clearer later than they did during the situation. Sometimes I could tell the testimony of others because I had heard it so much. But one thing I knew for sure is that among the group gathered, there would be at least 5 people who would end their testimony with “those who know a word of prayer, please pray for me”. Primarily suggesting that everyone didn’t know how to get a prayer through, but I remember going to a church for someone else’s testimony service and hearing an older gentleman testify about God. This older man had such a compelling testimony, but I wanted to hear how he would end the testimony more than the story itself. He put a spin on the famous ending I had heard. He said “those who know a word and the worth of prayer, please pray for me”.  To this day that thing still blesses me because he realized that there is a value in prayer. Though all may not see the value, doesn’t decrease prayers value because prayer knows its worth. And:

1.      When we remember the worth of prayer, deadly things don’t bother us.

2.      When we remember the worth of prayer, we get delivered from places we should’ve never made it out of.

3.      When we remember the worth of prayer, people become regretful of how they treated

4.      When we remember the worth of prayer, your frenemies become your footstool.

5.      When we remember the worth of prayer, God will change the period to a comma.

6.      When we remember the worth of prayer, the things that had us bound must let us go

7.      When we remember the worth of prayer, freedom becomes your portion.

8.      When we remember the worth of prayer, the enemy gets defeated.

9.      When we remember the worth of prayer, the things that tried to kill you will die.

10.  When we remember the worth of prayer, the weeping ceases and morning comes.

11.  When we remember the worth of prayer, God’s name gets magnified.

12.  When we remember the worth of prayer, we begin to see God as our Friend.

There’s not a Friend like the lowly Jesus:

  No, not one! No, not one!

None else could heal all our souls’ diseases:

  No, not one! No, not one!

            Jesus knows all about our struggles;

  He will guide ’til the day is done:

There’s not a Friend like the lowly Jesus:

    No, not one! No, not one!