Faith in the Fire
Anyone else feel like they have been thrown into the middle of a fire lately? Not literally I hope. But you feel alone and somewhat surrounded by the flames of the enemy.
You want to be full of faith but you are seriously wondering how Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were so confident in the face of such severe consequences?
It's in these times where God will remind me to revisit his word, even if it's a story I've heard a million times and ask him to deposit something new in me.
So here is a little excerpt from Daniel 3:12-30 that really inspired me to write this declaration below.
Daniel 3:12-30
They said to King Nebuchadnezzar…'But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”
Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and Nebuchadnezzar said to them,
“Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up?... But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him,
“King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed.
He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace.
So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers...and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?" They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them.
They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
As I was reading this, I started writing down what I wanted to declare over my life. What I truly need to say when I feel uncertain and afraid.
When the voices in your head keep tormenting you and you need to hear some truth. I want you to declare this until you start believing it friends.
I DECLARE
The fire may be before me but faith is inside of me. An army may surround me but God has gone before me.
Obstacles may come to trip me but my feet have been made steady. Lions may come to kill me but God is the shield that protects me.
I stand on your promise oh Lord, that EVEN IF the fire engulfs me, your heart is always for me.
That if it's through the fire that you get the glory, then I'll go into the blazing furnace surrendering. Fear may want to consume me but faith just rises up in me.
Just like the burning bush, I want to display your glory. Let the fire be a sign of your favour. Let the fire be a sign of your presence.
Let the fire shed all the hurt and the pain, let restoration happen in the flames. Purify me, renew a clean heart in me. Let the fire display my downfall and your victory.
I may seem abandoned but I have been chosen. In the wreckage, I have been planted. In amongst the broken, through the cracks, your light peaks through.
Through the fire, a new path is paved. All that stood against me, disintegrates before me.
Through faith, a new life was birthed in me. What was created to destroy me, has been used to elevate me, for your greater glory.
I was set ablaze but I was not consumed. I stood firm on your word.
I was fearless in the face of the furnace, I declared your victory when all looked hopeless.
But you didn't fail me, you didn't leave me. You joined me, you walked with me. Through the fire, you protected me.
I came out untouched and unscathed. In You, I put my trust, my hope, my faith in… always.
