"Living Among Lions"

Here's an instant replay of what happened in worship:

We learned that the story of Daniel in the lions' den takes place during the exile. Daniel was a Jew, living with the Persians but still faithfully praying to his God.
We saw how Daniel's rise to power created jealousy among the other administrators. They hatched a plan to make Daniel's very righteousness illegal by proposing a law that would outlaw all prayers to anyone other than the king. The king thought the law was a great idea, until he learned that his most trusted advisor, Daniel, was guilty of breaking the law. The punishment was a night in the lions' den - certain death.
We read Daniel 6:11-23 and noticed something strange. Even though Daniel is the one facing death, we don't read anything about Daniel feeling anxious or scared. Instead, we hear how upset and anxious the king was all night!
We thought about the lions' dens we find ourselves thrown into - dangerous places that threaten to swallow us up in hopelessness and despair. Do we spend those dark nights like Daniel, resting in assurance that God is with us, or do we spend them like the king, restless and anxious? God's promise to us is that He will never leave us or forsake us.
We prayed that we would always know the presence of God in our lives, especially in the scary and dangerous places.
We celebrated communion at the table of love and mercy.