Not Alone In The Fire

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.

Isaiah 43:2

Pause

God could have prevented Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from being thrown into the fiery furnace, but he did not. In what seems a cruel twist, he allowed soldiers to toss them into the furnace and turn up the heat seven times. Perhaps it looked like he had abandoned them in their crisis, but the truth soon became evident. The king, who was watching them, said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods” (Daniel 3:25).

We can’t even pretend to understand why God allows us to experience times of intense suffering. Why doesn’t he lead us around difficulties rather than through them? But this we do know: he walks through our fire with us and won’t allow the flames to consume us. The fire burns hot and hotter and refines us while his presence keeps us from harm.

Ponder

What evidence do you have of God’s presence with you in this fiery trial?

Pray

Father, use my circumstances to reveal yourself to those watching.