Rad, Shach, and Benny!

Hi(:

So I'm reading through Daniel, and the other day I simply fell in love all over again with these two verses:

"If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of 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."
-Daniel 3:17-18

Um, wow! Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were pretty legit! The dared to stand before a king, a king who held them in captivity, a king they were subservient to, a king who held their earthly lives in his hands... and yet they chose their love and devotion to their God above literally everything, their position in the kingdom, their riches, their very lives!! And on top of that they showed incredible faith in God.

It's breath taking when you let it sink in... here are three young men who placed their whole trust in God and had faith so strong that they KNEW beyond a shadow of a doubt He was more than capable of delivering them from the furnace, yet they knew HE knew best... and even if He chose not to save their earthly life they would still stay faithful to Him. Crazy.

That's the kind of faith I want, that's the kind of daring boldness I want in my life. I don't want anything to matter, not man's decrees or man's praise, nothing but my Savior. That's the prayer of my heart...

Oh more than anything! I look around and see feeble weak faith, I see guys and girls who love Jesus genuinely... but where is the fire, the passion, the all consuming love for Him? Where is the life reflected of God's glory? Where is the devotion, heart, and offering ourselves as living sacrifices? Where is the CHRIST in christian?! "Little Christ" is what christian is supposed to mean.. There is so much more we miss!! So much more we lack... we get but a glimpse of God and some miss that entirely. Why the apathy, why the lack of care, why the complacency?! It breaks my heart...

And it makes me want to run! Run with endurance the race the Lord God of heaven has set before me... run towards the goal and never look behind. I want my eyes to be fixed ever heavenward...

Anyways, love those verses(: