Daniel and God’s Dreams

Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said:
“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his.
He changes times and seasons; he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.
He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors:
You have given me wisdom and power, you have made known to me what we asked of you, you have made known to us the dream of the king.”
-Daniel 2:20-23

Happy New Year!  As we change the calendar we look with hope for what exciting adventures await us.  We have dreams for this year.  God has dreams for us, too.  God reveals his plans and hopes for us when we seek first His kingdom.

Daniel was given the gift of interpreting the dreams of the king of Babylon.  He understood that God was more powerful than any king or ruler of this earth.  Daniel was also thrown into the lion’s den for continuing to pray faithfully to God.  God protected Daniel and watched over him.

In our lives, we make plans and some of them are fulfilled during the year.  Others lay by the wayside as we face unforeseen obstacles or new opportunities arise.  May we continue in prayer, like Daniel, to seek God’s work and God’s will in the world.  Let’s be open to the dreams God is calling us in this New Year.

God of all gods, Master of all kings, we have dodged your call and detoured from your path so much that we are often lost and cannot hear you. We deny dreams of your kingdom come, your will done by rebuilding ruins with relics. Our exile from you means a nightmare of struggling with others. Forgive our self worship and reveal the mystery of the dream you have for us.  Give us your vision for this New Year.  Amen.