Daniel never feared silence. In each stage of his life, from servant to prisoner to ruler to advisor he found sacred life in conversation with God. Perhaps most importantly, the Lord’s favor rested on Daniel because he pursued a quiet, faithful relationship through prayer. When we read about Daniel, or other great figures in Scripture, we are only let into a highlight reel. What we don’t hear is the faith built in the margin between pages. All the days waiting between stories, Daniel prayed and followed God.
How powerful are our seasons of patience? Many of us want a strong relationship with Christ but we measure his proximity to what we can see Him doing. The key issue with that is often we cannot immediately see God’s work. We are brought into so many seasons which are tuning us as an instrument to be played at just the right time. Daniel could not know that his faith would bring him to be a ruler in Babylon; in fact, he very well thought it would get him killed. Ambition alone could never land Daniel in the life he had, let alone as a name never to be forgotten because of Scripture. Through his patience and unconditional faithfulness, God led Daniel to make beautiful music throughout his life.
“The Lord is good to those who wait on Him.” Lamentations 3:25
When the Spirit of God builds a spirit of patience in us, at peace with His timing and His plan, we become the best version of ourselves. In our waiting, are we seeking Christ as our utmost priority? Some of the best worship happens in the waiting. Waiting is not idleness, it is accompanied by work and service. Seasons of waiting are a part of the Christian journey because it is far more about following Christ than accomplishing our goals. Waiting demands trust, following requires trust in the way of the leader over that of any other. If we follow ourselves, we are demonstrating that our deepest trust is in our own leadership. Sometimes we follow God but our deepest trust is secretly in ourselves. We obey Christ but we have not surrendered to Him. Following Jesus in action but not Spirit is dangerously closer to legalism than friendship. Jesus calls us into step with Him out of an invitation of love and freedom, not obligation or judgement. You were made to be an instrument of His glory, do not settle for lesser music. Be Daniel, be David, and accept the margin in your life as an opportunity to be tuned. Our waiting is an invitation to change leaders in our life and unconditionally surrender to God in both spirit and deed so that we might become useful in His hands.