A Lesson from Daniel
A friend, sent me an invitation to join a bible plan on the You Version Bible App. It had teachings from both the old and new testament which I actually liked because the bible is both old and new. And at the end of the day, there are lessons for every christian from both the old and new testaments. My favorite scriptures, are both from the old testament. The plan had teaching that got me reading and thinking about Daniel, in the bible.
The story of Daniel, is this being taken into a foreign land as a young lad, finding favor in that Kingdom, being blessed by God with the gift of interpreting dreams. The key point for me in Daniel’s life is his work ethic. As someone who works as well I have had to ask myself about my work ethic, and whether my service is mediocre or excellent. We don’t talk about these things enough and sometimes, while our service to God is our first priority, our service to people, our jobs, work ethics are also important to God
So Daniel excelled, at his work, he was dedicated, showed loyalty to his work,the king who was his employer and lastly his work life brought honor to God. The fact that the only way his colleagues could get back at him was to attack his faith( a declaration stopping anyone from praying to God) is a lesson that we should reiterate in our messages and in our whats app church forums. The man had integrity, would not bend for a bribe, nor take bribe. I have been checking and updating what my goals, values, and ethics are especially in my professional life. It is impossible to be a christian and be okay with bribes, corruption, and basically lack any form of decent ethic
The thing is (I know I use this word too frequently), it is not every goal, work ethic that may seem okay, or be popular in your organisation, that is worth adopting as part of your values. The danger with that is that it slowly introduces compromise which later turns into conforming to the standards of the world which is totally different from what we have been called to do
Daniel’s work life was entwined with his belief. Whatever was unacceptable to God could not be justified by him as what occurs or what is popular or trendy. It is not every idea, that is talked about that is actually beneficial. An example will be a person who takes their employer’s business idea, or clients and begins to model their business after their employee’s model. Not only is that probably intellectual property theft, or revealing trade secrets it is dishonesty.
It is a new year, and while making goals, it is important to consider what your own values are. Procrastination for example is not one of the values to hold onto. It is something I am personally dealing with and perhaps someday, I would write an honest article about how it has affected me negatively.
What values are you incorporating as part of your personal/work ethic in 2021?. I would like to read from you so please leave a comment. Mine is overcoming procrastination and being more dedicated to whatever I choose to do.
PS. the story of Daniel can be found in the book of Daniel Chapter 6.
