Daniel and his friends had been carried into Babylon. Everything around them had changed. Their location changed. Their education changed. Their language changed. Even their names changed. But something inside them didn’t change. Daniel 1:8 told us: “But Daniel resolved…” Daniel had already decided who he belonged to.
If you wait until the pressure comes to decide what you believe, the pressure may make the decision for you.
Eventually, the pressure comes. Eventually, there comes a moment when what you believe costs you something. It’s one thing to say: “I trust God.” It’s another thing to say: “I trust God even if…” Even if the answer doesn’t come. Even if the door doesn’t open. Even if the relationship doesn’t work out. Even if the diagnosis isn’t what I hoped. Even if obedience costs me. Even if God doesn’t do what I desperately want Him to do.
That’s where we find Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3.