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Follow God with Humility

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Follow God with Humility
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Follow God with Humility

Daniel 5

Key Point

Here is the key point today! Learn from others, follow God with humility. There are many harsh lessons in life that don’t have to be difficult if we are willing to learn from others. We can learn from anybody. Sometimes we learn from their mistakes, and other times, we learn from their wisdom and good decisions. 

About the Story

In today’s story, we are going to learn from someone’s pride and arrogance. This person had gotten to the point where they did not put God first and his pride prevented him from having a good relationship with God. Arrogance is a serious issue that can destroy your own life and hurt the people around you! That is why we must learn from others so that we can follow God with humility.  

Today’s story is the 5th story in the book of Daniel, and you can find it in Daniel, chapter 5. There have been many years that have gone by since our last story, and there is a new King. His name is Belshazzar, which is very similar to Daniel’s Babylonian name, Belteshazzar. Daniel remained in this latest King’s service, but now he was much older.

We need people in our lives that can remind us of our place in this world.

Application

Learn from others, follow God with humility. King Belshazzar did not learn, or perhaps he ignored the lessons from Nebuchadnezzar. We need people in our lives that can remind us of our place in this world. Last week we learned that God is the greatest, which means we are not the greatest. 

We are not horrible humans with no hope. God made us in His image, which makes us pretty awesome, and in all of creation, there is nothing like a human being. God made us unique and special as a species and as individuals, but we are also dependent on him. We can not live well apart from him. We cannot have the life God created us for if we are arrogant. To live the life, He made us for; we must follow God with humility.

Disccusion Episode

Discussion Episode | Follow God with Humility

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Discussion Episode | Follow God with Humility
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Discussion Episode | Follow God with Humility

Learn from others, follow God with humility! King Belshazzar did not learn from the king before him and he had a very tragic end!

In today’s story, King Belshazzar had a massive party with his friends, where there was a lot of drinking and worshiping false gods and idols. During the party, a hand started writing on the wall. Daniel came and told the king what it meant and that because he was not humbly following God, the kingdom would be divided and given to someone else. That same night the king was murdered, and the kingdom was given to Darius the Mede.

Daniel 5

Story Episode

Lesson

Learn from others, follow God with humility.

Questions

  1. Name three people that follow God with humility, one you know personally, one you know about like an author or speaker, and one from history. All of them must be people who follow God with humility.
  2. What is something that you are looking forward to doing? Is it in line with following God with humility?
  3. Our reasons we want something will reflect our humility or arrogance. Name two things that you want and talk about why you want them?

Growth Tip

Let me give you some advice. Plan things that are in line with following God with humility. Doing this will impact the activities you do with your friends, the type of parties you plan, the movies you watch, and even what you talk about with others. 

Prayer Requests

At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.

Tell Everyone that God is Great

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Tell Everyone that God is Great
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Tell Everyone that God is Great

Daniel 4

Tell everyone that God is great.  You may not have as big of an audience as Nebuchadnezzar had but tell as many people as you can! Learn from this story don’t be proud; the Lord will humble you, instead of humble yourself and announce to everyone how great God is. 

My wife had severe back pain for many years. After prayer, she experienced healing. It was incredible. People would come up to her and ask how she was doing, and she would proudly explain to them that God healed her and that God did a miracle. She felt a little awkward telling some who dismissed the healing, but she would insist that it was God who healed her. 

We all have a reason to tell others why God is so great. What is your reason?

YouVersion Bible App

Discussion Episode

Discussion Episode, Tell Everyone that God is Great

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Discussion Episode, Tell Everyone that God is Great
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Discussion Episode | Tell Everyone that God is Great

Be like King Nebuchadnezzar, Tell Everyone that God is Great. Today we heard about how he told his whole kingdom through a message that God is great and above all. He learned this lesson in a very difficult way. A dream predicted he would go crazy and live like a wild animal eating grass like a cow. When his sanity returned, he wanted everyone to know just how great God is.

Daniel 4

Story Episode

Lesson

Tell Everyone that God is Great!

Questions

  1. What is something great about God that you have experienced?
  2. King Nebuchadnezzar was incredibly conceited and proud. He enjoyed bragging about how great he was. He did not give God the credit that he deserves. It is easy for us to see others as proud and self-focused. It’s more difficult to see it in ourselves. Is there anything you are proud of that you don’t give God enough or maybe any credit for?
  3. We typically don’t think of hard times as discipline from God. Yet in the bible, particularly in the Old Testament, we read stories of hard times as God’s correction or discipline for people. Is God trying to get your attention through a difficult situation? If so, take some time to reflect and pray. Invite others to speak about the situation and give you some advice.

