WYATT EARP AND THE PROPHET ELIJAH - Part 2
“Then Elijah said to them, ‘I am the only one of the LORD’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire – he is God.’
“Then all the people said, ‘What you say is good.’”
I Kings 18:22-24

Elijah looked around the audience of false prophets and probably gave them a good laugh when he told them the odds. It was an 850 against 1 battle. Elijah was the only prophet of God standing on Mount Carmel that day, but consider what God can do through one who is willing to take a stand. Before the day ended, God’s power was going to be seen by all. The prophet of God challenged the prophets of Baal to choose a bull and prepare it, call on the name of Baal, and request that he send fire on the altar.
The prophets had first dibs. Elijah had given them the choice of an altar, a bull, and the wood they wanted to aid in their sacrifice. From morning till noon, they cried out to Baal to bring down fire from heaven on their offering, but no fire came. Dancing around the altar they continued to cry out, yet still no fire came. Elijah, seeing this parade of foolish worship, taunted them to shout louder. Was it possible that Baal may be away, or not able to hear them, or asleep, or traveling? And so they did scream louder, and slash their bodies as was the custom. But still, no reply was given by their god. Their antics went on till evening before Elijah stepped up to the plate.
Elijah took twelve stones and built an altar. He then dug a trench around it to hold about five gallons of water. After arranging the wood on the altar, he then cut the bull into pieces and placed them on the wood. Having done the exact same steps in the sacrifice as those serving Baal, Elijah went one step farther. At his command, water was poured not once, but three times over the sacrifice. By all accounts the wood was soaked and should have been too wet to even burn. Then Elijah lifted up a simple prayer.

“Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.”
I Kings 18:37

Elijah’s goal was not to gain a following for himself, but rather for God. The worship of other gods had tainted the people’s vision for the one true God. In my worship of my own body, and what felt right to me and eased my pain, I allowed my focus to retreat from God and become fixed on other things. I began to follow the ‘medicines’ the world offered instead of looking to God to meet my feelings of rejection, failure, and identity. And in no time at all, the person I had become did not come close to reflecting the person God was calling me to be. Elijah’s prayer was for me; that my heart may be turned back to God again. Crawford Loritts wrote,

“Biblically, to be holy is to be morally blameless. It means to be separated from sin and consecrated to God. So to live a holy life means to live a life that conforms to God’s moral precepts, in contrast to the sinful ways of the world and the culture in which we live."

My heart wavered between the opinions of following God or pleasing myself. Fortunately, as with Israel in this account, God did not give up on me. Even though the road was hard, and people left me, and it felt as though the rug was being pulled out from under me, God was still there to take me back and point me in the right direction. I had to get rid of the idols in my life. There was no way possible to stand before God blameless when I was holding such a tight grip on the sin He was asking me to release. God challenged me with the same challenge that Israel faced. Who was I going to serve?

“Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, ‘The LORD – he is God! The LORD – he is God!’”
I Kings 18:38-39

God came down in a mighty force and showed Himself true. How could those who watched this event deny that God existed? How can you and I, who read this story and the countless others in the Bible, deny God or still try to mix God with sin in our own life. Years before this event, Joshua said almost the exact same words. In Joshua 24:15, we read, “But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
The Bible records that after the sacrifice was enveloped, that Elijah commanded the death of all Baal’s prophets. Every one of them was served the death sentence that day for their actions. God is a jealous God, and He does not desire that we sit on the fence. James 1:8 reminds us that a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. How can we stand on the vanguard of the battle with one hand holding God and the other holding to our idols? It is time to make a choice. It is time to resist the devil (James 4:7). It is time to shake off the chains that bind you (Heb 12:2). The challenge here is easy to see. We must choose between God or the gods that steal us from Him. The choice, however, is not so easy. Sure, the temptations of life call our name and beckon us to follow and give in. I hide nothing; I have given in many times myself. But it is time that we make up our mind and consider the words that Elijah dared challenge us with. Stop wavering and make up your mind.
Wyatt Earp and his gang of Rangers took out the “Cowboys” because they broke the law. Justice had to be served. The “Cowboys” resisted arrest and eventually they were shot on sight, given away by their red sashes. Elijah stood before an evil king and his motley crew of false prophets and gave them the chance to prove their god real, but their god never appeared. In the end they too were killed for breaking God’s law of having no other gods before Him. What gods do you bow down to? Better yet, are you willing to die for your god? It is time we stop wavering and chose who we will serve. Smash the idols in your life, and join me ON THE VANGUARD!

