Courage To Stand

Daniel 3:17-18 – If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. (NIV)

I can still picture my two brothers and me with towels draped around our shoulders like the gowns depicted on the Biblical figures in our Sunday School pictures. We hid behind our makeshift curtain, ready to put on our next Daniel play. One of our favourites was to act out the part where the king made a ninety-foot gold image and invited every important person in his government to the dedication. When we acted out this part, I'd hang a string of colourful buttons around my younger brother's neck and tell him to pretend he was the king. "After the music starts, you order the people to bow down," I'd instruct him in older sister fashion. Then with great fanfare, I'd run into the living room, pump out a few notes on the organ and dash back to the kitchen in time to make sure my youngest brother didn't bow down as the king had commanded him to do. "Tell the king, 'The God we serve is able to save us,'" I'd coach him from behind the curtain. He had to stay standing or we wouldn't have anyone to throw in our pretend furnace.

Although the re-enactment of these Bible stories was a childhood game, they contained important truths — just as important today as they were in my childhood — for they remind us of how God is there for us in every situation in our lives. The God we serve is able to save us. The God we serve is able to protect us from Satan's temptations to do wrong.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, Satan would love to bully and cajole us into saying or doing things that would displease You. Grant us Your protection, and help us to stand against all of Satan's temptations today. Amen.

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