Memory Lane

When I heard Pastor Steven say that Daniel and his friends were probably teenagers it made me pause and take a fresh look at Daniel’s story.  I went back and re-read Daniel and realized the only thing he had left of his prior life was his memories.  He had been stripped of his entire heritage.

It’s a fairly common tradition when families or friends gather to “walk down memory lane”.  Maybe it’s sharing funny stories or maybe it’s just talking about how life used to be.  My husband’s family is big on telling the same stories every holiday about all the crazy things that he and his three siblings did while growing up.  I wonder what stories Daniel’s family told?  Maybe they shared their childhood blunders like my husband’s family. But, I think Daniel also heard stories about what God had done.  Perhaps the stories of his relatives being held as slaves in Egypt helped him understand how to serve God faithfully in an ungodly world or maybe the stories of the desert years provided Daniel with a real example of how God can meet all our needs. Did the stories of Joseph teach Daniel how to treat his captors or the importance of avoiding sin?

What stories are you telling your family and friends?  Are you telling them about a time when God met you in the middle of your trials and provided the rest and comfort you needed?  Are you sharing your prayers and telling them when God grants your request?  We don’t know much about Daniel’s early life but clearly it had equipped him with the confidence and faith in God to survive and flourish in a godless environment. The fact that Daniel was only a teenager tells me he probably had limited life experiences yet he possessed the wisdom and faith of a man who had walked through the desert and remained faithful to God for decades.  If we are seeking to be salt and light, if we desire to be a godly witness, if we really want to make God known to others we must include our faith stories when walking down memory lane.

-Brenda Wooff