Be Strong and of Good Courage | Pastor Will Hawk | 26 April, 2026

God’s sovereignty sits underneath the chaos of exile, so we can face a world that doesn’t make sense without handing the story over to fear. We trace how Babylon tries to remake people through assimilation and how Daniel’s quiet resolve becomes a blueprint for faithfulness in hard places. 
• the missing battle details in Daniel 1 and why “The Lord gave” is the point 
• God ruling as cities, lives, and hopes rise and fall 
• Babylon’s strategy of conquest, temptation, and identity reshaping 
• the difference between Nebuchadnezzar’s finished-product mindset and Jesus calling the weak 
• why the renaming of Daniel and his friends targets worship and belonging 
• Daniel’s refusal of the king’s food and the question behind discernment: unto what 
• quiet resolve before public reward and why holiness often starts unseen 
• honoring authority without losing conviction and asking for wise permission 
• God giving favor, wisdom, and skill that the world cannot manufacture 
• why Scripture celebrates faithfulness in Babylon more than escape from Babylon  

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