📅 18 December 2025
🛡️ Daniel – Strong in Faith. Faithful in the Fire
Devotions from the life of a young man of conviction
🦁 19.Not devoured by the lions – faithfulness that survives
Why God remains faithful even in the greatest risk
📖 Daily Verse
“My God sent his angel and shut the mouths of the lions, so that they did not harm me.”
– Daniel 6:23
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✨ Introduction: When your faith becomes dangerous
There are forms of faith that don’t bother anyone. As long as faith stays private, adapted, quiet, and willing to compromise, it is often tolerated. But what happens when faith becomes visible? When it isn’t negotiable? When faithfulness suddenly has consequences?
Daniel stood at exactly that point. His faith wasn’t loud, but it was consistent. Not provocative, but steadfast. And that is precisely what made him dangerous in the eyes of those who wanted to secure their power.
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🛤️ Devotional — Closer to the lions’ den than to comfort
By now Daniel was an old man. For over eighty years he had lived what it means to serve God faithfully—under different kings, within shifting political systems, through promotion and danger. Now he served under King Darius in the Medo-Persian Empire. And once again he stood out—not through intrigue or self-promotion, but through reliability, wisdom, and integrity.
Darius recognized Daniel’s exceptional abilities and planned to place him over the whole kingdom. But where there is promotion, envy grows. Other officials felt threatened. They frantically searched for a reason to bring Daniel down. They examined his work, his decisions, his past. But they found nothing. No corruption, no misstep, no weak spot.
Then they realized something crucial: Daniel’s greatest strength was also his greatest vulnerability. His faith.
They devised a plan as simple as it was devious. A law would be issued that for thirty days forbade any prayer to anyone except the king. Whoever broke it would be thrown into the lions’ den. It was a law of vanity, born from abuse of power. And Darius signed it—without seeing the consequences.
Daniel heard about it. He knew exactly what this law meant. He also knew what it could cost him. Yet he changed nothing about his life. He didn’t close the windows. He didn’t pray in secret. He didn’t protest. He simply kept doing what he had always done. He knelt down, opened the windows toward Jerusalem, and prayed to his God.
That wasn’t provocation. It was faithfulness.
The conspirators waited for that very moment. Daniel was arrested. Darius realized too late that he had fallen into a trap. He tried desperately to save Daniel, but the law was unchangeable. That evening Daniel was thrown into the lions’ den—an execution method from which no one returned alive.
But God was not absent.
During the night, God sent an angel. The lions grew still. Their mouths remained shut. Daniel was left unharmed. No scratch, no bite, no sign of violence. God had not kept him from the den—but He kept him in the den.
In the morning Darius ran to the den, full of fear and hope at the same time. He called out to Daniel, unsure whether he would even get an answer. And Daniel answered. Alive. Calm. Clear. He testified that God had rescued him because he was innocent and had remained faithful to God.
This rescue did not stay hidden. The whole kingdom heard about it. A pagan king recognized the power of the living God. Daniel’s faithfulness became a testimony—not through words, but through steadfastness.
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💭 What does this mean for us?
Not every one of us will face a lions’ den. But we all know situations where faithfulness costs something. Moments when comfort would be easier than consistency. Daniel’s life shows us that God sees our faithfulness—even when it puts us at risk.
God does not promise that faithfulness will keep us from every danger. But He does promise that He will not leave us when we remain faithful to Him. His presence is greater than any threat.
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💎 What we can learn from Daniel
Faithfulness shows up in everyday life, not only in emergencies. Integrity is formed over years, not overnight. God honors steadfastness, even when it pushes us to our limits. And even in the deepest risk, God remains sovereign.
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🪜 Practical steps for today
Examine where your faith challenges you today. Ask yourself whether you are willing to remain faithful even when it becomes uncomfortable. Ask God for courage, not for safety. And trust that God is greater than any “lions’ den” you may face.
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❓ Questions to reflect on
Where am I tempted to water down my faithfulness in order to avoid difficulties? Which habits of faith do I keep— even under pressure? Do I trust God even when faithfulness involves risk?
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🙏 Prayer
Lord, you see my fear and my decisions. Give me the courage to remain faithful to you even when it becomes dangerous. Strengthen my trust that you are with me—in every situation. Let my life be a testimony of your faithfulness. Amen.
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🔑 Key thought of the day
God doesn’t always keep us from the den—but He remains faithful in it. Whoever trusts God is never alone, even in the greatest risk.
