When You’re Asked to Do the Impossible — Part 3

This is Pastor Rick's daily Hope. I'm so glad that you found us today. And whether you're at home or in your car, we're so glad that you're here. And we pray that God will give you hope in times of difficulty. Rick is taking us through the book of Daniel, and that's so we'll be equipped to handle whatever curveball life throws at us, even the most difficult trials. And let's go right to Rick for part three of a message called when you're asked to do the impossible.

Now watch while Daniel. This is 2,500 years ago in Babylon. While Daniel's a young Hebrew boy in Babylon as a prisoner of war, but being trained to be an advisor, there's another guy over here in Judah, Israel, which they didn't take everybody as prisoners of war. They left some people there. One of the guys who was left there was a guy named Jeremiah. He was not a bullfrog. He was a prophet. Okay? And Jeremiah lives at the same time Daniel does. And Jeremiah knows what's going on in Babylon. And God says this to Jeremiah. Look at the next verse. He says this, call to me and I will answer you. God says this, and I will show you marvelous things. Marvelous things and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own. Now that's exactly what Daniel needs. He needs God to show him what he could never figure out on his own. He could guess for 1,000 years and never guess the king's dream. And there's some things in your life you could guess and work and pray and try all your life and never figure it out. What you need is to call to God and he says, I'll answer you and I'll show you the things you could never figure out on your own. God never shuts his storehouse till you shut your mouth. God says, call to me. The Bible says, you have not because you ask not. You have not because you ask not. You have not because you ask not. You know what hell would be for me? Hell would be if I got to heaven. And God showed me all the things I could have accomplished, all. All the things I could have achieved and all the things I could have had if I had just asked God. You have not because you ask not. There are a lot of things in your life God wants to give you, but he's never given them to you. Cause he's waiting for you to ask. Over 20 times in the New Testament, God says, ask. You're commanded over 20 times. Ask, ask, ask, ask. Anything in my name. Ask and it shall be given to you. The Bible says, ask and it shall be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock and the door will be open. Ask, seek, knock. That's a S K. It spells ask. He's just saying the same thing three different ways. Ask, seek, knock, ask. I want you to ask. You have not, because you ask not so many things you have already missed out in your life simply because you never asked God for it. God says, call to me. I'll answer you some of those problems. You thought, I'm never gonna figure this out because you didn't ask God. You could have said, God, show me the great and wonderful things that there's no way I could figure it out on my own. I have prayed that prayer thousands of times as your pastor. And I'm going, God, I'm not smart enough to do this. I'm asking you, I'm begging you. Here's what I need. And I get very specific. And my life is a history of answered prayer. You have not, because you ask not. This is what Daniel did. He comes and he prays and he does. And he says, I'm gonna. I can't figure this out on my own. Now, there's one condition on this. When you pray, notice I said, pray and expect God. That's faith. Pray and expect God to give you supernatural help. If you pray and you go, I don't really think God's gonna do this. I'm gonna pray, say, God, I need this. I need this money, I need this staff, I need this person. I need this opportunity. I need this help. I need this answer. I need this solution. But I don't really think God's gonna give it to me. Don't even bother mail it in because God says, I'm not gonna answer that kind of prayer. God does not respond to your whining. God does not respond to your griping. God is not ever moved by your complaining, oh, God. But God moves instantly when you trust him. He moves when you have faith. He moves when you expect him to. Why? Because it honors God. He's your loving heavenly father. And the Bible says, if you, being an imperfect father or mother, know how to give good gifts to your kids, how much does God know how to give better gifts to you? And he's perfect as a father and now as a grandfather. I love to give my kids and grandkids stuff. I'd spoil them rotten. If Kay'd let me, I would. I'd spoil em rotten because I have the joy of giving and watching them enjoy what I've given to them is the greatest thrill. You know, when I'm a little kid and I'm immature, it's all about the presents I get under the tree that doesn't throw me anymore. The presents under the tree are the least important things to me at Christmas. It's watching everybody unwrap the stuff I got for them. And when my kids or my grandkids say, daddy or papa, I trust you. Don't you think I'd move heaven and earth to get whatever they need done? And when you come to God, say, daddy, Father, Heavenly Father, I'm gonna trust you. Don't you think he'd move heaven and earth to get things done? The Bible says that if he loved you enough to send Jesus Christ to die for you on the cross, solve your biggest problem, your eternal salvation, anything else you bring to him is pretty small potatoes in comparison. It's pretty minor by comparison. All your problems are minor by comparison compared to God forgiving you of all your sins. So trust him. You gotta expect him to answer as Daniel did. Here's what the Bible says. James, chapter one. If you need wisdom, and Daniel did, ask God, he'll gladly give it to you. Now he's not gonna give it to you if you don't ask. Cause he wants you to trust him. He wants you to ask. He won't resent you asking. God, I don't know how to solve this deal. I don't know how to handle this competitor. I don't know how to resolve this marriage conflict. I don't know how to deal with my child who's heading off in the wrong direction. He won't resent you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you expect him to answer. That's the prayer of faith. Expect him to answer. For a doubtful mind is unsettled as a wave of the sea. It's tossed by the wind. And he said, those people like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. So if you're not gonna believe it, you're not gonna expect it. Don't even bother praying. You pray. And if you thank God in advance, that's called faith. If you thank God after the fact, after he gives, that's called gratitude. God wants you to have both faith and gratitude. Thank you, God, that you're hearing me. Thank you, God, that you're gonna give it. And then thank you, God, that you gave it. Faith and gratitude. So that's the fifth thing. You need to pray and expect God to give you supernatural help. Okay, number six, this is a big one. When you're facing an impossible situation in your life, the sixth step is worship God. Worship God. Let me explain what that means. A lot of people think worship is music. Music is one way to worship, but there's thousands of way to worship. Worship simply means focusing on God. That's all it means. Anytime I turn my attention to God, that's called worship. When I express my love to God, that's called worship. You don't have to be in church to worship. You can worship God in your car. You can worship him in the locker room, at gym, at school. You can worship him outside. You can worship him at In N Out Burger. So you come to God and you worship God. Now, what that means is I. I get the focus off my problem and I get my focus on God. I get my focus off the thing that's scaring me to death and I'm tempted to be panicked over and I get my focus on the solution. I stop looking at the difficulty, the impossible problem, and I start looking at the immutable God, the sovereign God, who no problem is small to him. He knows it all, he sees it all and everything like that. So I worship. And this is what Daniel did after he asked his friends to pray. He then and he goes, spends all night praying. And verse 19 says this during the night. It doesn't tell us when, but sometime during the night, God revealed and explained the mystery of the dream, Nebuchadnezzar's dream, to Daniel in a vision. Now what's that mean? He just got a picture in his mind. I got it. God just put that in my mind. I know what he dreamed. I saw it. He just put that thought in my mind. I got it. And not only do I know what he dreamed, I know what it means. God just told me. Which means I know more than Nebuchadnezzar. Cause I know not only what he dreamed, I know what it means. That all came