"During the reign of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed; no one will ever conquer it. It will shatter all these kingdoms into nothingness, but it will stand forever." Daniel 2:44
"What's for dinner? What are we doing Sunday? Are we going to Disney this summer?" These are just some of the questions my youngest daughter throws at me on any given day. At breakfast she wants to know what's for dinner. Yesterday on the way to dance class she wanted to know if we were going to Disney this summer. Often when I do tell her the basic plans, she has follow up questions, like "well, how exactly is that going to go? how are we going to get there? who's going? what will we wear?" Honestly, sometimes it drives me nuts! But, I also understand her desire to know what the future holds.
Take a moment to make a prediction about your own future, as directed in the "Group Discussion" on page 16 of our study guide. (And I'm not talking about things you've already made plans for, like a vacation or a big celebration). Write it down & tuck it away to look at next year at this time. Have you ever done this before? How did you do at predicting your future? How do you think you will do now? Knowing the future, for certain, is out of our control. And that is scary!! I think that's what's behind my daughter's questions and my planning. I figure, if I can plan enough of my life, I will know what to expect and then the future won't seem so frightening. But is that really true? Obviously not!
Can you imagine if you knew the future? In Daniel 2:31-49 God reveals to Daniel that the King's dream IS the future. It's a bit of a puzzle, but once it is pieced together by God's words through Daniel, it is clear: God has shown King Nebuchadnezzar the future kingdoms and their fate. Unfortunately for the king, I don't think it was very comforting. Isn't that part of the point, though? We are not in control of the future: the world's future or our own. Knowing the future doesn't guarantee that it will be pleasant or easy going. Perhaps knowing the future could be even more frightening than not knowing it!
As you work through the study guide questions, remain focused on this passage and your reaction to what's going on in them. Since Daniel's 'future' is our 'past' it's easy to follow tangents and lose sight of the the impact of these verses. Questions 10 & 11 bring this mystical occurrence back into the realm of reality. The "Now or Later" section asks a very interesting question. After you've read & answered all the questions, I'd love to know what you think in response to that final thought.
I look forward to reading your thoughts and reactions to Daniel 2:31-49 and Chapter 3. Remember, if you are reading this in your e-mail, you need to follow this link to make a comment on the blog.
Your Partner in Ministry,
Shelly
"Kind words are like honey - sweet to the soul and healthy for the body." Proverbs 16:24
1 comment:
A recap of our discussion today:the general consensus was that we don't really want to know our future, because even though we may want to predict - wish for - only good things, we know that the future will bring both good and bad circumstances. After looking closely at the description and interpretation of the King's dream, we agreed that it seems to send mixed signals: the head of gold is valuable, but gold is a weak metal, the other metals in the statue are less valuable but are stronger. Normally the base of a statue is the strongest, but in this statue the feet (a mix of iron & clay) are the weakest. Then a super natural force cuts a rock from a mountain which destroys the statue & then covers the earth. It's no wonder the King was rattled and wanted an iinterpretation. Once again we see God providing for Daniel's well being by giving him the ability to tell the king his dream and it's meaning. This is just a very quick summary. If you were there this morning and want to add anything, please do. If you were not, but have something to add from your own study of Chapter 3 (Daniel 2:31-49) I'd love to read it!
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