In the Lion’s Den

Interestingly, God shut the mouths of the lions instead of keeping Daniel out of the den altogether. I am often dismayed at how little effect I think prayer will have in most situations. When the lions roar, my lack of prayer is the first evidence of my weakness of faith. Then I read of events in scripture, like Daniel and the lion’s den, and the Holy Spirit challenges my sluggishness.

Every Christian will have lion’s den experiences in their life, though most will not be as acutely dangerous as what Daniel faced. My health has been giving me a little more trouble than usual lately, and when that happens, I find myself approaching the throne of grace more frequently—sometimes out of desperation. I have lived with this condition for over 20 years, so I recognize a pattern every time it flares up.

Step One: For the first few weeks, I grow disheartened by the idea of fighting through this again, and I put all my strategies to work to see if I can improve my health and minimize the recovery time.

Step Two: After I come to the end of myself, I finally become fervent in prayer.

Step Three: After two to three weeks of praying, I become mindful that I am praying a lot more than before my health issues flared up and that I am walking closer to the Lord.

Step Four: I begin to rejoice in God’s goodness even though I am still not feeling well. I also start to see little mercies throughout my day as he answers prayer after prayer for strength and help.

Over the 20+ years I have lived with this condition, I have learned that step four is a wonderful place to be because the Lord has drawn me close to himself. My outer man may feel like it is wasting away, but my inner man is being renewed day by day. To paraphrase Charles Spurgeon talking about his illness, he said, I never desire to suffer, but when I do, I have learned to pay attention because the Lord is about to do something good.

During these times, the Lord gives us strong confidence in the efficacy of prayer, and it seems as if the Holy Spirit is igniting our petitions with power. Not only do they not get stuck at the ceiling, but they also seem to pierce heaven and go directly to the throne of God.

When we find ourselves in this place, we can read the story of Daniel and the lion’s den and fully believe it. Do not get me wrong, we may have always believed it, but we are now in a place where God allowing Daniel to experience the den but shutting the mouths of lions makes perfect sense. It is as if the Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit and says, “Amen.” None of this would be possible had God not allowed us to experience the den in the first place.

If he can shut the mouths of lions, solving our little problems is nothing for him. We can pray in expectation because he is a living God, and if he does not answer as we pray, perhaps it may simply be his way of keeping us in the den a little longer to draw us closer to himself.

If you are in the den right now, perhaps it is because the Lord is leading you to the throne of grace. The fervent prayer of a righteous man accomplishes much. Do you believe this? If so, call out to your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, with confidence that you may receive mercy and find grace to help in your time of need.

-D. Eaton