Day 265: Daniel 4, 5 and 6

May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you! (Daniel 6:16)

You know the story. The new king Darius divided up his kingdom under three rulers, one of whom was Daniel. Daniel outperformed his counterparts and was slated to receive a promotion, which made his opponents very envious of his success and position. Rather than work harder, they determined to bring Daniel down a notch.

Fast forward to a reluctant king caught by his own words. Darius doesn't want to punish Daniel, his chosen second-in-command, but he also doesn't want to vacillate in front of would-be contenders for the throne looking for any sign of weakness. So Daniel becomes potential Fancy Feast for ferocious felines.

Before the sentence is carried out, Darius whispers a message of regret mixed with a tinge of hope: May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you! The king knew Daniel's life was consistent. Daniel wasn't one who served God just because God had blessed him. He would not deny God to save his own skin. On the contrary, he wasn't the other kind of man with a milk toast faith who, when things start going bad, would suddenly call out for deliverance to a God whom, when everything was good, he had previously ignored.

Are you more likely to cling to God when life is looking sunny or when it's circling the drain? Or, do you – like Daniel – continually and consistently serve the Lord your God?