Faith, Furnaces, and Lions

I'm amazed at the faith of the heroes of the Bible. Most of them have their moments of great faith, mingled with times of doubt or failure. Daniel was not so, or at least the Bible doesn't describe such an incident with Daniel. Some things stick out to me regarding him and countless others.

1) If you are a man of God, the people you serve in power will most always love you. They may not agree with you, but they will respect you. For a person in power, having an objective, right hand man who will willingly say difficult things is invaluable.
2) How one receives hard advice, will determine their success in life/death. Best to embrace that person than to shun them and do whatever you planned to do anyway.
3) God takes care of his own. You may not avoid a lion's den or a fiery furnace, but he will be faithful to deliver me through it.
4) Compromise in a small thing, don't expect to stand strong when faced with a pack of lion's or a furnace. The gospel is to change the culture, not change with the culture.