Praise the Lord for this new day. We will gather for our mid-week fellowship, Bible study, and prayer beginning at 6 PM this evening . We will share a special meal at 6 PM followed y the Bible study at 6:30 PM. We will meet for concert of prayer at 7:30 PM. We will be looking at Isaiah chapters 42 and 43. We will be gathering for great time of celebration on Saturday, with an Easter banquet 5 PM. This special banquet is being prepared by chef Louis Pasqualle.

Alice and I drove down to Baltimore and back yesterday. We met up with Sunita and Andy while we were in Baltimore. It was a treat to see them and spend some time together. The Lord blessed us a great trip. Blessed be His Name.

A we journey with Jesus to Jerusalem, we ponder anew His death on the cross. He also calls us deny ourselves and take up the cross and follow Him daily. It was Dietrich Bonhoeffer who said, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “If a man hasn’t discovered something that he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.”

I love to read the story of daring Daniel, who had a brave heart. Daniel had discovered something worth dying for, which is why he kept on praying when others would have quit. Since he wasn’t afraid to die, he had the courage to live for God in a hostile world. Daniel’s story demonstrates that if we make up our minds to serve God, we can do it even in the very center of pagan government. Our Lord God is able to deliver His people from any danger they face.

If God can deliver Daniel from the lion’s den, he can surely deliver each one of us. Generations of Christians have taken strength from this story because, in the end, the hero isn’t Daniel; it’s Daniel’s God. That same God is sovereign over those who plot against us. He is sovereign over the lions which surround us. Take heart and trust in God. He can deliver us from whatever is troubling us at this very moment.
Daniel is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ who, though He was innocent, was envied, hated, and condemned to die. He too was let down into a pit of death, a stone was rolled across the entrance, and an official seal placed across the stone. Just as God sent an angel to Daniel, he also sent angels to the Lord Jesus Christ to testify, “He is not here. He is risen just as he said.” From that pit of death came forth the Prince of life who has conquered death forever. He is Daniel’s God. His name is Jesus. He is our Savior and our Lord.