“Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent.” (Daniel 6:3-4)
Whenever I read this short account, I always wince at the stark contrast between Daniel and leaders (historic and current) in all human fields. There are very few who come close to matching him. Even his enemies could not fault him. I am hard-pressed to think of a contemporary government leader anywhere in our world who would emerge completely stain-free from such a thorough, sustained, hostile investigation as Daniel endured. I also reflect on how I would fare under such searching scrutiny as Daniel experienced. It’s never a pleasant reflection. I’m no Daniel. There are plenty of flaws to find. How would you fare?
Lately, in my quiet times, I have been re-reading the Old Testament accounts of some of our foundational characters. I have realised just how flawed and compromised and ambiguous many of our ‘faith heroes and heroines’ are. I’m not sure many of them are a match for Daniel’s integrity either. And yet…what has also struck me in re-visiting these stories is that God still works with them and through them. He doesn’t give up on them. He doesn’t discard them. He doesn’t write them off. His purposes are always achieved, despite their flaws. I am also struck by the sometimes slow and torturous signs of growth and maturing that these same characters show over the course of their lives. They do improve. They do learn. There are moments when they rise above their own nature and character and history, and they shine for God. They make a positive difference.
We are no ‘Daniels’. Yet bit-by-bit and day-by-day we strive to become more like our Lord and more useful to our Master. And, incredibly, He still works with us and through us. He doesn’t give up on us. He doesn’t discard us. He doesn’t write us off. His purposes are still achieved, despite what we are. Hallelujah!