Stand alone ∙

Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or with the wine that he drank. – Daniel 1:8

Genesis 39:6-9

 6 Joseph was a very handsome and well-built young man,

 7 and Potiphar’s wife soon began to look at him lustfully. “Come and sleep with me,” she demanded.

 8 But Joseph refused. “Look,” he told her, “my master trusts me with everything in his entire household.”

 9 “No one here has more authority than I do. He has held back nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How could I do such a wicked thing? It would be a great sin against God.”

Standalone or Stand Alone – What’s the Difference?

The term standalone is an adjective. It is a synonym for independent, freestanding autonomous, isolated, separate, or self-standing. It is correctly spelled as standalone or stand-alone. It typically modifies a noun. We speak of a standalone freezer, a standalone product, or a standalone software license. It refers to something that is independent of other resources.

Stand alone is a verb phrase that means to be apart from others, either literally or figuratively. Such a person often takes a unique stand. They do not conform for conformity’s sake. They are in a league of their own.

There are many examples in the Scriptures of men and women who stood alone. To name a few, Esther, Daniel, Rahab, Ruth, Paul, and Joseph.

REFLECT & PRAY

“Right is right even if no one is doing it; wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it” (Saint Augustine).

Father there are no shadows of gray with You. You have told us what is right and what is not right. Encourage me to walk righteously and make the best possible choices.

INSIGHT

“How can God’s people resist the pressures that can ‘squeeze’ them into conformity with the world? According to Romans 12:1-2, ‘conformers’ are people whose lives are controlled by pressure from without, but ‘transformers’ are people whose lives are controlled by power from within.”

“Daniel and his three friends were transformers: instead of being changed, they did the changing! God used them to transform the minds of powerful rulers and to bring great glory to His name in a pagan land” (Wiersbe).

Each child of the King has the right and ability to choose to stand alone.

“The first step in solving their problem and being transformers was giving themselves wholly to the Lord. Daniel’s heart – the totality of his being – belonged to the Lord, as did the hearts of his friends.”

“A heart that loves the Lord, trusts the Lord, and therefore obeys the Lord has no difficulty making the right choices and trusting God to take care of the consequences. It has well been said that faith is not believing in spite of evidence – that’s superstition – but obeying in spite of consequences.” (Wiersbe).

Often it comes down to the conflict between what the Father has asked us to do and what custom, tradition, or law asked us to do. Paul leads the way and provides steps of action.

Philippians 3:7-16

 7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done.

 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ

 9 and become one with him.

 10 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death.

 12 But I press on.

 13 I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,

 16 But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.

“Conformity is doing what everyone else is doing, regardless of what is right.

Morality is doing what is right regardless of what everyone else is doing” (Evette Carter).

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 12-31-2

© Dr. H 2023