Daniel was willing to learn what the king wanted him to learn, but not compromise certain standards. For us, how do we hold firm to that line? What’s the line that I know God doesn’t want me to cross? For me, I have to purpose that in my heart before I show up in situations, or else I’m going to shoot right past it. We need to be integrated in the world, but we’ve got to remain loyal to the God who leads and directs us. We need to be careful, otherwise we look so much like the world that people can’t tell what makes us different. Like Daniel, we need to hold on and be loyal to the values that have been placed inside us, purposing them in our hearts.
"But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way."
Daniel 1:8