Meeting 6/4/11

Been reading through Daniel this week.  Seems one major point is that our God is sovereign in all circles of this world.  That is a good truth to hold on to, but it requires a lot of faith when dealing with people within those circles.  It gets messy, doesn't it?  Daniel and his friends stuck together and stood up for what they believed in, despite ridicule and persecution.  For God's purposes, He delivered them through tragedies and promoted them within their circles.  I'm sure they must have faced morale struggles with their administration and government policies.  I'm sure they had few close friends that truly understood them and unified with them.  Yet they hung in there to the end.  At one point, the first king, after he had gone insane, eating with the wild animals, regained his sanity and his kingdom, and turned from his ways to follow the Lord.  The next thing we hear is from the king's son, 22 years later.  The queen recommends Daniel to help the situation.  So Daniel is still renowned for his discipleship.  This is a guy that stuck with it to the end.  He allowed the Lord to write His legacy to the end of his life.  This is remarkable and encouraging to me.  It is a good message for the Firefighters for Christ in that we need to stick together, keep meeting together, keep encouraging each other, and continue to the end, finishing our race.  This ministry is not intended to fade away like a new car smell.  It is appointed by God Himself to make a positive difference in this department and its members families.