The following devotional is the third in a short series focusing on Daniel 3: Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego in the fiery furnace.
“So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and . . . 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.” (Dan 3:26-27) What a fantastic occurrence! Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego were thrown into a furnace so hot that just being near it killed the ones who threw them in, yet they came out without a scratch! Their hair wasn’t singed, their robes were not burned, and they didn’t even smell like fire! Wouldn’t it be wonderful to be the recipient of such a miracle? Wouldn’t it be nice . . . ? But wait a minute! Could it be that this miracle wasn’t just for Shadrack, Meshack and Abednego? Could it be that you and I can (and do!) experience such miraculous happenings today? I would like to suggest that we are “thrown into the fiery furnace” quite regularly, for the trials and tribulations we pass through every day have the potential to burn us just as badly as Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace! And this story teaches us that when we pass through the fiery furnaces of life, we, too, can come out of them without a scratch! How? The same way Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednego passed through their fire! By placing our total trust and dependance of Jesus! If we can pass through the trials thrown in our paths by depending 100% on Jesus, ever praising Him for the tribulations and placing our complete trust in Him to get us through, the prophet Isaiah tells us: “When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” (Isa 43:2b). This means that we, too, can come out of the “fiery furnace” without a scratch, without even singing our hair or burning our clothing! Without even smelling like fire! Praise God! Father God, help me to put my faith and my dependence 100% on You for EVERY “fire” that comes my way! I praise You that with You helping me through, I, too, will be able to “walk through the fire” and “not be burned”! Please see Saturday’s edition of The Illustrator for part 4 of The Fiery Furnace.
Love in Christ,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets ( www.scripturalnuggets.org ), Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org
(To access the entire “The Fiery Furnace” mini-series, please click here.)