One of the first things mentioned about Daniel was that he purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself (Daniel 1:8). This meant that Daniel was not willing to do anything that was disobedient to his God. King Nebuchadnezzar overtook the current Kingdom of Judah. So, Daniel and the rest of the people of Judah lived under their rule. But still, Daniel did not compromise his belief in the one true God. He purposed in his heart that he would not compromise.

Daniel stayed faithful to God, and God continued to give him favour with even King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 1:9). Daniel did not bow to any other gods and did not forsake praying to the one true God. Even when his captors put in place a law that said if anyone prayed to any other god, he should be cast into a den of lions, Daniel remained faithful (Daniel 6:7). Kowing this, Daniel continued his regular prayers to God in the open and not in secret (Daniel 6:10). As a result, Daniel was then cast into the lions’ den, but God is faithful, and he saved Daniel (Daniel 6:22). And not only did Daniel get saved, but God was given the glory because these foreigners saw God’s greatness through Daniel.

These accounts show Daniel’s confidence in what he believed. It showed that he was sure of this God that he believed. He was so sure that he put his own life on the line based on this belief. The Bible shows examples of God rewarding this kind of faithfulness. Daniel gained so much unlikely favour from his captors because of God.

Daniel shows us that we should:

1. Be confident in who our God is.
2. Purpose in our heart to be faithful to Him.
3. Be willing to lose even our lives in being loyal to Him.
4. Be willing that even if God does not come through at that moment, be willing to lose for God.

And this does not mean that we won’t have moments of doubt and fear but when we purpose in our hearts beforehand, we will more likely succeed in being faithful to our God.