Daniel 9:18 Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.
We live in an age where egos are boosted and personalities coddled. We give stars for attendance and awards for participation. We eliminate grades and pass everyone, regardless of proficiency. And this is just with our children!
We put bumper guards and rubber chips in playgrounds so that there is no possibility for our children to learn the consequences of ignoring gravity. We bundle them in carseats (a pretty good thing) and are quick to pick them up when they fall down (maybe a good thing). We step in and rescue them when they mess up at school, blaming the teachers, the school, the district, the federal government policies, anything that prevents our kids from the negative consequences of their actions (NOT a good thing). And this is just our teenagers!
We blame things from our past, even the distant past, for current problems rather than owning our part and making changes that move us forward. We focus on the scholarship we didn’t get rather than the job we did get. We see the world three quarters empty rather than half full.
It can be difficult to get a clear assessment of the current circumstances, no matter where you live in whatever year. But humans were never meant to have to make this type of assessment by themselves. We were never meant to compare ourselves to each other, as though another human being should be the standard.
Human beings were designed, and are still, in the image of God. The bar is VERY high. And since the Fall, only One has met the standard. We are designed to see the LORD as our standard and live in such close connection to Him that our lives line up with His standards and priorities.
In our text, Daniel is praying for himself and his people. The LORD is giving him visions of the future, something that doesn’t happen very often, and these visions do two things. First they overwhelm him. He was exhausted.
The second outcome was a profound awareness of the sin and rebellion of His people. He owns it. There is no pointing of fingers. He throws himself on the mercy of the LORD.
The task to rebuild the city of Jerusalem is too great. The task of rebuilding the spiritual foundation of the people is too great. They need the new heart promised by the other prophets. They need a new start, a fresh approach.
And owning their failures is the first step in that process.
And it is the first step for us as well. Will you take that step today, right now?
The Arnold Journey 