Loritts, Jr., Crawford, Make it Home Before Dark, (Moody Press, 2000), p 77

WYATT EARP AND THE PROPHET ELIJAH - Part 1
“Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’ But the people said nothing.”
I Kings 18:21

On October 27, 1881, the headline of the Tombstone Epitaph read: A Desperate Fight Between Officers of the Law and Cow-boys – The Killed and Wounded – Failure of Lord & Williams. The short editorial described a little known gunfight that would later be known as a major shootout in Arizona’s history. With a past record of verbal threats and the misdemeanor of bearing weapons within the Tombstone city limits, the ‘Cowboys’ had to be stopped. History records that at about 3:00pm on October 26th, Virgil Earp, Morgan Earp, Wyatt Earp, and Doc Holliday made their way toward the alley between the MacDonald House and Fly’s Boarding House. It was here the two teams faced off in history’s Gunfight at the O. K. Corral.
At close range, the gunfire commenced. Standing trial before Justice Wells Spicer, Wyatt Earp would go on record stating that he shot first, shooting Frank McLaury in the abdomen, and Billy Clanton shot almost simultaneously at Wyatt, who managed to dodge the bullet. In the end, ‘Cowboy’ Billy Clanton was shot in the wrist before suffering a deadly shot to the chest. Frank McLaury was first shot in the stomach by Wyatt and shortly after received a fatal shot to the base of his skull. Tom McLaury received two shotgun wounds by Doc Holliday to his left side which rendered him dead. Billy Claiborne managed to escape unharmed, as well as Ike Clanton who was unarmed and allowed passage to safety by Wyatt who ordered him to “go to fighting or get away!”
For the law men, Morgan Earp suffered a non-fatal wound to the back when background noise distracted him during the battle. Virgil Earp was shot in the calf by Frank McLaury, which dropped him to the ground. Doc Holliday was bruised on his left hip when a bullet bounced off his holster. Wyatt Earp, however, collected no wounds whatsoever. The gunfight lasted only thirty seconds, and in the end, the Earps and Holliday were considered heroes.
The ‘Cowboys’ that remained retaliated from abandoned buildings and dark alleys, leaving Virgil with the use of only one arm in an attack on December 28, 1881, and Morgan dead from another shot to the back on March 18, 1882. In revenge for his brothers, and the upholding of the law, Wyatt Earp began his Vendetta Ride. In the span of three weeks, March 20 thru April 15, 1882, Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and their federal posse, rode throughout Arizona with a warrant for William “Curly Bill” Brocius, the leader of the “Cowboys”. The two met on March 24, 1882 in Iron Springs where after an exchange of gunfire, Brocius lay dead from a shotgun blast to the chest. In the end, Earp and his posse rode after the cowboys and into Colorado where they finally dissolved and began going their own ways.
The fall of the “Cowboys” came shortly after the loss of their leader. Once he was proved powerless, the few “Cowboys” that remained were hunted down by Wyatt Earp and his crew. Wyatt Earp brought justice and restoration to both Arizona and his family name.
This same example is given to us in I Kings 18. King Ahab and Queen Jezebel rejoiced in the slaughter of God’s prophets only to find defeat in the end. Jezebel had ordered that all the prophets of the true God be killed. For the sake of their own lives they hid within the caves and found refuge under Obadiah. As Israel entered its third year without rain, Ahab summoned Obadiah to help him find grass to keep the animals alive. What Obadiah found, however, was the next segment in God’s outline of power.
It was Elijah who had declared to King Ahab three years prior that it would not rain except at the prophet’s command (I Kings 17:1). During the time Elijah had been away from the king, God was caring for him. Fed by ravens and provided for by the widow in Zarephath of Sidon, Elijah followed God’s commands. For his obedience he lacked nothing. But as God brought provision to Elijah, so also He brought lack on Israel. It only stands to make sense then, that when Ahab saw Elijah coming out to meet him, his greeting would be one of accusation.

