Have you ever heard a speaker address a large crowd, but knew God was using the person to speak directly to you?

I’ve attended many conferences and have heard many speakers deliver top of the line messages but for some reason, there has been one message rolling around in my head more than any other. At this year’s Belonging Conference Robert Madu said, “You don’t have a faith problem, you have an awareness of God’s authority issue.” As he spoke these words, they hit my heart deep and helped me see things about myself I’ve been missing for years.

If faith is the anchor to your life, I’ve always had a strong anchor. I hope for the things of God and see the evidence of Him lived out in my life, but an anchor needs to be attached to the boat. Robert Madu explained how the chain is your awareness of God’s authority in your life. You see, for me, I believe God has the whole world in His hands, but I fail to trust Him as the authority in my little corner of the world. What struck my heart was the need to see God as the ultimate authority in everything in my life, both big and small.

The prophet Daniel understood God as his authority and it’s evident in the scripture. Daniel 6:6-7says:

So the administrators and high officers went to the king and said, “Long live King Darius! We are all in agreement—we administrators, officials, high officers, advisers, and governors—that the king should make a law that will be strictly enforced. Give orders that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions.

Daniel could have lived his life under the authority of the king, but this thought never even crossed his mind. Daniel 6:10 tells us, “But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.”

When the authority of the world said you must worship a certain way, Daniel knew God’s authority was bigger. When the consequence for worldly disobedience was certain death, Daniel knew God has power over death.

Everything is under the power and authority of God! And He cares deeply about your little corner of the world, just as He cared for Daniel. God Almighty can handle whatever the world is throwing at you.

The next time you feel the pressures and stresses of life weighing down on you, take a look at the chain tied to your anchor of faith and ask yourself a hard question, “Are you aware of God’s authority in this issue?”