Some people hang their harp up in the church parking lot on Sunday, and pick it back up on Wednesday. Some people hang it up long enough to go curse the neighbor out, but when the phone rings and it’s the Pastor, they grab that harp up. They say, "Oh, hi preacher, it's another day that the Lord hath made and I will rejoice and be glad in it." As soon as they hang up the phone they hang up their harp again.
The people in our text said, "Oh we couldn’t sing, we are too sad. How can we sing in a strange land?" Philippians 2:15 says we are placed in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, and we are to shine as lights in the world.
Young people may say, "Everything is different today. You don’t know what it’s like in school now. It’s hard to sing the songs of Zion out there." Older Christians might say, "Man, it used to be great. We sure used to have revival. We used to really have church, but things have changed." You’re right. Things have changed, but we can’t hang our harps on the willows because things have changed.
There is one that hasn’t changed-God. He has not changed. In the 1st chapter of Daniel, we read of a young man who never let unfavorable circumstances rule. He kept his faith in God. He never hanged up his harp, and praise God, his whole life had changed. He became the ruler over his circumstances. He had the opportunity to keep his mouth shut in Verse 5, his head down and go along with the flow. The king wasn’t threatening to cut off his head, but offering a life in the palace. Even though he had the opportunity, he would not defile himself with the king's meat.
Satan would like for all of us to just go along with the flow. He would like for us to eat of all the world has to offer. Yet Daniel 1:8 says Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank. As soon as he set his heart (verse 9), God started making a way for Daniel.
Yes, God will make a way, but first we must make a decision.
-We hanged our harps up and prayer was taken out of our schools, and witchcraft and the occult became the fastest growing religion in America.
-We hanged our harps up and homosexuality became an accepted life style. It is not only accepted, but ordained by some organizations to preach from the pulpit.
The Bible talks about people being born blind and people born crippled. I have never read in the Bible of anyone being a homosexual from birth. It is a spirit, and it is sin, but if we will get our harps back in our hands, we can see these ones delivered. Daniel set the direction of his affection. Colossians 3:2 says to set your affections on things above.
Maybe we should check the direction of our affection:
-Make sure our affection for our Savior has not been swallowed up by our concern for our lack of blessing or pressures of trials.
-Make sure we aren’t spending too much time looking back at the old days. Don’t wait for some sweeping revival to come, and then we’ll get our harps down.
Some people spend their time looking back or waiting on something to come.
-Make sure our relationship with God is a now thing.
In John 11:21 Martha told Jesus, "If Thou hadst been here." Then in Verse 24 she said, "But I know he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Too many Christians are either looking back at the old days or waiting on the rapture. Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life." He was telling her it’s a now thing.
-Make sure you master your situations before they master you.
a. Daniel didn’t let his circumstances rule him, and he became ruler over his circumstances.
b. Paul and Silas never let the stocks of prison still their song of praise, and their praise broke the stocks, and loosed everyones bonds.
If you have come to your rivers of Babylon and sat down, it’s time to set the direction of your affection and to purpose in your heart whom you will serve. Set your affection on Jesus and you can have victory over your circumstances. There is a great promise in God’s Word for those who will set their affection on Him.
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