By Peggy Still-
Everyone needs to know how to behave at a party. Jesus went to a party and changed the water into wine. We are told in Daniel 5 that King Belshazzar had a party with lots of wine. This particular party was unusual because we know that over 1,000 people attended.
Put yourself in the story. You receive an invitation to attend the King’s party. Everyone in town is going. Arriving the night of the event everyone is dressed in their finest. Chariots pull up in front of the castle and you are ushered in by the king’s guards. You can hear the music of the live band as you enter. The atmosphere is charged with excitement. Food is abundant and the wine keeps flowing.
Under the influence of wine, King Belshazzar sends for the sacred communion cups to be brought from the temple for his lords and concubines to use. So the precious vessels are filled with wine and the cups are raised to the gods of silver, gold, wood and stone. This is where the party takes a left turn. Too much booze can cause you to do things you wouldn’t in your right mind do.
Soon a weird thing begins to happen. The fingers of a human hand appear out of nowhere and begin to write a message on the wall. Add to the fact that the handwriting is in a strange language no one at the party can read and you have a real mystery. The music stops, the hall becomes quiet. Although he wasn’t invited, God decided to attend the party and He was not happy with Belshazzar’s foolishness. The same hand that scooped up the valleys, painted the sky, wrote the ten commandments, touched the leper, and was nailed to the cross—those hands showed up at the party.
Of course we know that Daniel was called by the king to come and interpret the handwriting. The interpretation: that God had numbered the days of the kingdom of Belshazzar. That very night Belshazzar died. Party over.
That’s the way the world’s party works. It all seems so much fun at the beginning, then we drink too much of the world’s wine and end up doing foolish things that grieves the heart of God.
Can you read the message God is sending you? You can when you spend time with your heavenly father and recognize his handwriting.
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Peggy currently serves as the Director of Administrative and Client Services for The Fuller Foundation in Pasadena, California. Peggy is a featured speaker in a variety of areas for women including finance, social issues and leadership. She also serves as a consultant to churches and other non-profit organizations in the areas of administration and fund-raising. Married to Mark for 33 years they have one daughter and raised two foster children. Peggy and Mark make their home in southern California.
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