An Excellent Spirit

Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. Daniel 6:3 NKJV

Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were Hebrews, who were first appointed to serve king Nebuchadnezzar after they were exiled from Israel to the Babylonian kingdom. Daniel served under four kings over the span of his lifetime. He, as well as the other three Israelites, distinguished themselves above all the other leaders. It was said of Daniel twice that he had an excellent spirit within him. The Hebrew word for excellent in this setting is ya-teer. It means preeminent and very or exceedingly excellent. The word for spirit in this context is roo-akh, which means mind, spirit, and wind.

I believe the Lord calls us all to excellence in whatever we set our hand to. We are to work hard to do our very best, and we are to ask God for wisdom while we apply ourselves to what He has called us to do. We are to allow the Lord to renew our minds with His word. We are also called to live from our spirit or from our hearts. We do this by allowing the Lord to fill us with His Spirit (wind is a symbol of the Holy Spirit) and to allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us and give us sound direction. This is what I believe it means to have an excellent spirit.

As we live like this, God will promote us in His time and in His way so we can have greater influence in His kingdom. Let us ask God to give us an excellent spirit.

Dear Father God,


I desire to please you in all I do. Help me Lord to follow You with all my heart and from my heart. Help me to grow in excellence as I apply myself to all that you put before me. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit and guide my steps. May You look upon me and say, “My child, thank you for letting Me build in you an excellent spirit.” In Jesus name I pray, Amen.