THE WAY OF FAITHFULNESS

Daniel 6:3 (NIV): “Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the governors by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.”

If there is a single word that sums up the character of Daniel, it would have to be the word ‘faithful’. It is demonstrated in the first chapter of his book in the Old Testament. Although Judah had been taken captive by Babylon, Daniel managed to surface as an exceptional leader. He was “without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king’s palace…” (Daniel 1:4 NIV).

But the deeper quality that distinguished Daniel even more than his obvious gifts of appearance, aptitude, and achievement was his faithfulness, and his loyalty to his God and his friends. When he was welcomed into the palace of the king for an internship of sorts, there was an assigned/prescribed diet of royal food and wine that Daniel was conscience-bound not to indulge in. He resolved “not to defile himself” (Daniel 1:8 NIV). And he didn’t!

Later, when he was elevated above the administrators and governors, they began to try and find charges against Daniel, but they were unable to do so. “…They could find no corruption in him because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent” (Daniel 6:4 NIV). But they were able to manipulate the king to require prayers only to himself. It became the irreversible law of the Medes and Persians. But Daniel faithfully prayed to God three times a day on his knees. He was caught and thrown into the Lion’s Den, but God sent an angel to shut the mouths of the lions. And Daniel’s faithfulness to God literally produced a revival in the government of Babylon. He was also faithful to his friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Daniel’s example encouraged them to be faithful to God in spite of the threat of a fiery furnace if they did not bow down to a golden idol. Daniel was an Issachar man. And Issachar men, like Daniel, are faithful to God, their wives, children, families, churches, employers, and friends…no matter what.

Take five minutes to write down on your phone, or in a journal, what the way of faithfulness might look like practically in your relationships and commitments.