Sleep
Nebuchadnezzar had a disturbing dream - one that left his mouth dry and his stomach unsettled. He knew that there was a message in it for him and he didn't want armchair philosophers sucking meanings from their thumbs. So he made an impossible demand: "Tell me my dream and what it means! (And if you don't, I'll have you executed)"So Daniel negotiated, asked for prayer and got an early night.
Was it Divine Intervention or a case of a good night's sleep?
I think it was a bit of both! When Daniel heard of the king's unreasonable demand and the impending across-the-board death penalty for failure, he took a couple of important steps.
1. He cashed in the goodwill and credit he had with the king and negotiated some extra time. We can do this when we have a track record of delivery, performance and integrity. Daniel could make the withdrawal because he had been making the deposits. We need to learn to negotiate when we are faced with unreasonable demands, but we have to build up the credit first!
2. He asked for prayer. This is a good thing to do. People are sometimes too proud to ask for help, but Daniel had the courage to ask his buddies to pray for him about what was essentially a work issue. Have you got a tough meeting tomorrow? Consider phoning a friend and saying: "Listen, I have a tough meeting tomorrow and I'd really appreciate it if you could spare a prayer for me."
3. He went to bed! There comes a time when we realise that we can't do everything and that we need to trust God. Daniel went to bed and he slept. You might argue that he went to bed because he had to dream Nebuchanezzar's dream, but we were told that Daniel could interpret dreams not dream them. I don't think that he knew that he would get the dream too - I think he just went to bed saying - "I don't know how God will do it, but I believe that He'll show me the way." Sometimes we lie awake for hours trying to solve things and yet if we would let go and "sleep on it," we might get more answers!
Sleep is a vital part of keeping our strength and sanity. Daniel had enough trust in God to go to bed even when he didn't have all the answers. Sleep is a significant act of trust: We close our eyes, surrender control and leave things in God's hands. While we sleep God works. More and more I am realising that a good night's sleep is a powerful weapon.
| At this, Daniel went in to the king and asked for time, so that he might interpret the dream for him. 17 Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. 18 He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 19 During the night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. (Daniel2:16-19) |
