I was praying this evening, and that is what I heard in my spirit. So, here I am. I will always write as I am being led. So obviously, WE need to be reminded of Abba’s role as a way-maker. I immediately thought of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. (I know you are probably thinking, “whaaaaaaat? Raye isn’t referencing Hannah or the woman with the issue of blood?” Nope. Not today, we are throwing it back to one of those truly mind-blowing moments where God came through as only He can!) Now, if you don’t know the story of these three Jewish boys- I need you to go read Daniel 3! Then come back.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego had unwavering, complete and total faith in God being a way-maker. So much so, that they were confident in being thrown into a burning, fiery furnace.
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18
How amazing is it stand in the face of a huge, gigantic, tough, burning, fiery, long, painful, sorrow-filled, (insert the adjective that describes your trial) and tell the storm that you Father has it? No matter what, God is faithful to His Word and what it SAYS He is.
Now, it doesn’t say that pain and suffering will never come. As a matter of fact, the Bible tells us to rejoice in those moments! But, we know that when storms DO come, Abba is with us. He is a way-maker. In the most amazing, powerful, mind blowing way. If you didn’t go read Daniel 3, then I have no choice but to tell you the way God came though for them. These men refused to bow down to a gold idol. The consequence for that in their time was death. The king was so anger that he instructed them to heat the furnace up seven times the normal temperature. It was so hot that the men who were throwing Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego in, burnt up! But, when they were in the furnace… the king had to look again! There were FOUR men instead of THREE!
God is walking with you. He will never leave nor forsake you. He doesn’t leave when times get rough and the going gets tough. He doesn’t leave when you lose your job, or drop out of college. He doesn’t leave when your bank account is empty, or when your car breaks down. He doesn’t leave when your parents are sick, or when your children are either. He doesn’t leave you when you are battling depression, nor when your marriage is crumbling. He doesn’t leave when you are diagnosed with cancer, or infertility. He doesn’t leave when your IVF fails, or when you have another miscarriage. He never promised that this life would be easy. He never said that we wouldn’t have to go through our OWN fiery furnace. But, He did promise that He would never leave nor forsake us. He will walk with us, just as he was with these three Jewish boys that were walking fully by faith.
“Then Nebuchadnezzar went near the mouth of the burning fiery furnace and spoke, saying, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came from the midst of the fire. And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them.”
How amazing is it that God brought them through a fire, and they came out without smelling like smoke? There was no sign of them going through the furnace, but what DID come out of it was the increase in faith (for them) and glory brought to ABBA! Sometimes, we have to go through painful things in order to build up our faith in God. Sometimes, we have to go through hard times to show nonbelievers the glory of God into our lives. Imagine if you were standing there (an idol worshipper) and you saw these events transpire? Uh.. ISSA CONVERT! Lol. But seriously ya’ll, our lives aren’t about us. We live to serve God and be examples of the Gospel. We should use every storm to bring His matchless, wonderful, powerful name Glory! Even the ones that hurt. Even the ones that don’t feel good. Even the ones that we don’t want to go through. Even the ones that we aren’t 100% sure in. Even the ones that seem too crazy. It’s in these moments that God is able to reveal himself to you as your way-maker.
Trust in Him. Trust me, I’m with you. I’m depending on Him to make a way for me/us in so many areas. I believe i’ll see Him do it, again. Hold tight to this miracle, and know that He can do it again. It might look a little different, but He’s the same God.
XOXO,
Raye
