Faith: What it is, What it isn't And Why it is important

During Ed's study of the book of Daniel, there were four chapters that were different from the other chapters. Chapter 3 related to Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego, and chapter 6 was about Daniel. In his study, it became clear that Daniel and his three friends were special in God's eye. These four individuals, after being taken from Jerusalem to Babylon, were given special treatment from their captors. They were also miraculously saved from horrible deaths and, in the case of Daniel, elevated to a position of high authority in the Babylonian government. What was it about these four individuals that made them special to God? They weren't royalty or heroes; they hadn't won any battles. In fact, they were just teenagers when they were taken captive. What set them apart from the others was their willingness to defy the orders of the Babylonian rulers when those orders conflicted with their relationship with God.
As Ed continued his study of Daniel, he was continuously drawn back to these two chapters until he realized the chapters were not so much about Daniel and his friends, as it was about their relationship with and their faith in God. This raised a lot of questions for him. He wanted to know what the basis for their special relationship with God was. He wanted to know what made their faith special to God and what was it about their faith that was different from his faith. He wanted to know why God answered their prayers and seemed to not answer the prayers of so many people he knows, as well as many of his own. He also wondered why these chapters on faith were included in a book that was primarily a prophetic book.
Searching for answers to these questions, Ed quickly realized he didn't know what God had to say about faith or why faith is important to Him. The next question was, if he didn't know what God had to say about faith, what kind of faith did he have? Did he have the faith to accept Christ as his LORD and Savior? The answer was yes, but what else? Also, where does he go with his faith from here? And finally, how does he get the faith of Daniel and his friends?
These questions and more started Ed's study of faith which ultimately led him to write this book.