“…and Ahab went to meet Elijah. When he saw Elijah, he said to him, ‘Is that you, you troubler of Israel?’”
I Kings 18:16b-17

Elijah defended himself and corrected Ahab by saying that the troublemakers of Israel were Ahab and his ancestors, for they abandoned God and His commandments, and had given themselves over to the idol worship of Baal. And in this same speech, Elijah called out for the king to bring all the prophets before him.

“Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
I Kings 18:19

The challenge was about to be laid down. The true God was about to stand out from among the crowd and re-take His throne over Israel. The enemy was about to be defeated. With all the prophets of both Baal and Asherah gathered together, Elijah posed his contest.

“Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’ But the people said nothing.”
I Kings 18:21

The people said nothing. Here we see an example of how the people of Israel were not necessarily trying to rid God from their lives, but were rather working to mix a blend of God and other gods into their daily practices. They wanted to combine a worship of both God and gods, life and death. In the end, they wanted the best of both worlds. Did history not show in the life of Solomon that the mix of other gods brought Solomon away from the true God? And was it not God Himself who, when giving the Ten Commandments, declared Himself to be a jealous God (Ex 20:5)?
I can ask this same question of myself. The truth is I do not have to think hard to recall an example of this in my own life. In the many years I spent addicted to pornography, I fought this same desire. I wanted to follow God with everything in me, but I also did not want to give up the addiction and the false feelings of security I clung to. I battled daily, even hourly, with the guilt and shame that came as a result of this sin, but at the same time I battled with the feelings of inclusion and acceptance I grew to believe. I wanted to have the best of both. And although I tried denying the fact, the truth was that I was bowing to my own idol. I was bowing down to lust, selfishness, and pride. I wavered between two opinions and said nothing.
In closing today, I challenge you to reflect where you are at this point. Are there things that God has told you to give up that you are still hoping you can mix in with your Christian walk? As is seen early in this devotional, and will be seen in my next writing, the time of double-mindedness must cease. Prepare to rid the gods, and join me ON THE VANGUARD!

DROP KICKIN' THE DEVIL
"From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it."
Matthew 11:12

I have decided I am fed up with the devil. Really! I am so tired of him taking his cheap shots on me and trying to get me to renege on my relationship with Christ. He is a relentless foe who is bent on my destruction, and I am sick of it. John 10:10 says that he, the thief, comes to steal, kill, and destroy. The devil wants me to have no part in Christ and will stop at nothing to plant schemes, traps, and pitfalls in my path. However, I believe it is time to take out the trash.
In 1998, Christian artist Carman sang a song titled, "SLAM". The song spoke of the lies and deceit of the enemy verses the truth according to God. One of the lines that has continued to remain fresh in my mind since my first hearing the song states, "Yes I am the Christian that hell warned you about." That line has been a challenge to me since then because I want that the be true of my life. In fact, I even wear a dog tag etched out with that line around my neck daily these days as a reminder to me of the Christian I want to be. I want to be that one whose prayers carry power in the heavens, whose hands God uses to heal, and whose words bring life. I want to be so full of God's anointing that the devil and demons fear when I get on my knees.
I Peter 5:8 tells us that the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Will it be you? Are you easy bait for the enemy, or are you one who is clothed in the Armor of God and not only taking your stance against the devil, but also proactively and forcefully advancing on the enemy? As for me, I'm done. I'm done listening to the lies and being an easy target. I am advancing, and in the power of God I will declare who I am in Christ and drop kick the devil and his demons as I march on his pathetic kingdom. I'm on the move, how about you? Get fed up, throw on your armor, and advance on the enemy. Now join me ON THE VANGUARD!

