Daniel 5:5 (NKJV)
“In the same hour the fingers of a man’s hand appeared and wrote opposite the lampstand on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace; and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.”
What do you think will happen if you lose your brakes while going down a steep hill? Which way would you go at a fork in the road when one has emergency lights and vehicles and the other is clear? What if you knock a glass off your deck railing and it falls two stories onto a concrete slab?
The old cliche I could see the writing on the wall does not usually mean actual writing. It is a metaphor for being able to predict the outcome of actions that are in motion. According to Merriam-Webster, the idiom is “used to say that it is clear that something bad will probably happen soon.” Science may call it inevitable outcome.
If we look at the questions. Losing your brakes, chances you are going to crash. If there is an incident blocking a route of travel, chances are your acting like a GPS and recalculating to take the clear one. A glass falling twenty feet onto concrete, you’re picking up shards for a month.
Life is filled with these moments if we pay attention. I have no doubt that we can all come up with plenty of examples. Just like most bad ideas can start with the words, “Hey, look at me.”
There are many ways to deal with impending doom. We can try to ignore it until it is passed, we can handle it as best we can, or we let it overwhelm us. Trying to ignore anything in hopes that it goes away does not really work. You can sometimes pause in heavy erratic traffic and the issue will clear, but ignoring the brakes going out will not stop the car.
In society today there is a very high rate of people experiencing anxiety and other related issues. This is from everything we let build up until that last straw is added. Being in a hurry and the breaks go out. We are already in an anxious state because of the rush, now we just grab the wheel and scream until the car finds where it wants to stop itself.
Taking a breath and dealing with circumstances is not always popular, but it is usually the only way to effectively handle life. I have been in that car losing breaks. After the initial panic I had to walk through the options once I could breathe. Take the foot off the gas, downshift, and then try to slowly apply the emergency brake.
Even if the inevitable was that I crashed, then I can deal with the aftermath is I am able. I know I would be praying the entire time. I wouldn’t want God as my co-pilot, I would want Him as the pilot. It is not easy to let go and let Him handle circumstances. We need to be in control, we don’t want to be out of control.
The Lord is always with us no matter what is going on. It is up to us how closely we keep Him. When I am trying to do everything myself I feel Him less, but when I am praying and keeping Him in my mind I feel more at peace. This connection is crucial because many times the Lord is showing us the way, but we don’t see it or don’t want to go.
In the opening scripture we see an event that happens in the middle of King Belshazzar’s lavish banquet after he used the gold and silver goblets looted from the Temple in Jerusalem. After watching a disembodied hand scribbling a message, the king had to call Daniel in to interpret it.
Daniel 5:25-28, “And this is the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of each word. MENE: God has numbered your kingdom, and finished it; TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting; PERES: Your kingdom has been divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.”
We would not feel to well if God wrote a message that we have been judged, the days of our household are numbered, and will be divided between two other people. Talk about the writing on the wall. It doesn’t sound like there is much wiggle room.
There are some scriptures like Proverbs 22:8 that try to warn us, “He who sows iniquity will reap sorrow and the rod of his anger will fail.” How is this for a prediction that there will be a negative outcome for those who are malicious or oppressive in their actions. Remember the cliché, “You reap what you sow.” I have seen this in my own life and in the world.
You can also spend time digging through the scriptures that announced the birth and life of our Savior. Start with Micah 5:2, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”
We need to stay in prayer and in the Word to help with finding guidance and direction in all situations. Listening closely and paying attention is the key to the entire process, because the Lord is trying to show us the path he has for our lives. We have to ask ourselves if we are willing or able to follow where He sends us or what He asks us to do.
I know that I have drug my feet and have rebelled against what He has shown me, but He is still there and His plan will come to pass whether we are a participant or not. We all need to take a breath and take the time to find the writing!
TALK TO HIM ABOUT HIS MESSAGES
You see the words of many colors and styles written all over the wall,
Is the artist trying to send a profound message or maybe none at all.
We have to take time to discern what they are wanting to convey,
Each little piece may change or add to what they want to say.
It is amazing how much we can or can’t see in such a short gaze,
Things we can ignore or the height of your emotion it can raise.
There can be messages hidden in everything we hear or see,
Trying to steer us in a direction or a place where we should not be.
There are much more better lessons from the scriptures to learn,
Like how to accept the Lord and receive forgiveness we could never earn.
The kind of healing messages that should not only be on a page,
But written across the sky for all to see and not locked in a cage.
Jesus showed us how to live and who we should be reaching out to,
It is everyone who is around us and not just me and you.
So we should walk with the Lord fore He is with us everyday,
Talk to Him about His messages out loud and especially when you pray.
Simple Faith Christian
simplefaithchristian.com
Copyright 2026
Simple Faith Christian 