Decisions that will Effect the Rest of our Life. Daniel 1:8—The king thought he would destroy the faith of these kids by changing their names. He was fortunately mistaken. The Bible says that Daniel "purposed" in his heart not to defile himself. It means "to determine, to fix, to resolve and be devoted to principle; to be committed to a course of action." Daniel resolved not to defile himself for he was being true to a lifelong determination to do what was right and not to give in to the pressures around him. He refused to be swayed by popular appeal. We too, are often assaulted by pressures to compromise our standards and live more like the world around us. Merely wanting or preferring God's will and way is not enough to stand against the onslaught of temptation. Like Daniel, we must resolve to obey God and make up our mind now to do what is right before we are faced with temptation. The king could change Daniel's name, but not his character. Daniel determined to do what was right. He was decisive. Decisiveness is making present commitments to avoid future failures. Jeremiah preached against wickedness and foretold of punishment to come. Daniel listened and learned that compromise with evil always results in punishment and problems for the compromiser. Daniel made up his mind to do what was right, for God was his judge. We should make the same commitments. Instability comes from not making up your mind. Daniel shows us that inner convictions can overcome outward pressures to compromise. God-honoring convictions yield God-given rewards as we will see later in the book. Is your mind made up to serve Jesus Christ?
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Coming from Arab, Alabama, and growing up in Tampa, Fla. I moved with my family to Georgia in 1969. I was saved by God’s marvelous Grace in September 1972 at Blue Springs Baptist Church located down the road from North Cobb High School in Acworth, Ga. Called to preach at 16...