THE LEAST OF THESE
"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."
Then the righteous will answer him, "LORD, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?"
The King will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
Matthew 25:35-40

I wish I could say that I may always cared for people, but I cannot. I wish I could say that my intentions have always been pure, but I cannot. I even wish I could say that I have always been a representation of Christ, but I definitely cannot. But what I can tell you is of a personal experience where my eyes were truly opened and I first realized what Jesus meant when He said, "...whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
In 1995, I was blessed to have gone on a missions trip as a representative of God, and also of my college. It was not my first trip by any means. I had previously smuggled Bibles into China and taught a pantomime school in Slovakia, but this was my first time visiting a South American country. When I visited China, I was a young 16 year old who wanted to see what God could do, as well as see a place outside of America. When I visited Europe, I was a young man who honestly was more excited about the girls than anything else. But when the chance for Peru came up, I had a feeling God wanted to show me a few things. I had never been drawn to Peru, so I had no thoughts about the young ladies or the scenery. This trip was solely about what God could do in and through me if I let Him.
In the two months we were in Peru we visited five different cities, did countless dramas, ate great Peruvian food, and saw many come to Christ. But one memory from that trip is still burned in my mind, and one that I never want to lose. I had been struggling on the trip with compassion. I kept telling God that because I had never had a desire for these people, I was finding it hard to have any compassion for them. So on a bus ride from our base to a park where we would be doing some street evangelism, I prayed. I prayed that God would just overwhelm me with compassion for these people. I prayed that I would stop going around in the rut of judging these people and see them the way God saw them. And then it happened.
Our team leader had purchased some loaves of bread to pass out to the beggars in the park. Based on my prayer on the bus ride over, I was cautious not to just give it away, but to give it as God directed me. In a way I was hoarding it, but with a right reason. Then across the way I saw a man in a torn sweater, wholly pants, and no shoes, carrying a bag of all he owned. I was drawn to him. As I learned his story through a translator, the compassion I had prayed for began to envelope me. Out of work and unable to meet his rent, he was forced to the streets for survival. My heart went out to him. I gave him my bread and we talked about Jesus, and he did prayer to receive Christ with me, but it wasn't enough. I was seeing him like God saw him. I wanted to give him my money, my shoes, my clothes, my everything...and I am still not sure my everything would have been enough.
Later that night in our debriefing, God laid Matthew 25 on my heart. I had done it to a least of these, and really had done it unto God. My reward was not a kudos but rather something so much better. Since that time I have felt even more so drawn to find little ways to help people. I know that one such way is in words. God has granted me with a passion to write, and even though I fumble in my words and sentence structure, I know He is using my words to challenge and encourage others. But what about you? Are you like I was early on in life, where you are so consumed with yourself that you are unable to be a blessing to others? Does compassion for others flow out of you, or does it seem to interfere with the plans you have for yourself that day? I am not here to beat you down, for we are all wired a different way. But, we are all in some way wired to God, therefore, our hearts should beat as His. Take time today for one of the least of these, and join me ON THE VANGUARD!

SAY IT, DON'T SPRAY IT
"The tongue has the power of life an death, and those who love it eat its fruit."
Proverbs 18:21

