“Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
Daniel 3:24-25 KJV
Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego were Jews taken from Israel as captives. They were in Babylon but they were not of Babylon, just as we are in the world but not of the world. King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold and commanded the people to worship the image at the sound of the music, but Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego refused to bow. After their second refusal to bow, they were thrown into the fiery furnace as warned. They trusted God, having peace in knowing that he was well able to deliver them out of the fire. The fire was meant to afflict, but God used it for a testimony. He turned the situation completely around.
People will say “I’m doing a 180°.” And while that is understood, and it’s good to turn around, God wants us to turn completely around. 360°. To the analytical mind, one might think “Won’t turning 360° point you right back in the same direction?” Yes, but God is after our mind and our perspective. We’re waiting for God to turn our situation 360° around. God might not turn the situation around, but if God can turn us completely around, our perspective of the situation will change. God is waiting on you to turn so he can turn your circumstances. He may be waiting to see if you really trust him, or waiting on you to refuse to bow before he can turn your fiery trial into a testimony. We’re waiting for a miracle of change, but we don’t want to change ourselves. God doesn’t work like that. If God can change us, he can change our atmosphere. Instead of praying for God to change the situation, start praying for him to change you. He may not make the bad boss leave or make the finances better, but he changes the way you view that boss, or the way you view the finances. Once we start allowing God to change our hearts and our perspectives, everything else will fall into place.
“Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;”
Psalm 30:11 KJV
Sermon preached by Pastor J. Davidson and summarized by Sister Hannah Wilson.
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