What if you could trust God so completely that even if everything went wrong, your faith and praise would never waver? Listen in as Joni shares a classic Bible story about courage.
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SHAUNA: Welcome to Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope. Joni and I have been noticing that more than ever, stories from the Bible are so relevant today.
JONI: I am thinking of those telling words spoken in the book of Daniel by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. To set the scene, these three young men had been exiled to Babylon. They were handsome, intelligent, talented, and all three even had top jobs in the government. But King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden image, and he demanded that the people of God in exile must worship it. But these three exceptional servants of God refused to do so. They were not only risking their positions of authority in Babylon, they were risking their lives. And when the king found out and threatened to throw these three young men into a fiery furnace because of their disobedience, this is how they responded.
They said this. Now listen: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of the blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” That’s from Daniel 3. And it was like them saying, “King, our God can save us; we believe that the Lord will save us. But even if He does not deliver us, we will still praise the Lord. Because we believe the Lord knows best; He sees the big picture, and we don’t. And He’s got His reasons, even though we might not know them. So, king, whatever happens, God is absolutely trustworthy, not because He delivers us, but because He’s God. And we will worship Him.”
Oh, friend, don’t you wish that could be your automatic response when everything goes wrong in your life?! I mean, don’t you want to be able to say, “I’ll trust God if He heals me. But, if He doesn’t, I will still trust Him. I will trust Him if He provides the finances; but I will trust Him if He doesn’t. I will praise the Lord if He lands me this job; however, if I stay jobless, I’ll still praise Him. Those words, “but” or “however” or “nevertheless” should jump to mind when you are in a sticky if-or-this-or-that situation. “But I will trust God” should be your default position, no matter what you’re going through. Because it has such a powerful influence! And that’s what makes this story from the book of Daniel so relevant, so needful for today. Because we live in a time when “every man does what is right in his own eyes,” and God is out there looking for courageous people who will say, “If you follow me in doing what honors God, great; but even if you don’t, I’m still going to do the right thing, even if it risks your disapproval.” Oh, man, God is looking for people who will do that, who will have power and influence in this age of cynics, the same influence that Shadrach and Meshach and Abednego had. Because you know what happened to them, don’t you?! When God did miraculously deliver them from the furnace, it resulted in shaming King Nebuchadnezzar and promoting the fame of Almighty God throughout the entire Empire.
SHAUNA: So, be encouraged by this story, friend. Be one of those brave souls who trusts God “even if.” Don’t waver when it comes to relying on Him. But put your confidence in Him, no matter what. And to help you do that, visit joniradio.org today. You’ll find all sorts of resources that’ll help strengthen your trust and your confidence in God. It’s all waiting for you there at joniradio.org. And thanks again for listening. And today, let’s be courageous!
© Joni and Friends