Quite often, this is what it looks like when God calls upon you to "be the wall".
The past few blogs I have talked about just a few of the times when I had "hit the wall", as my pastor called it. Those impossible moments, when it feels like you have nothing left, no strength, no resources, no options; except the will, and the call to keep going.
In all honesty, the past few days have been like hitting a wall. I have stared at this screen in complete frustration. I have written pages, only to delete them. Knowing that there was something to share, but it was like my hands and my head could not connect and I just could'nt get a hold of the words that I felt in my spirit.
For three days I had written daily, and I was nervous about that. I was afraid that I did not possess enough information, inspiration, or talent to step up to a daily blog. And then for three days it seemed like my fears where right.
In all honesty, I had nothing until this morning. It has been a long week. I have had some health issues that were causing a lot of discomfort, that I finally had to resolve last night. I was tired and I felt weak as I laid in the bed this morning. I was having one of those twilight dreams, half-awake, half-asleep; when someone in the dream said,"you scare me, because you are my wall." But then they explained that it was a good thing; it was a wall that kept them from doing harm to themselves, and that they were grateful for such a person that was willing to stand in such a place.
There are four young men in the book of Daniel that 'hit the wall' more than once, yet they always placed there trust in God. As you read the story of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego you will see that what truly made them outstanding was simply their devotion to God. No matter what the circumstance, they would honor God first and above all else. They never protested, or rebelled; they submitted to the authorities that were in place, as long as they would not have to dishonor their God. And they did everything in excellence
There is a sense of irony to this story. They had been elevated to positions of power because of the dream that Daniel had interpreted for King Nebuchadnezzar. They had stood with Daniel and they had prayed with him, and they had found favor in the eyes of God and man. But Nebuchadnezzar's vanity always seemed to get the better of him. God had showed him in a dream the power and the future of his empire, but instead of praising God, he saw the opportunity to praise himself. In the dream, the golden head of the giant statue represented the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar; so now he would build a giant ninety foot golden statue of himself for all to worship.
All it seems for, except the four young men who would only worship their God,
That was the impassible barrier, the place where there was no compromise. They had lived in captivity in a foreign land, they had taken the new names that had been given to them, they wore the clothes and they assumed the titles that were placed upon them; but they had never been unfaithful to God. I believe that they were well aware of what might happen to them when they were summoned with all of the leaders of Babylon, to come and worship the image of this king. But they were not called to fear the fire, their only passion came in praising God.
Our impossible situations are God's proving grounds.
When these three men were thrown into the fiery furnace, it was only what bound them that burned away. Even their clothes did not smell like smoke, because they were not bound by the positions or titles that their clothing would have represented. Their hair and beards did not singe, because they had openly acknowledged that their wisdom and glory was all from God; no man had bestowed it upon them, not even the king. They were not harmed, because they belonged to God and only God would decide their fate.
A nation would watch these men 'hit the wall'. A nation would watch as these men would loose everything because of their devotion to their God. And because of their devotion to God, they became the wall that would stop a nation dead in its tracks. Every leader of Babylon saw the power of the God of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah on that day, and there was no way to get around it. Because God Himself showed up in the fire for all to see.
I have come to believe that the walls we encounter in life are never meant to crush us. But they do become part of us, those experiences that become our stories. They build us, so that one day we will have the strength to stand. Whether it is before our family, coworkers, employers, friends, enemies, and for some even leaders and nations; we will have the strength to stand for God. To not be bound by anything that this world could offer, our only devotion to God. It is in those impossible times that God will become the most visible in our lives, but only after we have learned to keep our eyes on Him.
So if you are hitting a wall right now, keep your eyes on Him; call out to Jesus and ask Him to step into your situation. Or have the strength to stand, be the wall that stands in the way to destruction and causes others to see the presence of God. In it all, just praise God and leave the fires up to Him.
There is one after thought in all of this. I had considered writing it into today's blog, but I am feeling led to save it for tomorrow. Something to think about, a question that I have wondered,
"Where was Daniel in all of this, where was he as his friends were thrown into the fire?"
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