Book Review: The Daniel Dilemma: How to Stand Firm and Love Well in a Culture of Compromise
One of the most amazing books of the Bible, in my opinion, is the book of Daniel. It's the story of a teenager whose home is conquered by the Babylonians. He was stripped from his home, his culture, and his family and taken into Babylonian captivity. More than all that, he is then forced to go through the three-year boot camp to strip all of his culture out of him and replace it with Babylonian pagan practices.
If you have never read Daniel, you probably are thinking, "This kid must have snapped, who could endure all that?" Not only did he not snap ( I totally would have), but he actually remained faithful to God, rose in authority throughout the Babylonian system, and eventually became the number 2 person in all of Babylon.
One of my absolute favorite books on this story is the book The Daniel Dilemma, by Chris Hodges. This book is a fantastic book that looks at some of the principles that Daniel used to remain faithful while also worshiping and serving God.
Chris says it this way in his book:
“Receiving new names and being invited to eat at the king's table may, on the surface, have seemed like welcoming acts, but they were, in fact, the start of a full-scale assault on the young Jewish men and their faith, much like the broader scheme the Devil uses in our lives to convince us to compromise our standards.”
This book, at its core, is all about our convictions. It is about our ability to lead in the workplace, at home, at school, and even in the church. Satan would love for you to believe that God's commands given to us in scripture are optional. Satan would love for you to believe that to succeed in this world, you must be willing to compromise everything you stand for in order to rise up in the world we live in.
The Daniel Dilemma and the story of Daniel itself shows us a way to thrive in leadership in all areas of life while not compromising your core beliefs and values given to us by God. I think you will be blessed as you read through this book and its supplemental workout and see the parallels between Daniel's world and our own. Chris gives some great insights on how to live, love, and lead, just like Daniel did.
Grab a copy of the book here and the workbook here
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