from God. He was never gonna get that on his own. And it says, then Daniel praised. That's worship the God of heaven. Circle the word praised. Now this passage show shows you how to pray in a crisis. You need to write this down. You're gonna need this. When you're faced with an impossible situation, you need to pray the same three things that Daniel prayed. When his life's on the line. He's about to get assassinated if he doesn't come up with the answer. When he's asked to do the impossible. Okay, he's up all night. It says, during the night, he's praying. By the way, before I. Let me ask you this. Have you ever prayed all night about anything in your entire life? Ever? Have you ever, ever, ever, ever, ever stayed up all night to pray about something? Is there anything important enough in your life that it's worth staying up all night to pray about? No. You see, prayer reveals what's important to you. If it's important, you're gonna pray about it. And if it's really, really, really important, you're gonna really, really pray about it. If you're not praying about it, it's not that important. God goes, well, it's obviously not important to them. They don't really care if they get that job. They're not praying about it. If they prayed about it, they might even stay up all night to pray about getting that job. It reveals what you care about. Prayer reveals what's. Now, granted, if you were being threatened with execution the next morning, you probably would stay up all night and pray. But would it take that? Does it take you, being near death to have to stay up all night and pray? Is there anything worth praying all night for, like the direction of your kids, like the success of your marriage, like the fulfillment of your career? Is there anything in your life that you would ever stay up all night to pray about? God's going, I'm here. You can ask. You obviously don't think this is very important. Cause I've said, call to me and ask. Now Daniel shows how to worship when you're in a crisis. I want you to write these three things down when you're facing the impossible. First, praise God for who he is. I praise God for who he is. In other words, his character. I focus on who God is, and I say, God, you're loving, you're kind, you're gracious. God, you know everything. God, you're all powerful. Nothing's too hard for you. God, you're faithful. You've been there when I needed you. God, you're a forgiving God, you're a gracious God. God, you are omnipotent, all powerful. And you focus on the attributes that the nature, the character of God. You praise God for who he is. Notice here's what it says in verse 19. Then Daniel praised God, saying, our God, your name will be praised forever and ever. You are all powerful. That's who he is. And you know everything. That's a good thing because I don't know what that king knows, but. But you do. You know what he dreamed. So I'M gonna need you to tell me what you know that I don't know. You will praise him for who he is. Now, I want you to circle the phrase your name. He says, when you pray, say, God, I'm praising your name. What is such a big deal about God's name? I mean, in the Ten Commandments, you know, the big ten, the top ten in God's list of things you're supposed to do or not do. Right up there with don't murder and don't commit adultery. He says, don't take the name of the Lord in vain. Huh? Wait a minute. God considers taking his name in vain as bad as adultery and murder and lying and cheating? Yes. What's the big deal about God's name? He says, don't take my name in vain. Don't misuse my name. It's right up there with don't murder and don't commit adultery. Some of you need to stop taking God's name in vain. And you need to tell God you're sorry for taking his name in vain. You need to break that habit. You need to stop using him as a cuss word. You need to stop using him as a. Where? You just throw it in there all the time. What's the big deal about God's name? In the New Testament, Jesus says, I'm gonna teach you how to pray. It's called the Lord's Prayer. Here's how you should pray. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be your name. Huh? What's the big deal about God's name? Hallowed be your name. That means honored be your name. Respected, be your name. Treated with value. Be your name. When Jesus Christ gets ready to go back to heaven, one of the last things he says to the disciples, his followers, he said, now I want you to go all around the world, and I want you to make disciples. And you were to baptize them in. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. What's the big deal about Jesus? Name the Spirit's name. The Father's name. Name represents character. God's name represents God's character. God's name represents who he is. When we say about somebody, he's got a good name, it means he's trustworthy. That guy's legit. When you say, she's got a good name, what you're saying there is, she's reliable. She keeps her promises, she's trustworthy. If she says she'll do it, she'll do it. He's got a good Name. She's got a good name. Your name represents who you are. God's name represents all he is. And so you praise God's name because you're praising what his name represents, all of his character qualities. It's important. Now, the second thing you do is you honor God for what he does. Write that down. You praise God for who he is, and you honor God for what he does. This is the difference between God's character and God's actions. And now the second part of your prayer. When you're in a crisis, first you remember who God is. And second, you remember what he's done, his actions on your behalf. And you honor God for what he does. And in verse 21, this is the second part of Daniel's crisis prayer. And he says this. You, God, you control human events. You, God, give rulers their power and you take it away. You're in charge. You, God, are the source of wisdom and knowledge. You, God, explain the deep mysteries which Daniel really needs to know in this situation. What's the mystery of this dream? You explain the deep mysteries because even the dark is light to you. The Bible says God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. And even in your darkest days, when you can't see ahead, he can. Cause God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. God, you can see what I can't see. You can hear what I can't hear you. You know what I don't know. You are God. You control human events. You know everything. And he says, you are the God who worshiped by my ancestors. He's praising God for who he is, and he's thanking and he's honoring God for what he's done. That's the second part. Now here's the third part of the prayer. You need to pray this too. When you're in a crisis, thank God for helping me. Thank God for helping me. I praise him for who he is. I honor him for what he does. And now the third part of my prayer is, I thank God for helping me. And in Daniel, chapter 2, verse 23, the third part of his prayer says this. Now, God, he says, I thank. There's the word thank. I thank and praise you, God, of my ancestors. I mean, you helped out my dad and my parents and grandparents and on and on. People of the past in the Bible, I thank and praise you for you have given me wisdom and strength. And Daniel needed both of those when he's facing an impossible situation. And you have told me what I asked of you and revealed to Me what the king demanded. So, God, I'm so grateful. I'm so thankful. And that's the third part of your prayer, thanking God for what he's done for you in the past, what he's doing for you right now, what he's gonna do for you tomorrow. That's Thanksgiving. Now, the seventh thing he does after he has prayed this prayer is he's now gonna go back and give the solution. But I want you to write this down. The seventh thing is this very important. Use what God shows me to save others. Use what God shows me. Use what God gives me. Use what God blesses me with to save others. God wants to save you from your impossible situation, but he doesn't want to do just that. He wants to save other people. God doesn't want to just save you. God wants to save the whole world. God wants to save your family. God wants to save your friends. God wants to save the people you work with. God wants to save your enemies. Yep. Because God has never made a person he doesn't love. God wants to save your competitors. God is not discriminating in any sense over sex or race or anything like that. He says, I want to save everybody. God so loved the world, not just a few people. God so loved the world. And so he's gonna say, now, I'm gonna save you, Daniel, but I want you what I've just given you to use it to save a bunch of other people, too, because I care about them just as much.

