"God Will Deliver"

"For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him." (Psalms 12:5) After thinking about all the times that God has delivered me from whatever trail or situation that I was overwhelmed by, I realized that not all His deliveries were made by providing for my need, but were made by providing me strength. Here is the thing which God has promised: "I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him"; which is not providing riches, nor even the elimination of those that oppress; but is to be set in a place where it is safe, safe meaning to be rescued from harm or destruction. If you wanted something to compare this meaning of safe to, I would point you to the Book of Daniel, which has more than one example of such deliverance. The one which would closest meet this description, would most likely be that of Daniel in the lion's den; and if you know the story, then you know that Daniel was not necessarily delivered from the lion's den, but was delivered from the lions that were in the lion's den. What is interesting about this story of Daniel's deliverance, is that Daniel did not change his routine of prayer, even knowing that the law had been signed saying that anyone who prays to any god, or ask petition of any deity other than the king for thirty days, shall be cast into the lion's den. Instead, Daniel did as he would always do, praying three times a day towards Jerusalem with his windows open. The "oppression of the poor", and the "sighing of the needy" are both to be associated with each other; much like a squeeze toy, when it is pressed it will squeak; so too, the oppressed, when they are pressed, they will sigh, groan, or cry out. Daniel had been pressed by the law which was signed, and yet, knowing this law was signed, he continued to pray in full view of those who had oppressed him; no doubt that Daniel did so with a heart that cried out to God for deliverance. However, his oppressors had him thrown into that lion's den, even though the king lamented having signed the law, once the law was written, it must have been carried out. Can you imagine what that must have been like? You are committed to serve God, praying to Him and believing that He shall deliver you; yet being put in such a dangerous place, that offered no chance of escape. This is the kind of stuff that faith is made of, and is what believing in a God that will deliver is all about! What was really interesting to this story, was how God ministered to King Darius by this trial which Daniel was placed in. Darius knew that Daniel was a man that believed his God would save him, and he said so to Daniel before sealing the mouth of the lion's den, saying, "Thy God whom thou servest continually, He will save thee". And then after a very long night, the king ran to the loin's den in the morning to check on Daniel, crying out, "O Daniel, servant of the Living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver you from the lions?" Do you see the question asked by King Darius? Is He able to deliver us? I pray that we can see this kind of courage in our body, and in our churches, and within our selves; as we demonstrate to the world that God will deliver us! Daniel's courage in pressing forward to pray, even though he knew what that would cost him, was what King Darius took notice of, and what made Darius fast and stay awake all night long; for he knew that Daniel's God was real by his actions in the light of  what would happen to him, Daniel continued to pray and serve his God... God is more than able to deliver us!!!