As we read the news about Iran’s nuclear bombs, and impending threats, how should we respond? Daniel chapter 9 describes the prophet’s response to enormous military and political upheaval. So let’s ask the questions:
“What should you do when you see significant changes going on in the nations of the world? What can you and I do that would make any difference whatsoever? The prophet Daniel can be our guide. 
He observed geopolitical change in his day and showed us exactly what to do. Daniel guides us to understand the current events of our day through the lens of God’s Word and to pray.
Look at these historic changes and the way that Daniel took up the challenge:
In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the lineage of the Medes, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans—in the first year of his reign I, Daniel, understood by the books the number of the years specified by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah the prophet, that He would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.[i]
What did Daniel do when he learned that God was preparing to fulfill a prophecy before their very eyes, according to verse 3? He set his face to seek the Lord.
This is the right approach for the most important events in our lifetime. Rather than just sit back and watch, Daniel began to pray and pursue the Lord. He chose to stir himself to take hold of God (Isaiah 64:7).
In these days, it’s important to use discernment to avoid being naive. “The simple believes every word: but the prudent man looks well to his going” (Proverbs 14:15).
Daniel is an example for every servant leader: set your heart to seek the Lord in God’s Word and prayer.
When Daniel observed the changes in the kingdom, He began to seek for the unchanging King. Specifically, when Daniel saw that the Medes and Persians had conquered the Babylonians, he pored over biblical prophecies. In them, he found a fascinating prediction recorded in Jeremiah 29:10–11:
For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
What Daniel found, summarized in the first three verses of Daniel 9, thrilled him to the core of his being. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, his discovery led him to author one of the most majestic prayers in all the Scriptures. His prayer can guide you to pray in a way that will make an enormous difference in the world around you…”
When Daniel observed the changes in the kingdom, He began to seek for the unchanging King.
(This is an excerpt from my book “12 Ways You Can Make a Difference in This Crazy, Mixed-up World.”)
As we read the troubling news coming out of the Middle East, we would be wise to follow Daniel’s example: study Biblical prophecies and use them as powerful fuel for faithful prayer for your nation.
© Gordon A. Dickson
[i] Daniel 9:1–3.