Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. — Daniel 6:10
Not long ago, I had taken my lunch with me to work, and lunchtime had quickly arrived. I grabbed my bag and started to pull my lunch out. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it would serve the purpose. As I sat everything out in front of me, I did what many of us do before a meal. I prayed.
As I ate my meal, I looked through my phone and read through this scripture. I read how Daniel bowed three times a day to give thanks to God. As I read what one writer had to say about this verse, he said that Daniel had developed a ritual of prayer.
A lot of people may say that this was a habit instead of a ritual. But the writer went on to explain that a habit is something that is done out of necessity. But a ritual, it is something more. It’s something that has a meaning and purpose behind it.
Daniel was not going through the motions to be a show. It says that he was in his house. It was a private moment between him and God. A moment where he was sincere, talking to the God of all creation. Those words really stuck with me.
Many times we go through the habits of Christianity without real meaning and purpose behind them. It may be meant with good intentions, but our heart is just not in it. If you think back, you can probably think of times when you simply were going through the motions of Christianity.
God is not interested in empty motions, He wants us to be sincere. So today, think about the actions that you are taking. Is your Christianity a routine or a ritual? In all that we do, God wants sincerity, not emptiness. Today, live your faith with sincerity and purpose!
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