家在幾百里之外，身邊的人說的盡是聽不懂的語言，聖殿和家園都落在敵人手中，已經沒有什麼可以回想的了，上帝一定是死了──要不然就是睡著了！竟把被擄的百姓忘得乾乾淨淨，是不是呢？何不去問問但以理和他的三個朋友！對他們來說，上帝仍然活著──垂聽禱告、解夢、高舉真心信靠祂的人，甚至烈火熊熊的火爐也不能使上帝的僕人膽怯！

        在你的腦海中描繪這一幕：敵軍踐踏了你的國土，只見處處毀損、死傷遍地，你居住的城市只是一堆冒著煙的廢墟，教會攤成一片瓦礫；所有的財產都付之一炬，親戚朋友下落不知、生死不明，你對家的記憶還是幾個鐘頭以前的，所能做的就是繼續相信上帝，這樣就夠了嗎？
        今天，想一想當年的但以理，那時生命已變成一片淒寒，除了倚靠上帝，別無他法。但以理發覺，上帝就是他需要的一切，當但以理和他三個朋友明白自己置身「熱鍋」的同時，竟發現應許的上帝挺立於生命的考驗之中！
        「我從來不知道耶穌基督就是我需要的一切，直到我擁有耶穌基督。」你曾經聽過別人這樣表白自己的心聲嗎？在你學會這功課之前，可別在那痴等生命中的「流放經驗」，但以理早年在巴比倫的俘虜生涯供你借鏡，於是你知道，當你從心裡以但以理和三個朋友的禱告（但2：20-23，3：17-18）為禱告時，就學會了這個功課，何不現在就這麼做呢？

夢，夢，處處皆夢！
        但以理全書十二章中有九章談到夢、異象，或其他上帝啟示的方法，很快的把這卷書翻一遍；你能找到是哪幾章嗎？

真金不怕火煉，堅強的人不怕患難磨。

English

        Hundreds of miles from home. Surrounded by people speaking an unknown language. Nothing to look back on but a temple and a homeland now in enemy hands. Surely God is dead—or at least asleep—to have so forgotten His exiled people. Right? Not if you ask Daniel and his three friends! For them, God is still very much alive—answering prayers, interpreting dreams, honoring the integrity of those committed to Him. Even a fiery furnace cannot intimidate the servants of the Most High God.

        Picture this scene in your mind: An enemy army has swooped down upon your nation, inflicting destruction and death. Your city is a smoking ruin; your church lies in rubble; your possessions have been destroyed. The fate of your family and friends is unknown. Only memories remain of what, hours before, you called home. All you have left is your confidence in God. Would that be enough?
        For you today, that may be only an academic exercise; for Daniel it became the chilling reality of life. With nothing to cling to but God, Daniel found that God was all he needed. When Daniel and his friends found themselves literally in the "frying pan," they discovered that the promises of God stand up well in the crucible of life!
        "I never knew Jesus Christ was all 1 needed . . . until Jesus Christ was all I had." Have you ever heard anyone express that feeling? Don't wait for an "exile experience" in your life before you learn that lesson. You can come to grips with it ... today . . . as you walk with Daniel through the early years of his captivity in Babylon. You'll know you have learned that lesson when you can pray from your heart the words of Daniel in 2:20-23, and of Daniel's friends in 3: 1 7-1 8. Why not do that right now?

Dreams, Dreams Everywhere
        Nine of the 12 chapters in Daniel's book contain dreams, visions, or other channels of divine revelation. Thumb through the book quickly; can you discover which chapters they are?

Fire is the test of gold, adversity of strong men.