Despite any opposition you may face here on earth as God’s child, you can make the personal decision to remain loyal to the Lord. Take your cue from Daniel:

By the time Darius became the next King of Babylon, Daniel was no longer a young man. Daniel had grown in both wisdom and influence within the kingdom.

The entire kingdom was very large, so Darius chose to set one hundred and twenty princes over his kingdom to assist in governing it. Then over those one hundred and twenty princes he appointed three presidents (Daniel was one of them).

The king really favoured Daniel because Daniel had such an excellent spirit and the king wanted to put him in charge over all the leaders.

This in turn created jealously within the hearts of the other presidents and princes; and they conspired to find fault with Daniel’s actions, so that they could report it against him to the king.

Can you imagine such a large crowd trying to scrutinise your every move?

Wonderfully so, they could not actually find a single fault in Daniel’s conduct. There was no corruption and no misconduct, because Daniel was so diligent in what he did, and because he was a righteous son of the Lord.

Then this group conspired to set him up in a murderous plot in respect to his belief in God.

They literally used his own religion against him. They also tricked the king to participate, by saying that they felt that everyone in the kingdom should only bow down to the king and worship him and no one else. They asked him to sign a special decree pertaining to this.

Yes, the king was blinded and what blinded him at that moment was pride and the fact that there were so many voices standing in agreement pressurising him. So sadly, the king agreed to this plan. Little did he know or understand that Daniel regularly and openly prayed to His God.

Despite this decree signed by the king, Daniel did not change his actions:

“Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.” Daniel 6:10 (King James Version)

These corrupt leaders obviously made an effort to catch Daniel praying to the Lord. They then told the king that Daniel was dishonouring him by praying to his God.

It was only then that the king realised what had actually transpired… only he could do nothing to help Daniel, because he couldn’t go against what he had signed. So, Daniel was thrown into a den of lions; and a stone was placed over the entrance of the den, so that no one could get in or out of it.

In God’s glory and might, He sent an angel into the den to shut the mouths of those ferocious wild animals.

Daniel remained a loyal son to the Lord in his faith and worship, so God honoured Daniel by preserving his life and giving him His peace.

As God’s son or daughter, you have a choice; to remain loyal in testing times, and to put your trust in God, despite the opposition you may face. You can trust God for His hand of preservation and for His divine peace.

Verse: “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” Isaiah 26:3-4 (English Standard Version)

Practical Action Step: Pray the following prayer: Father, I ask for your strength ahead of time. Lord please help me to always remain loyal to you, even when situations may get challenging at times; or when I am tempted to take an easier route out of difficult situations that may not honour you. In the precious Name of Jesus, Amen.