What a thrill to be able to disciple one another into God's adventures for us! We can all learn from our varied experiences day-by-day, and from the way God speaks personally to us through his Word. It brings greater and wider encouragement if we share it. When we know one another personally, these experiences become more authentic and more easily identified with. My Grandfather was a blacksmith and a great gentle-giant of a Christian man. To see him pull a molten bar out of the furnace and start to shape it into a weather vane, or a gate hinge, was most fascinating. As the metal cooled, it became unworkable so back into the fire it went in preparation for more shaping. We must not be fearful as we are thrust into the fire, or doubt God's love for us, because it is in the fire that the image of the Son of God appears in all His glory (Dn 3:24-25).

As I read these words I was taken back to the 28th of July last year. In my "quiet time" I had reached Daniel chapter 3. As soon as I got to verse 24 and read "Didn't we tie up three men …" I burst into tears, knowing what followed. I felt God saying to me: "I have always been with you. Your life has often been like a blazing furnace, but I have never left your side. The willingness of these three faithful servants of mine has been your willingness when it came to serving my purposes. You have always been up for sacrificing yourself no matter what; and I have loved this about you. Don't belittle what I have done in you and through you. You would not be kidding yourself. As you draw closer to me, the heat you still feel will begin to diminish and I will bring healing to the third degree burns you have received." I am daring to believe these words.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego showed no sign of being hurt ("their hair was not singed, their clothes were not burned, and there was no smell of smoke on them") but they had being willing to perish in the flames. Many do get burned; some even die. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego served God faithfully and trusted in Him. We must do the same. King Nebuchadnezzar said: "There is no other god who can rescue like this" from a blazing furnace. We have the wonder of God's grace, and it is more than sufficient for us!

Nebuchadnezzar's personal god was Nebo, the god of fire, hence the punishment of the blazing furnace for all refusing to worship the idol the king had made in his own honour; heated seven times hotter for God's faithful servants. (God prepared hell for the devil and his angels (Mt 25:41) and He wants all to be saved and come to an understanding of the truth so as not to end up there (2Pt 3:9) but they will without Jesus (At 4:12).) With Jesus in the furnace, Nebo was rendered powerless. And Jesus lives within us; so as we trust and obey Him the whole demonic realm is rendered powerless.