Read today’s texts first: Daniel 3-4; Psalm 81; Revelation 17
MAXIMize YOUR DAY
Three’s company but when Jesus joins us
four feels like a comforting crowd of support.
I’ve heard the story from Daniel 3 countless times growing up and read it even more as an adult, but I never connected the experiences of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to their friendship. The clearest theme emerging from these prophetic books is the importance of our dependence on God, but an underlying theme is our interdependence on each other. We see that relationship illustrated in the body of Christ, where Christ is the head, the source of all we do, but we are also vitally connected to each other.
While I think about my upbringing as close to ideal, there was one downside to the way I was raised. My Dad instilled in me the values of a strong work ethic and a sense of self-sufficiency. While it is good to work hard to support yourself and your family, it is not good to exclude others from helping you. I remember a time working on the set-up team at church when several people offered to help me carry things. My first and almost instinctive response is “no thanks, I’ve got it!” But God reminded me then and since that when I respond like that, I am depriving others of the joy in working together.
Daniel and his friends were able to fast from the royal food and not bow to peer pressure, even when their lives depended on it, because of their individual trust in God and also the support they gained from one another. Three is company, but I love how their friendship was honoured by Jesus Himself joining their fraternity, and in all places – a fiery furnace. With good Christian friends and the friendship of God Himself, we have a crowd of support behind us.
“Lord, I pray that among the things You are doing to humble me will be a renewed desire to let others join me in my work, especially when things get too hot for me to handle on my own!”
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