Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place Week 3: Friday

"Look!" Nebuchadnezzar shouted. "I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!" Daniel 3:25

My sweet 4-year-old niece always wants to sit beside me at meals. It melts my heart. Not only does she request to sit beside me, but she also scoots her chair as close to my chair as she can. She is precious. Her actions tell me that she likes to have her people as close to her as possible. We all want to be as close to our people as possible, don't we? Especially in difficult times, we don't want to be alone. When we face trials, Scripture promises that we are never alone. God is always with us, just like He was with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the book of Daniel. 

In our Bible study yesterday, we left Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, three young Jewish men who were captured and brought to the city of Babylon to serve the king of Babylon, thrown into a fiery furnace because they refused to worship the king’s statue. The furnace was so hot that the soldiers who threw them into the furnace died. They should have died from the flames, too, but that did not happen. Instead, King Nebuchadnezzar said to his advisors, “Didn’t we tie up three men and throw them into the furnace?" (verse 24). They confirmed to him that they did tie up three men. Next, the king shouted, "I see four men, unbound, walking around in the fire unharmed! And the fourth looks like a god!" (verse 25). There was someone else in the fire with them. It was no ordinary person. The king said that the fourth person looked “like a god.” Most Bible scholars agree that this was an Old Testament appearance of Jesus. Perhaps even more incredible than the fact that these men survived the furnace was the fact that Jesus was with them in the furnace. He did not have to go to the furnace for them to be saved, but he did it anyway. He offered His presence to these men in one of the most challenging things they had to walk through. 

Still today, God offers us His presence as we walk through our difficulties. Although we may not know how our difficult circumstances may end and cannot tie our stories with a beautiful bow, we can be confident that God is with us. He offers us His presence, and His presence makes all the difference. 

Moving toward action

Often, when worry floods our minds, we need the reminder that we are not alone. Music is one way to help us tell our hearts what our minds need to hear: God is with us all the time, even in the fire. Listen to the Sagebrush Music Cover "Another in the Fire.” As you listen, sing the words loudly. Claim the truth sung in these words.

Going Deeper

Daniel 3:24-27