Innocent Before Him

I want to continue to honor the Godly women in my life, but I'm taking a brief detour today. I am in the midst of studying the book of Daniel. I just finished Chapter 6. I wonder how many of you were taught (or assumed), as I did, that Daniel was a young man in this chapter? This is the chapter where Daniel is thrown into the lions' den.

If you're like me, you pictured a young man going to that room in his house and kneeling 3 times a day to the Most High God. You pictured a young man being framed by the satraps and commissioners so that he would no longer hold the king's favor. But do you realize that Daniel was about 81 years old during this chapter? I didn't know this until I was studying this time. Isn't it exciting how God always shows us something fresh when we turn to His Word?

As I was thinking about Daniel's age at this point in his very faithful life, I started thinking of my own relationship with God. Would I have the steadfast faith that Daniel and even Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego had? If you believe as I do that everything contained in the Bible is about a real event that involved real people, this should cause some self-reflection. These aren't fairy tales from some long-ago time about make-believe people. These were real, flesh and blood men and women of God that were put to the test and found faithful. If that doesn't make you shout 'Glory!' you better check your pulse, honey!

The phrase 'Dare to be a Daniel' takes on a whole new meaning when you realize that he's 81 facing those lions, doesn't it? Would you be that steadfast and true? Would you be "found innocent before Him" as verse 22 says? O fellow disciple, I want to be able to answer these questions with a hearty YES! Don't you?