Thought for the Day - Saturday October

Thought for the Day – Saturday 3rd October ‘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? Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. 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.”(Daniel 3: 13-18) I always remember as a child loving this story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, I probably didn’t know exactly why I loved it so much at that time but I did love saying their names and singing the wee song which went along with their story which I had learnt at Sunday School. Anyway, I do remember reading their story often in the ‘Big Book of Bible Stories’ which was my preferred bedtime reading and which I used to keep getting out of the library – I think the librarian knew when I arrived with my four books every fortnight for renewal that it would be going home with me yet again! By the way it was a huge book and I had at least a forty-five minute walk home from the library in Shotts, it being located at the Work’s Corner while I lived way up in Dykehead – and most of that walk was uphill – so I must indeed have loved reading that book to have been so willing to carry its weight all that way – along with my other three books! Anyway, their story is one of the great classics of the Bible and is a truly unforgettable tale, full of marvellous imagery what with its fiery furnace and all those musical instruments and its golden images. Of course, it is only in later years as one’s faith grows that one truly realises the underlying message of this story is one of courage and triumph over evil and of great conviction. We can read the story now and know how it all ends but that is not a luxury Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had when they were faced with such adversity at that time. They did not know how their story would end but they had faith and they staked their faith in God and were unwilling to compromise on their faith, even if it meant death, rather they trusted God, stuck to their faith and did not compromise on their convictions. I wonder if we today have such conviction as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego portrayed or even a fraction of their faith and trust in God for no matter what they faced, no matter what trials they had to endure, no matter what seemed to conspire against God’s purposes – not one thing could thwart the faith and trust of these three, not one thing could make them compromise on how they felt about their God. In life we too sometimes feel we are up against it, maybe we feel the demands of life are too great and perhaps we have moments where we feel we don’t have the resources to meet such demands but this story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego reminds us that when we have put our trust in God then in our lives, no matter what we face day in and day out, we too can say with confidence that if any god is able to deliver us from adversity then it is our God. Prayer Loving Lord, You walked with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego through the fiery furnace and you walk with us too through each and every adversity we face in life. May we, like them trust in you, and have the courage of our convictions and never compromise on what we believe and in whom we believe. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.