In Daniel 2, the Babylonian king issued a death order. Since some of his “wise men” couldn’t tell him his dream or it’s interpretation, he wanted to kill them all. Yikes! It was literal insanity.

Since Daniel and his friends were among the class of wise men, they too were in danger. After learning what was happening, this is what we read in Daniel 2:17-19: “Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night.”

Something very important happens here: Daniel and his friends pray as a first resort (not just as a last resort). They “seek mercy from the God of heaven…”

Think about how intense and stressful this would have been. At this point, Daniel is most likely 18 years old, perhaps 20. He and all of the other wise people in Babylon are about to have their heads cut off. But Daniel makes an appointment with the king to tell him the dream and its interpretation—even before he knows what it is or what he is going to say! (verse 16) This says something significant about the gigantic trust he has in God.

We can learn from this.

How often do we pray as a last resort? When confronted with a problem or big decision, we plan and plod and ponder. Only eventually do we bring it to God—acting as if we need to think through every angle on our own before speaking to God about it.

But if God is good, holy, wise, loving and true, why wouldn’t we go to him first?

Let’s learn from Daniel. When confronted with problems or decisions, or even simply as we navigate modern day-to-day life, let’s pray—as a first resort.

Notes:

-Bible quotes are from the ESV.