Daniel knew that Nebuchadnezzar was a pawn on God’s eternal chess board that would ultimately be moved around to accomplish God’s ultimate purposes in the world. Daniel saw this first hand. He served at least 3 different kings in Babylon and led spiritual awakenings under each one. There are moments and seasons when finite people judge their current circumstances without faith in God’s sovereign control and the despair, but not Daniel. Daniel knew no matter what it looks like in the present, God is at work.
Daniel had an eternal perspective and his eternal hope calibrated his life; and not what was going on at the moment. When you have that kind of hope it gives you a courage and confidence that is unexplainable. The world is falling apart, your life may be falling apart, but there is a joy, a peace, that baffles outsiders and onlookers. Your life doesn’t rest on the outcome of current situations; your life is anchored to an eternal hope that transcends this moment in history.