Have you ever stopped to think about the power you possess? I am not saying you have magical powers and are the next unknowing wizard like Harry Potter. I am talking about the power that God gives us. I am talking about the power that is stronger than magic, able to give life and death, and houses both healing and poison. I'm talking about the tongue.
Proverbs 18:21 tells us that the power of life and death is in the tongue. James points out to us that this little body part is as directional as a bit in a horse's mouth, as purposeful as a rudder on a ship, and as untamed as animals (James 3:3-8). With it we praise God, but we also tear down the very ones made in God's image. We hold the power within us to bless or to curse.
We see this in Matthew 21, where Jesus was walking with His disciples and had grown hungry. In passing a fig tree He noticed that there was no fruit. Jesus then spoke to the tree and said, "May you never bear fruit again" (Mt 21:19). Matthew records that immediately the tree withered up and died. Was it because it was Jesus speaking? Could the same thing have happened if it were one of the disciples speaking? Or what if it were you and I speaking? The answer lies in verses 21-22 where Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." In this brief passage we see the power we possess.
I have seen this power in my own words and speech, in both positive and negative ways. While in my freshman year of college I fractured my femur. I wish I had some good story about bravery and how I saved someone in a burning building and broke my leg as the floor boards collapsed in the towering inferno. Unfortunately, my story is not that heroic. I fractured my femur while showing off dance moves. My legs twisted while trying to stick my landing on the dance floor and I came straight down on my knee,causing the jolt to crack the femur. In looking at the x-rays in the ER that night, I saw my bone was holding by a tread. The report came from the doctor that due to the way it cracked, I would need to have screws in my leg in order to walk again. Call me stupid or full of faith, but I opted for no such surgery, believing God would heal me.
I wrote verses on my crutches concerning healing, and daily confessed my healing. I spoke life into my leg. Going against the doctor's orders, after two weeks I put my crutches aside and began walking again. With each checkup, there seemed to be no change...until. The power of my words and my faith in Jesus came about as on my six week check up the doctor was stumped. In fact he was so stumped that he had to take additional x-rays. In comparing day one's x-ray showing an obvious crack to day 45's x-ray showing no trace of a crack, the doctor was perplexed. God had completely healed me with x-rays showing no trace of any fracture. The power of the tongue brought about the life needed in my leg.
But as I stated, I have seen this in both a positive and negative way. Growing up in our little subdivision, our neighbors across the street had a dog that liked to escape. In an effort to contain him, they put him on a leash in their backyard to prevent him from jumping the roughly six foot fence, as he was easily able to do. As dad was doing yard work on afternoon he looked over and saw the dog still trying to get over the fence. Even with the leash on, there was still just enough room for the dog's attempts. Dad's words concerning the situation were, "That dog is going to hang himself like that." Within only mere minutes the sound of yelping with heard as the dog sure enough had managed to thrust his body over the fence while still connected with the leash to the other side. I will never forget my dad explaining to us that night the power of our words and the first hand lesson we had witnessed.
We possess a powerful piece. We can fashion it into a weapon for death, or into a tool for blessing. I am not hear to throw guilt on you for the times you speak ill, but rather to remind you that we truly do hold within us a strong piece that we must grow more conscience of, and use cautiously. Even after seeing it work negatively in my own life, I still stumble and find myself spewing poison. But as neither you nor I are perfect, but can only make the choice to be more careful. Take your stand against the devil in promoting blessings on yourself and others. Make a choice to speak blessing, and join me ON THE VANGUARD!

MOVING
"Everything is permissible for me - but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me' - but I will not be mastered by anything."
I Corinthians 6:12

I had a conversation this week with a family friend and was questioned as to why I am not dating currently. Not knowing really at the time how to explain my reasoning, I simply stated, "I just haven't met anyone". I posted on my Facebook status a piece of my conversation and was amazed at how many other people agreed that I should be out looking and dating again. But it isn't that I do not want to. Rather, the reason is I do not feel released to. Let me explain further.
Take into consideration the actions of Abraham. In Genesis 15:5, God told Abraham that his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. However, as time went on and things weren't working out the way Abraham expected, nor in the time Abraham wanted, he took matters into his own hands and produced a child with Haggar (Gen 16:15). It was not the child God had originally spoken of. As such, Hagger and her son, Ishmael, were both the avenue of much pain within the camp. Finally Abraham had to let them go (Gen 21:14).
I know for me that in my first marriage I produced my own Haggar. God told me He had someone. But when I got tired of waiting and grew scared she may not come, I took matters into my own hands. Only after it all began to show real problems did I realize I had stepped out of faith in God. God had sent people to me to warn me, but in my stubbornness and fear I did not listen. Now, years later, I find myself single once more and with a chance to try again. God's promise of a loving wife is still true, but it is up to me to not do God's job for Him again. How many more Haggar's and Ishmael's must I endure to see this? Hopefully no more.
Perhaps we are not so different. We are all wanting to find what God has promised us, be it love, career, family, anything. I know God will provide in time. Maybe the question to be asked comes down to God's timing. I know how it feels to hope for and want something more, but I know this is still not God's timing. I may have been more quick to do so a year ago, but I am not sure I would have been doing it in the right time and with the right motives.
If you think about it, Moses and the Israelites didn't move unless they saw the cloud or fire. If it parked, they parked. It was in their obedience to God that moves were made and safety of victory was given with each change in location. If I had jumped ahead of God, in any situation, before the cloud or fire, I am not sure I would have been as safe or in God's will as much as I hoped. I am reminded of I Corinthians 6:12. "Everything is permissible for me - but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me' - but I will not be mastered by anything." I want the steps that I am taking to be the steps that are not just permissible, but beneficial.
The Israelites were permitted to move without the fire and cloud moving, but it would not have been beneficial as God's blessing would not have been there. And we see that even on some of the actions of Moses himself. When he got fed up with the circumstance and took matters into his own hand, he struck the rock and water came out. However, that was not the true blessing God wanted to give at that moment. Because Moses moved out ahead of God in his own ways, just like we can in our own frustrations and loneliness, Moses did not enter the Promised Land.
I know for myself, the cloud and fire have not yet moved. As such, I stay camped at this location. In so doing, I have found the 'me' that I lost; that I was forced to change. Someday the cloud and fire will move again and I will be pointed in the direction of the relationship I have longed for - my own Promised Land. But it is not today. God is at work. The hope we have is that Abraham did become the father of many, and the Israelites did make it into the Promised Land. So we also have hope when we fully trust God will do what He says He will do.

