“In that day,” says the Lord, “the enemy will break open the graves of the kings and officials of Judah, and the graves of the priests, prophets, and common people of Jerusalem. They will spread out their bones on the ground before the sun, moon, and stars—the gods my people have loved, served, and worshiped. Their bones will not be gathered up again or buried but will be scattered on the ground like manure. And the people of this evil nation who survive will wish to die rather than live where I will send them. I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!” Jeremiah 8:1-3
We can see from these verses the depths that Israel had plunged. All of this portrays to us the fact that God cannot overlook unrepentant sin, especially the most demonic kind of sin brazenly flaunted in His face. Had Israel treated God as lovingly as they treated their idols, they would have been blessed. There was a few that was serving God, but they were so few that they were not counted. One of them was Daniel. Daniel was part of the ones that were carried into captivity. We see God’s judgment on Israel, and then we see what happened to Daniel.
The story of Daniel is a great example of a man who was able to navigate through the waters of both adversity and prosperity. But how did he do it? I believe that Daniel was able to stay strong throughout the times of adversity and prosperity because his faith was anchored in the sovereignty of God. Daniel believed that God had everything in control, and that He was orchestrating all the events in the world around him to accomplish His purposes and to declare His glory. Nothing can happen to you unless God wills it. In order to have the joy in our life, we need to be more like Daniel.