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Faithfulness must be built in private in order to succeed in public.

Daniel 6:3 (ESV) – 3 Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. 

Daniel 6:4 – They couldn’t find anything to criticize or condemn. He was faithful, always responsible, and completely trustworthy.

Daniel 6:5 – Our only chance of finding grounds for accusing Daniel will be in connection with the rules of his religion.

Daniel 6:6-9 – 6 So the administrators and high officers went to the king and said, “Long live King Darius! 7 We are all in agreement—we administrators, officials, high officers, advisers, and governors—that the king should make a law that will be strictly enforced. Give orders that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions. 8 And now, Your Majesty, issue and sign this law so it cannot be changed, an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked.” 9 So King Darius signed the law.

Daniel 6:10 – but when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.

Faithfulness must be built in private in order to succeed in public.

Daniel 6:14 – Hearing this, the king was deeply troubled, and he tried to think of a way to save Daniel. He spent the rest of the day looking for a way to get Daniel out of this predicament.

Daniel 6:16 – So at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to him, “May your God, whom you serve so faithfully, rescue you.”

Daniel 6:19-20 – 19 Very early the next morning, the king got up and hurried out to the lions’ den. 20 When he got there, he called out in anguish, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you serve so faithfully, able to rescue you from the lions?”

Daniel 6:21-22 – 21 Daniel answered, “Long live the king! 22 My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.”

Daniel 6:26-27 – “I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. 27 He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.”

Next Steps
Head – Identify What Must Not Change
– What conviction or spiritual rhythm must remain even if the culture around me changes?

Heart – Examine Your Dependence
– When pressure comes, what do I instinctively run to first?

Hands – Establish a Consistent Rhythm of Faithfulness