An Unlikely Worshiper

Listen to this powerful statement of worship from the Old Testament Scriptures:

"Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified Him Who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; His kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand or say to Him: 'What have You done?'"

That passage comes from the Book of Daniel in the 4th chapter starting with the later part of verse 34-35. Now you might think it would make sense coming from Daniel who had seen God's favor on his own life and in the life of his close friends that were chucked into a fiery furnace. But… Are you ready for this? It wasn't Daniel talking. It wasn't Hananiah, Mishael, or Azariah. Then who was it?! Let's read the first part of verse 34: "At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified Him Who lives forever."

Did you see who it was? It was King Nebuchadnezzar! The Babylonian king that laid siege to Jerusalem and took the Jews as prisoners of war back to his kingdom. He destroyed God's Temple in Jerusalem in 586 B.C. This is the guy that finally overthrew God's chosen people. Why is he offering such a profound word of praise to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob?

Well - God decided for whatever reason - to communicate with this Babylonian king. He did it through dreams that Daniel would interpret for him. First he dreamed of the 4 kingdoms that would reign after him (Babylon, Medo/Persian, Greece, and finally Rome). The dream he just encountered in chapter 4 had sent him on a journey through insanity (and no not that horrible infomercial workout!) But he totally lost his mind and "ate grass like cattle and was drenched with the dew of heaven." You see - God had decided - for whatever reason - to bless Nebuchadnezzar but he was arrogant and God needed to knock him down a peg or two until he came to his senses. And when he did - he got his kingdom back. And it was even more powerful than before!

So why would God do that to such a person? Because God loves everyone! He created your crabby boss and your moody spouse. That mom at the pool that looks at you like you're ugly! Yep He loves her. The waiter that messed up your order… again… You got it! Totally loves him, too. God loves all of His creation and wants to give them opportunities to know who He is. Unfortunately - it took Daniel to Babylon to minister to this king. So maybe… Just maybe… God has you doing some uncomfortable things for some unlikable people so that He can show them His love through you. Maybe it's your mission to be in the wrong place at the right time. I don't know what your situation is - but if Nebuchadnezzar can worship God in this way - can't anyone be changed? Just something to think about...