God Wants My Complete Trust

When I was a young boy, I can remember several times my dad would put me on an object that seemed high off the ground (like a well cover), and tell me to jump off and he would catch me.  The distance to the ground seemed far, but I always knew that the distance to my dad's arms would always be closer.  So I would jump, trusting in my dad's ability and willingness to catch me.  When we come to Daniel 6,  the prophet Daniel finds himself in another difficult situation.  In fact, we could say that unlike the other times, this situation is one of the most stressful Daniel will encounter.  It seems that some jealous co-workers were setting Daniel up for destruction by targeting his faith in God.  If Daniel is convicted, he will lose his job, his position, his possessions, and his life.  Daniel has a major decision to make:  "Will he continue to live out his faith in public or keep it to himself in private?"  Or another way of saying describing his situation is, "Will he trust God with his life or will he take matters in his own hands to preserve his life?"

The first situation that proved Daniel completely trusted in God was the fact that when Daniel was attacked, he did not retaliate but rather continued to trust God with the situation.  His faith was under assault (6:1-5), but Daniel knew that the Author of his faith was stronger than any threat thrown his way.  Daniel was called a righteous man (Ez. 14:14), because his faith was not shaken by the wind, but rather kept anchored to the Rock of Ages, Christ Jesus.  Too many Christians have a wishy-washy faith.  Daniel's reaction to persecution teaches us a precious truth found in Matthew 5:11-12, that when our character and faith are attacked by the world, that attack does not give us permission to stop trusting or serving God.  Just like the three Hebrew friends of Daniel, with his silence he was preaching the following sermon, "My God is able to deliver me, but He he chooses not to, I will not stop praying and seeking His face."  If you and I have this type of confidence and trust in Christ Jesus, then we will have a less stressed life.  Until next time, keep walking close to Christ.