Tips and Tricks for leading a discussion

Some times it can be scary to answer a question and vulnerable. Show everyone that it is a safe place by answering the questions vulnerabally.

Growth Tip

On my phone I have the Youversion bible app. It is awesome. You can find it on google and apple app stores. It gives you the entire bible plus a ton of other features. I will put a link to it in the show notes. 

A couple of features that I like are the pray feature and finding your friends there and seeing what they are reading and how they are growing. It’s called the youversion bible app. It’s very popular and you will be able to find it if you do quick search in the app store. 

YouVersion Bible App

Prayer Requests

At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.

God Can Rescue Us

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
God Can Rescue Us
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God Can Rescue Us

Daniel 3

God will rescue us, and even if he doesn’t, we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up. I love this response from Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Regardless of what happened to them personally, they were determined to honour God even if that meant death for them. What does God do? He rescues them!

the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. But even if he doesn’t… we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up. Daniel 3:17-18

God loves to rescue us. It gives him great joy when we honour him and for him to rescue us! Don’t ever underestimate God’s ability and desire to rescue you. And, honour God, put him first; he deserves it, He is the Greatest! 

Sometimes we need rescue from situations that were beyond our control like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Other times we need to be rescued from our own poor decisions. Regardless of your situation, make it your aim to honour God and trust in his response. 

There have been times when I have asked God to rescue me, and he did, like when I was lost at the fair. Other times God did not respond the way I thought he should, and I was not rescued. I had to choose to honour God still or to walk away from him. God can rescue us; will you honour him regardless like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?

Discussion Episode | God Can Rescue Us

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Discussion Episode | God Can Rescue Us
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Discussion Episode | God Can Rescue Us

We heard the story of Daniel’s three friends being thrown into a blazing furnace because they would not worship a statue that King Nebecunezzer set up. We were left with this challenge to reflect on. God can rescue us; will you honour him regardless if he does or does not like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?

Daniel 3

Story Episode Link

Lesson

God can rescue us; will you honour him regardless if he does or does not like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?

Questions

  1. Tell each other about a difficult time in your life and how you honoured God or did not honour God.
  2. Our Growth tip today talked about making honouring God a habit. What are some routines and habits that you have that honour, God? How could you tweak or change a habit so that you can better honour God?
  3. People may not ask you to bow down to a statue, but people will encourage you to do things that do not honour God. It could be friends pressuring you to do something wrong, or it may be images that you see on social media that cause you to want to explore other things that don’t honour God. What are some behaviours that you know dishonour God but are consistently enticing you?

Tips and Tricks for leading a discussion

It is common for people to not pursue God like they know they should or with as much effort as they onced did.

Have a conversation with them and rather than challenging them just listen and ask questions.

If it is you than find someone to talk with about it!

Growth Tip

Make honouring God a habit! One thing that is so important is to honour God in the little things. When we honour God in the little things when we get to the big moments in life we will continue to honour God in those big things too. 

This is not to say that every moment will be easy? We are often tempted to go our own way and respond in a way that does not honour God. Rather than thinking of life as a bunch of decisions think of life as a bunch of habits. The more your habits honour God the easier it becomes to continue in those habits when something really difficult comes your way and you are tempted to choose a path that does not honour God. Make honouring God a habit and you will continue to honour God when challenges and difficulties arise.

Prayer Requests

At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.

God is in Control

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
God is in Control
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God is in Control

Today we are going to learn that God is in control. Now, that does not mean God is controlling. He has given us free will and allows us to make every big and little decision for our lives. God is in control of everything because He is all-powerful.

A few years have passed since Daniel, and his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, were taken from their homes in Jerusalem and forced to serve King Nebuchadnezzar. All was going well for these four men, but I am sure they were all still hurting and missed their families, friends and home back in Jerusalem. 

I am confident they could see how God was protecting them and guiding each of them as they settled in the land of Babylon and served King Nebuchadnezzar. God was watching out for them and blessed each of them. Our God has not changed; He does not change. He was good back in Daniel’s day, and he is good now. Since our Lord is good, we can have confidence in the fact that God will care for you and watch out for you.

Daniel 2

Story Episode Link

God is in control even when it seems the worst is about to unfold.

