Lessons

There's a lesson in the book of Daniel that we often overlook. When Daniel stood before Belshazzar to reveal to him the meaning of the writing on the wall, he made a sobering comment, "you have not humbled your heart even though you knew all this." What did the king know that he had ignored? The lesson God had taught Nebuchadnezzar about humility and the source of all power--God Himself. First, that's a lesson it would do well for all politicians to meditate on. Their position of authority was God-given, and He, consequently, expects them at act on His behalf--to do what He would do. If God decided to write on the office walls of our leaders, could make for some sobering reading.
But there's another important lesson here; the one we seem to gloss over. When God "teaches someone else a lesson," He expects me to learn from it as well. Not only expects, He holds me accountable to have learned the lesson and to have applied it to my behavior. Second-hand learning is a part of God's lesson plans--for everyone, not just His people. Paying attention?