I Have Come Because of Your Words

"Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands, and he said to me, 'O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright for I have now been sent to you.' While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, 'Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia'...Then again, the one having the likeness of a man touched me and strengthened me. And he said, 'O man greatly beloved, fear not! Peace be to you; be strong, yes, be strong!'"
(Daniel 10:10-13,18,19)

Verse 2 of this chapter states, "In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three full weeks" - 21 days!! That's how long it took for the angel to reach him! Not only was he mourning, but during these 21 days, Daniel was also praying and fasting.

Several years ago, I read Frank Peretti's book, "Piercing the Darkness". This book dealt with the topic of spiritual warfare. Although its pages were filled with fictional brilliance, every word was founded on biblical truth.

And the truth is? The truth is we "do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but with principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12)

It is foolish for Christians to walk in denial or ignorance of this truth!

AND, just as surely as there are demons - principalities of darkness - there are armies of angels standing ready to defend and protect us.

Daniel 10 beautifully illustrates this. Please, allow yourself to picture the exchange between Daniel and his heavenly messenger. Ask God to open your eyes that you might see...

Verse 12 reads, "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words." The angel is in direct response to Daniel's cry. God sent this angel to strengthen and encourage Daniel. Do you recall why the angel was delayed?

Verse 13, "But the prince of the kingdom of Persia (a principality of darkness) withstood me twenty-one days..."!!!

I know it is hard to wrap our brains around this imagery, but either we believe the Word of God is true, or we don't.

I choose to believe.

Therefore, I know in my spirit that God my Father wants me to understand the seriousness of and the reality of spiritual warfare. The angel was delayed 21 days because he was embattled with an evil force - 21 days while Daniel prayed!

What if Daniel had stopped praying? What if he said, "Forget this, God. I don't see anything changing!" Would that have made a difference? Would the angel have made a breakthrough in his battle with the prince of Persia? OR would the angel have suffered defeat because Daniel stopped praying?

We must never discount the power of prayer.

I have learned that when you think God is doing nothing, that is when he is doing the most! It took the angel 21 days to get to Daniel because of the spiritual warfare. How often have we waited for God's intervention, only to become distracted by the frustration of the seeming silence or impatient with the slow progress? And in the distraction ceased to pray.

Consider this. The Word clearly states that God hears us when we call - He does not turn a deaf ear to our need. Do you believe that? I do. We must understand that the principalities of darkness oppose God's purposes and that our earthly struggles often reflect what is happening in the heavenlies - spiritual warfare.

"The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much."

SELAH

Lord God, WHEW!! This is not something your dignified, sophisticated Body of Christ wants to think about, but, Lord, this is Your Truth. Satan would have us believe this is just a little too weird to digest. That's exactly where Satan wants us to stay - bogged down in analysis rather that reading Your Word, believing Your Word and doing Your Word. Lord, forgive us our pride!! Open our eyes that we might see Your Truth and walk in Your Truth. Please take the blinders off. Fill us with your knowledge so that we might walk in victory, hand in hand with You. Thank You, Lord.