Today, I am reading and commenting on  Daniel 9-10.

My lovely wife married me 22 years ago on the 23rd of this month.  So I am going to wish her Happy Anniversary every day from now until then.

Happy Anniversary, Darling!

When Daniel realized that the time which Jeremiah had prophesied for Jerusalem to be desolate was coming to an end he began praying to God.  Daniel starts his prayer by praising God and by acknowledging that the punishment which God had meted out was deserved.  Only after confessing the sins of his people does Daniel beg forgiveness and restoration.  Then he makes a point which we must understand and internalize: Daniel does not ask God to restore them because of their righteousness.  He asks God to restore them because of God’s mercy.  In the same way, we need to recognize that we do not deserve the blessings we receive from God.  When we request things from God in prayer, we do not deserve to receive those things because of our righteousness, not even the things which we request for others.  No, our only basis for expecting God to answer our prayers is His goodness and mercy.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.