New Year and Resolutions

Resolutions. Every year we all set new goals to eat better, to exercise more, to read more, to learn more, to give more, etc. And by the time March comes around we find ourselves derailed and so far off course we tend to throw in the towel and give up. Some people are more disciplined and they just pick up where they left off and continue on like nothing happened and I applaud them. They are the kind of folks that are resolute; they have integrity and motivation.

Depending on what it is that I have set my mind to, I can become derailed and then pick up where I left off. Like being organized. I can start out strong and before you know life happens, I get busy and anything that was once organized now looks like a war zone. But if I want to continue to locate items and make cleaning up easier, I can jump back on the wagon and clean up like nothing ever happened. Working out, well that’s one area in which I can easily fail. My workouts become sporadic at best. Consistency, HA! Out the window!

But, Daniel and his friends in the Bible is a great example of resolution, integrity, and consistency. Daniel was kidnapped, taken from his home, from his family, from all that he ever knew, and taken to Babylon by the order of King Nebuchadnezzer to serve in the the king’s palace. There at the palace they would be trained for three years. During this training Daniel was given choice food from the king’s table. This food was rich, fatty food that was not a part of Daniel’s Jewish heritage.

But in Daniel 1:8, “Daniel resolved not to defile himself” by not eating the food from the king’s table. Instead he asked to eat what he had been eating and then after ten days Daniel and his friends would be compared to the others who had eaten from the king’s table. It was proven that Daniel and his friends were in better condition than the others who had eaten the king’s food. In Daniel 6:10 – “Daniel always prayed to God three times every day. Three times every day, he bowed down on his knees to pray and praise God.” Daniel was consistent.

You may know the rest of the story where Daniel ends up in the lion’s den for not bowing down to King Darius. Daniel was found guilty of not obeying the law and the penalty was to be thrown into the lion’s den. But, God recognized Daniel’s integrity and devotion to Him. in Verse 21 we see where God shut the mouths of the lions and Daniel’s life was spared. This caused Kind Darius to recognize who the God of this universe is and issued a decree that everyone was to worship Daniel’s God – verse 25. I encourage you to read the first six chapters of Daniel if you’re not familiar with the book of Daniel.

2020 has passed and we are all hoping for a better 2021. I can’t predict what the future holds, but I know this, our faith will be challenged and the resolutions we’ve made will be challenged. How will you resolve to get back on track when you are derailed, when you are tempted to cheat on your diet or workout? Or how will you resolve when your faith is tested? I know the God I serve, the God we serve as Christians, will deliver us from whatever challenge we face – Daniel 3:17. We can resolve and have integrity as Daniel did and trust God.