God is in control even when it seems the worst is about to unfold. The king did not kill Daniel and his three friends instead he promoted. God puts the world leaders into their roles. God knows the future, and he takes care of those who love and follow him!

One of the things I admire about Daniel is that when he got news about the King’s order to execute all the wise men, he didn’t panic, but he and his three friends started praying. They believed that could help them. Learn from Daniel, pray because God is in control.

Discussion Episode | God is in Control

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Discussion Episode | God is in Control
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Discussion Episode | God is in Control

In this episode, we learned about how King Nebuchadnezzar wanted his wise men to tell him his dream and what it meant. The problem was, he was not going to tell anyone anything about his dream. God revealed to Daniel the dream and what it meant. Daniel saved all the wise men from death, including himself and his three friends.

We learned from the interpretation of the dream and Daniel’s response to the situation that God is in control, and we can trust him because God is good.

Daniel 2

Story Episode

Lesson

God is in control even when it seems the worst is about to unfold.

Questions

  1. How would you respond to the captain of the guard knocking on your door and hearing the whole story that led to the King’s order to execute the wise men?
  2. Ok have each person finish the following sentences.
    Life is hard because ______.
    God is in control so I can ____________.
  3. When God answered Daniel’s prayer he started to praise God. Tell each other how God has cared for you and then give thanks and praise God with each other. For example, God has given me health throughout my life. I praise you God because you are a wonderful creator and designer. Thanks for giving me a healthy body. Your turn. Tell each other how God has cared for you and then give thanks and praise God with each other!

Tips and Tricks for leading a discussion

Is there someone in your group (maybe it’s you) who is grumpy, upset, or just sad? Take time to listen to them before jumping into the discussion.

Growth Tip

One important thing is good friends that love God. Who we spend time with will help us grow closer to God or discourage us from growing closer to God.

We all need good Christian friends that are dependable. Daniel needed his friends to pray, and they did! Who are the Christian friends in your life that help you grow closer to Jesus? Who will help you when life gets hard? Consider letting them know how much you appreciate them and be sure to be praying for them regularly.

Prayer Requests

At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.

When Everything Goes Wrong

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
When Everything Goes Wrong
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When Everything Goes Wrong

When everything goes wrong, God is still present and ready to help you through difficult times. I have met a lot of people and have listened to a lot of stories. Stories about tough times when everything goes wrong! Some people not only remain faithful to God like the Characters in our story today but grow closer to God. I have also seen others become very angry at God and walk away from their relationship with God. But, even then, when everything goes wrong, God is still present and ready to help each person through difficult times. 

Yout can find today’s story in the book of Daniel, which is in the Old Testament. The nation of Israel, at this point, is divided into two kingdoms, the Northern part was called Israel, and the Southern part was called Judah. 

The Northern Kingdom, Israel, had already been captured. They had already been exiled to other parts of the world. The kingdom of Judah followed in Israel steps worshipping false gods, which involved some terrible behaviours. The king of Judah at this time was King Jehoiakim, and he was a relatively new king only three years into his reign when this story takes place.

Discussion Episode | When Everything Goes Wrong

Discussion Episode | When Everything Goes Wrong

Bible Story Podcast
Bible Story Podcast
Discussion Episode | When Everything Goes Wrong
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Discussion Episode | When Everything Goes Wrong

It feels like a lot has gone wrong in 2020 with COVID 19. You and your family may have some other things that have made life even more complicated and challenging amid everything that is going on. Today in your discussion, encourage one another to be vulnerable.

King Nebcubnezzer took Daniel and his three buds by force away from their home in Jerusalem to enter the Royal Service in Babylon.

Daniel 1

Story Episode

Lesson

When everything goes wrong God is still present and ready to help you through the difficult times.

Questions

  1. One of the difficult things when everything is going wrong; we often can’t see how God is working because we are so fearful and anxious about the situation. We often need our friends to help us understand how God is working. Imagine the conversation between Daniel and his three friends as they walked to Babylon.
  2. After arriving in Babylon and being served from the King’s table or kitchen, what would you hope to see on that table?
  3. Think back to a situation that was hard when everything seemed to go wrong. How did God help you through that time?

Tips and Tricks for leading a discussion

Listen carefully to each other and when someone has shared something vulnerable show your appreciation.

Growth Tip

When everything goes wrong, we need a reminder of God’s presence. What is something that can tell you of God’s presence? Every time you see or hear that reminder, acknowledge God and say a little prayer.

Prayer Requests

At the end of your discussion, go around the group and ask for prayer requests.