Thanks so much for listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. You know, I share Pastor Rick's Daily Hope all the time. So whether it's a friend or someone you meet at a restaurant or wherever, because everyone needs hope and encouragement from the Bible every day. Now here's Rick with a letter from a listener that shares Daily Hope.

I want you to listen to this testimony from a listener in Monterrey, Mexico. Jonas Alvarez writes. Hi there, Pastor Rick. My name is Jonas Alvarez, and I'm an English teacher in Monterrey, Mexico. I listen to Daily Hope every day by podcast, and it has profoundly enriched my life. I recommend to my students to listen to it and to practice their English skills. Hey, that's a great idea. And I know for sure that if they do, they're going to get much more than just learning English. Thank you so very much. Sincerely, Jonas. Well, thanks for writing, Jonas. My prayer is that Daily Hope will bring the hope that we find in Jesus to your students, just as we're praying that it brings hope to people all around the world. By the way. Did you notice how Jonas is sharing Daily Hope Podcast with his students?

I think that's a great idea.

My question to you is, who are you sharing the Daily Hope podcast with? Who could you tell about this good news? You know, good news is so good, we can't keep it to ourselves. You gotta share it. So if you shared Daily Hope with somebody else, would you let me know about it? Write me, you know the address rickastorrick.com it's just rickastorrick.com and tell me your story of how you're sharing Daily Hope with other people.

Be sure to join us next time as we look into God's word for our Daily Hope. This program is sponsored by Pastor Rick's Daily Hope and your generous financial support.