Text: Daniel 1:1-21
Dare to Let the LORD Give You Your Identity
Though this first episode in the history of Daniel’s life in Babylon is well known, it is far too often misunderstood as a tale of diet and personal fortitude. Kids are taught to sing “Dare to be a Daniel!” as if that is something they can go out and do in their world as a pathway to success and acclaim. When we read this story in its historical setting through the light of the Gospel of God’s Grace, we will see something more encouraging and profound – both for the task of parenting and the challenge of being a faithful student of any age. The young boy Daniel shows us that trust in the Living God enables us to “receive, rather than achieve” a personal identity that brings Shalom – “peace and prosperity” - to our circumstances.