Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. Daniel 6:10b

The story of Daniel is one of my favorite.  You will remember that Darius decreed a law prohibiting anyone praying for 30 except to him; a law which Daniel determined he could not obey.  We celebrate Daniel’s disobedience of the law.  However, it is important to know that when Daniel prayed it was not be defiant or make a statement.  He was in his room; on his knees praying and could not have been seen by anyone, except those who actually chose to violate his privacy. Daniel’s action was not about himself.  Not one time in this story is Daniel defiant toward the King.  This was not about the king; this was not about Daniel and his self-aggrandizement. This is about Daniel’s non-compromising dedication to God. You see, God is not interested in people grandstanding on his behalf.

We see people every day who seem to be making a statements for God.  You name the issue and someone is always willing to take a stand, to make a statement, or write a post.  I often ask myself, are they doing this for God or is it actually more for themselves and their reputation? Many people take pride in being non-conformists or rebels for a cause; my generation has been especially good at it.  But again, are they making the statement for God or are they doing so just to make a statement, to be seen or heard?  We certainly need people like Daniel in the world today; people who are not willing to compromise their faith.  But we need people, who like Daniel, when being obedient to the Father do so in a way that does not bring attention to themselves, but glory to God.