When The Pressure Is On

By: Jenifer Metzger

Daniel chapter 3 tells us the story of three men who felt pressure. Pressure like none other. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had two choices: bow down to King Nebuchadnezzar's golden idol while ignoring God's law or obeying God's law while risking a painful earthly death. Their decision was not just a matter of life and death, but a matter of earthly life and eternal death or earthly death and eternal life.

When the pressure was on, they decided to stand firm in God. They placed their lives in the hands of their Father, trusting Him for the outcome. My favorite part of this story is in verse 18 when they say, "But even if He does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.” They trusted that God could save them if He choose to, but they knew He might not. That it simply might not be part of His plan, and they were okay with that, with just knowing they were obeying Him.

Yet we find, in verse 25, that because they put their faith in God, because they honored, obeyed, and trusted Him, He saved them! He spared their lives!

When the pressure is building around you, when you feel like you might be ground up and squeezed out, what will you do? Will you bow down to the worldly temptations? Will you fall under the weight of the heavy burden you've carried? Will you let the pressure overwhelm you to the breaking point?

Or will you stand firm in God? Will you place your life in the hands of your loving Father and say, "I trust that you can help me in this situation, yet even if You don't, I will still stand firm in You." Sister, trust God. Trust that He was there with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in that fiery furnace, and He will be with you now.