MID YEAR'S RESOLUTION
"But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way."
Daniel 1:8

I have been reading and meditating on the life of Daniel quite a bit lately. Not only because he and I share the same name, but more so because I see in his character a man I want to be. Look with me for a bit at the life of Daniel.
The Bible tells us that Daniel was one of the few Israelites carried off to Babylon after Nebuchadnezzar besieged Judah. But the men that Nebuchadnezzar had taken for his service were not just your ordinary guys. We read in Daniel 1:3-4 that these men were from royal families; nobility. They were young men without any physical defect, good looking, smart, quick to learn, and fully able to serve.
But I want to point out something here that some may not know. The name Daniel in the Hebrew means "God is my Judge". Why would I share that? Because in knowing this we see how God's hand was on Daniel. Daniel had made a resolution that even though he was not in Israel, he would not let the lifestyle of Babylon overtake him. In chapter 1:12, Daniel requests a ten day challenge, resolving to eat only vegetables and drink only water. Ashpenaz, the chief court official, is leery about this idea as any decrease in Daniel's appearance or abilities could easily be his demise. But we see here that first mention of God as Daniel's judge. In verse 14, Ashpenaz agrees and to his amazement, Daniel and his three friends are healthier and better nourished. As time went on they also proved to be the smartest of all who were taken.
In chapter 2 we see God as Daniel's judge when Daniel tells the king that he will interpret a dream he knows nothing of. Nebuchadnezzar had told the astrologers and wise men that if they could not tell him the meaning of his dream, that they would all face death (2:13). Faced with this penalty, Daniel sought God and found the answer as well as justice in the courtroom.
And let us not forget Daniel being tossed into the lions den. In trickery and deceit the administrators and satraps in Darius' court passed a law stating death in the den to any who prayed to anyone or any god other than the king. In true obedience to the only God, Daniel did not sway. He was thrown in with the lions, but it was God's decree as the judge to not allow permission to the lions to attack. The next morning when the administrators and satraps faced the same punishment for deceiving the king, their fate was not so lucky.
God was Daniel's judge. But God is also our judge, even if your name isn't Daniel. The character of Daniel, I believe, is the true point here. Daniel made the resolve from the beginning to not be moved by circumstance or influenced by location. His heart was sold out to God, and he proved it in his lifestyle, eating, and prayer times.
This is the type man I want to be. And as much as resolutions are made in January, I do not believe it wrong to make a resolution today. Does your heart yearn for God? Is your passion for life void without God involved? I so desperately want to know that the choices I make now honor God, and in so give me peace that He will indeed protect me when He sits as my judge. I'll be honest, growing up with a name like Daniel, and knowing the meaning, scared me for so long. I feared that God saw all my evil and my judgement would be damnation. However, the more and more I know God, the more I see and feel His love for me.
Will you resolve today to put God first? Will you stop defiling yourself? Do not let the circumstance or the location define you. You are God's child, and so I urge you to live undefiled.