Episode 66 - The Daniel Series: Fear Gives Way To Praise

In this episode, we reflect on Daniel 2:19–23, where a king’s ultimatum and a sleepless night lead to a transformative prayer that shows praise as a powerful response to fear and pressure. We explore how Daniel’s focus of seeking God, waiting, and praising before and after the breakthrough provides an encouragement to us when facing uncertainty, leadership challenges, and personal crises. Emphasizing God’s sovereignty over all things, we learn to release fear of people and trust the One who governs darkness and light. Practical and pastoral, the conversation encourages reaching out to community for support, embracing gratitude in the “midnight hour,” and finding peace through Scripture and prayer. If you’re seeking steady hope within your struggle, this episode offers encouragement and invites you to connect with HealingStrong’s resources and community for ongoing support.

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Transcript

Setting The Story And Stakes

SPEAKER_00 0:01

When we praise God and we remind ourselves who God is, that He is above all, that He is the one that puts people into power and takes them out of power. He's the one that gives life and takes life. The devil can't do that. Nobody can do that.

SPEAKER_02 0:19

Well, hi there. My name's Cheryl, and you are listening to Healing Strong's Around the Word. We are a group of friends sitting around the table that love God's word and we love digging deep into it. So each day you're gonna hear me reading a Bible passage. And then you're gonna hear us discussing it. And we hope you feel like you are at the table too.

Reading Daniel 2:19–23

SPEAKER_02 0:39

Today we are continuing the book of Daniel, and we're talking about answered prayer that you see in this story right here. We're studying Daniel chapter 2, verses 19 through 23. So join us around the Word. Daniel 2, verses 19 through 23. During the night, the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said, Praise be to the name of God forever and ever. Wisdom and power are his.

SPEAKER_01 2:46

The mystery. The next

Praise Before The Breakthrough

SPEAKER_01 2:48

two words. How many people have something going on in their lives that they don't have a clue what's happening? It's a mystery. During the night, the mystery was revealed. Okay, Mary.

SPEAKER_00 2:59

Sorry to interrupt you. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven and said, Praise be to the name of God forever and ever. Stop there.

SPEAKER_01 3:10

Let's remember the setting. They're in fear of their lives. The king said, If you can't do this, I'm gonna kill you. Okay. If you can't tell me what my dream was and interpret it. So there's a lot of pressure on him, a lot of stress. And what does Daniel do? He begins to praise. Yes. Praise. Be to the name of God forever and ever. The name of God. And we know there are many names of God, but praise be to the name of God forever and ever. Wisdom and power are his. So that's important to remind us. Just declare, it's not that God needs to be reminded of that. Angie needs to be reminded of that. Praise be to the name of God forever and ever. Wisdom and power are yours, Lord.

SPEAKER_02 3:56

I also love this praise too in this prayer time because he was doing it with his friends. He had a serious situation. By the way, they were probably hunkering down with him. The people were coming out to execute at that point. So they were probably in hiding when this happened. And they gathered together, and their first thing is, we're going to pray. And then he reveals the interpretation, and now they're

God’s Sovereignty Over Kings And Time

SPEAKER_02 4:22

praising.

SPEAKER_01 4:22

But he Daniel's saying, Lord, you change times and seasons. You set up kings and you depose them. You give wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. You reveal deep and hidden things. You know what lies in darkness and light dwells within you. And then Daniel turns to the Lord again and says, I thank and praise you, O Lord, of my God of my fathers. You have given me wisdom and power. You have made known to me what we ask of you. You have made known to us the dream of the King. So when we acknowledge his attributes and his powers, then it reverberates back on us and the glory is reflected back on us. And that's the result then to us. That's our super source. He provides that to us. He turned around and gave it right back to Daniel. And so I think God is looking up there saying, you know, he's saying, You're right, Daniel. You're exactly right. All those things you said about me, they are true, and you are mine. Boom. I'm just going to reflect it back on you. So all of a sudden, Daniel and those had they had wisdom, they had power, they were made known what the king had dreamed.

SPEAKER_00 5:39

And fear was taken away. He says, he sets up kings and deposes them. When we praise God and we remind ourselves who God is, that he is above all, that he is the one that puts people into power and takes them out of power, he's the one that gives life and takes life. The devil can't do that. Nobody can do that.

SPEAKER_02 6:02

Right.

Light In Darkness And Courage

SPEAKER_02 6:03

So many times we sometimes are so fearful of people in authority and we don't realize they ultimately come under God's authority. If he can set up and depose anybody uh, you know, in your life, then there is no reason to fear.

SPEAKER_00 6:25

So he always, I mean, over and over and over, how many it's probably the most stated.

SPEAKER_01 6:30

Do not be afraid because of who he is and who you are in him.

SPEAKER_02 6:37

And I also love for this me for me personally, he knows he knows what lies in darkness.

unknown 6:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:44

It's I think we feel like it's all surprise that sometimes, or God's too big and he doesn't care about my situation because he's got the world to run. And I'm like, no, even in my what I care about, what's keeping me up at night in the dark, he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him. There is no darkness around the Lord. I hope that encourages you if you find yourself in kind of a midnight hour like Daniel and his friends did. I love, first of all, that he surrounded himself. He went to his friends.

Don’t Go Alone: Pray With Friends

SPEAKER_02 7:18

He went and he prayed. That was his go-to. It wasn't just having a freakout session. He went to his friends to pray together collectively. There's strength in numbers. There's that verse, a chord of three strands is not easily broken, or something like that. I'm paraphrasing. But anyway, that's a powerful, powerful reminder to you. Don't go it alone in your battle, in your fire. Bring people into your situation to pray with you. Even if it's those late hours of the night where you don't know what to do, call someone up, text them, get someone praying with you right now. It's very important to do that. Do not go alone. The enemy wants you to feel like you have no resources, that you don't have anybody in your fire. And that's simply not the case. God is there. He is for you. He is an ever-present uh help in your time of need. So sit with that thought for a minute, because I know that's kind of deep. And thank you so much for joining us for Healing Strong's Around the Word podcast. I hope that that episode really did encourage you today to get those friends and call them up. Even if you're not in a bad uh spot right now, at least you can be growing together with some people in your faith. Don't go it

Encouragement And Community Resources

SPEAKER_02 8:35

alone. If you'd like to learn more about Healing Strong, take a second, check out our website, healingstrong.org, where you can find resources, support groups, and other ways to connect on your healing journey. And if these podcasts have encouraged or blessed you in any way, would you consider making a donation at healingstrong.org slash donate? Your tax-deductible gift truly makes a difference. Because when people give, thousands of people every month discover a place of education, support, and hope, no matter the progress or diagnosis. And together, we believe we can heal stronger. And your support is what makes that happen. So thank you. And remember, I'll leave you with this. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.