(Daniel 2)
There’s a moment in Daniel 2 that feels painfully familiar.
The king has a dream.
A disturbing one.
The kind that won’t let him sleep, won’t let him function, won’t let him move on.
And he wants answers.
Not just interpretations.
Not just theories.
He wants certainty.
So he gathers the experts—the magicians, the enchanters, the wise men—and asks them to do the impossible.
Tell me the dream.
Then tell me what it means.
And they say what all of us say sooner or later:
“There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks.”
Exactly.
That’s the moment.
The line in the sand.
The realization that human strength, human wisdom, human control… hits a wall.
And that’s where faith begins.
Stop Relying on Your Own Strength
Daniel doesn’t panic.
He doesn’t posture.
He doesn’t pretend he has answers he doesn’t have.
He does what he can.
He gathers his friends.
He prays.
He asks God for mercy.
Daniel understands something we resist:
You are responsible for what you can do.
God is responsible for what you can’t.
Faith isn’t heroic independence.
It’s dependent courage.
Daniel shows up—but he doesn’t carry the weight of omniscience.
That belongs to God.
And when Jesus is real to you—really real—you stop acting like everything depends on you.
Because it doesn’t.
Seek Understanding—Not “Why,” But “How”
Notice what Daniel doesn’t ask.
He doesn’t demand to know why Nebuchadnezzar had the dream.
He doesn’t ask why empires rise and fall.
He doesn’t ask why power is so fragile.
Instead, God gives him the dream.
And then the interpretation.
Step by step.
Because God rarely hands out explanations in bulk.
He gives next steps.
“Why” wants a conclusion.
“How” invites participation.
How do I trust God now?
How do I speak truth here?
How do I walk into the king’s presence without fear?
Daniel moves forward with the light he’s given.
That’s faith.
Not answers.
Movement.
Ask God to Use the Situation for His Glory
When Daniel stands before the king, he could easily take credit.
He doesn’t.
He says:
“No wise man, enchanter, magician, or diviner can explain this mystery…
but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.”
This is not a prayer for comfort.
This is not a grasp for control.
This is surrender.
Daniel isn’t trying to save his reputation.
He’s pointing beyond himself.
Because when Jesus is real to you, the question changes.
It’s no longer:
How do I get out of this?
It becomes:
God, what do You want to reveal through this?
Not my glory.
Not my safety.
Not my plan.
Yours.
So—
Is Jesus that real to you?
Real enough to walk forward without explanations?
Real enough to walk in the experience the how provides?
Real enough to say, “Use this—even this—for Your glory”?
Because Daniel 2 reminds us:
Faith understands we may be nowhere near a conclusion,
but we are always near to God—
the God who draws close,
the God who stays,
the God who says,
“I’m with you when you don’t understand.
I’ll show you the next step
and be right beside you as you take it.”
phillipbrande.com 