Strength in Numbers

"Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon."
Daniel 2:17&18

The Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzer had a dream one night. The dream distressed him to the point that he could not stop thinking about it. So he called all the enchanters, magicians, and astrologers in the land. He told them that he had had a dream and he needed to have an interpretation. He had decided that these men must not only interpret the dream, but tell him exactly the content of the dream as well. Of course none could do this, so the king became angry and ordered all the wise men of the kingdom to be killed. Among them were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah who had come to Babylon in the exile from Jerusalem. In an attempt to save his life and his friends', he asked the king to stay his order for one day so that he could ask God for the answers that were necessary. His desire was to save his own life as well as the lives of his friends.
    It seemed like an impossible situation. Who could interpret a dream without knowing the content? Surely no man could ever do such a thing. But Daniel had faith in God. He believed, therefore he knew that God would give him the answers he needed. Daniel also knew something else; he believed in the power of prayer and the strength that is found when groups of people pray. He did not attempt to bear the task on his own. He did not isolate himself with God to seek the answers. The first thing he did upon returning to his house was enlist the help of others to pray with him concerning the matter. Of course, all four of these men had a vested interest in finding the answers. If they didn't, they would die. But they believed in the God of heaven.
    Of course, God did answer their prayers. Daniel was given not only the interpretation of the dream, but the content as well. He delivered it to the king and he and his friends were not only spared death, but were elevated to high positions in the kingdom.
    How many times have we faced circumstances that seemed impossible? What did we do to overcome the situation? Often, we feel that we must bear the burden ourselves. We feel that the only hope is for us to seek God until we get an answer. While the idea of praying is certainly the correct thing to do, we must understand that there is strength in numbers. I do not believe that God has called us to bear our burdens alone. He has given us spiritual brothers and sisters. We must be secure enough in our relationship with God and with others to enlist people to carry our burden with us. We need not feel embarrassed or weak when we ask others to pray. The Bible teaches us that there is a divine power exerted when people pray together. There is no circumstance that God cannot redeem.
    When you face difficult situations, gather people to pray. No soldier fights a battle by himself. He is only one part of the army. Stop trying to go it alone. There is an exponential increase in spiritual power when we pray together. As surely as Daniel received the answer to an impossible situation, so can you. Pray for wisdom, pray for answers. Be transparent with prayer partners about the problem. Gather the troops and watch what God will do. If one can put a thousand to flight, two can send legions fleeing. This is the power of prayer, this is the strength in numbers.