When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously (Dan. 6:10).

How would you define courage?  According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, courage is “mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.” 

Right next to that definition of courage, you might expect to see a picture of Daniel, the prophet who was taken into captivity as a young man, was made to serve pagan kings and, in his old age, was thrown into the lion’s den!

Despite fearsome struggles, Daniel was the epitome of courage, persevering in his faith through prayer, obedience, and integrity. But there came a time when his visions of the future frightened him to fainting (Dan. 8 & 10). Then, he did not deny his fears but faithfully confessed his and his people’s sin to affirm God’s provision for the battles to come.

Daniel’s faithfulness to God was rooted in God’s faithfulness to him. Confidence in God’s persevering grace was the fuel for persevering courage – and, even when that grew faint, Daniel humbly prayed and turned to his ever-gracious God for more fuel.

Daniel’s story is not so much about how we muster human courage, as about how God’s persevering grace fuels it. May we, like Daniel, grasp the daily power of an ever faithful and forgiving God as we seek courage for our modern-day trials.

Prayer:
Father, before I would dare to be a Daniel, take my heart to the gracious God in whom he trusted. Instill confidence in your grace to enable me to persevere in my trials.