Articles
Make Up Your Mind
Daniel 1:8 (NASB) “But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself.”
Notice the example of decisiveness from Daniel in an extremely difficult circumstance. We see that Daniel "made up his mind" not to defile himself with the food and wine of the Babyloni-an king’s court. With this decision, Daniel showed us what it means to stand firm in faith-even under immense cultural pressure. This was not just about food; it was about honoring God in every choice he made. It was the Babylonian’s goal to strip away the identity of the captives from Judah. Satan still seeks to devour us today and would enjoy us losing our Christian identity and end up looking just like the world. Today, as Christians, we face our own situations that re-quire firm, decisive choices to honor God. Dan-iel’s example calls us to make up our minds in areas that directly and deeply impact our faith. Let’s look at a few areas where we’re called to set boundaries and make up our minds to live differently.
1. Choosing Integrity in Relationships
Our relationships are some of the most mean-ingful parts of life, and they often offer the greatest opportunities to live out our faith. Whether with family, friends, coworkers, or people in our church family, there are times when we are faced with choic-es that require decisions to be made based on our faith. Daniel was sur-rounded by peers who had every reason to conform to the expectations of Babylon. Yet, he “made up his mind” not to compromise his integrity. To-day, we are often challenged in relationships to either reflect Christ’s char-acter or go along with behaviors that do not align with our beliefs.
Integrity means being consistent in our faith, even when no one else is watching. Maybe it’s choosing not to gossip or manipulate in a difficult work setting or deciding to tell the truth when a white lie might seem easi-er. The Bible tells us to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15) and to act honorably toward others (Romans 12:17). Just as Daniel set boundaries for what he would and would not accept, we need to decide that certain behaviors are off-limits, hard stop. This kind of decisiveness can bring about respect for our faith and opens the door for Christ to work through our lives as we interact with others. As those doors open, we need to be ready to share our faith. (1 Pet 3:15)
2. Setting Boundaries with Media and Entertainment
Our world is overflowing with entertainment choices, from movies and music to social media and podcasts. What we consume has a direct impact on our thoughts, our emotions, and our connection to God. Like Daniel, who knew that consuming the king’s food would distance him from his faith, we must set boundaries on what we allow into our minds and hearts. Philippians 4:8 encourages us to focus on “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure,” because these are the things that align us with God’s goodness.
Setting boundaries in this area requires decisiveness like Daniel. We will have to say no to certain popular TV shows, music, or social media content that doesn’t align with our values. It’s easy to feel that our media choices are harmless, but subtle influences add up over time. How about when our favorite singer/band or show has gone off the deep end of vulgarity? They were once clean but now have eroded into frequent vulgarities for exam-ple. How long will we hang onto that old habit before we snap back to a reality where if they had started that way, we never would have started
listening or watching? Now we are on board and find it harder to rip our-selves away as we got lulled into complacency. By choosing content which reflects Christ’s love, kindness, and truth, we are making a commitment to keep our minds aligned with God’s Word. Equally, how about choosing to walk away from content that does not align? It is not too late to walk away! Like Daniel, we are “making up our minds” to honor God in what we choose to consume.
3. Resisting Materialism and Prioritizing Generosity
One of the strongest pulls in our society is the drive to acquire more-more wealth, more possessions, and more status, or the appearance of such. Yet, Jesus warns us that we “cannot serve both God and wealth” (Matthew 6:24). We must decide where our priorities lie. For Daniel, the decision to reject the royal food was a declaration that he served God, not the king. Likewise, we are called to place our faith in God over any material security.
This is a tough area for us, especially when society frequently measures success by wealth. But being intentional with our blessings can bring us a new freedom to be generous, to use what we have to serve others, and to live in contentment. We are called to steward our resources wisely, remem-bering that every blessing is from God. Choosing generosity over material-ism may mean giving more, living simply, or even choosing a less lucrative career to serve God more fully by being present and available to our fami-lies and others more frequently, remembering that time is a gift as well. When we make up our minds to use our resources to glorify God, we show the world that our ultimate hope is not in wealth but in Christ.
In conclusion, Daniel’s story reminds us that choosing faith over conven-ience, even in the seemingly small decisions, brings us closer to God and strengthens our witness to others. Daniel’s decision to stand apart not only protected his relationship with God but also opened doors for others to see God’s power in his life. We can reflect that same commitment in our deci-sion making.
Let us make up our minds to follow God wholeheartedly, knowing that He will honor our commitment just as He honored Daniel’s.
