Life is full of impossible situations.
They creep in out of nowhere and blow me away. Of course, sometimes things are a consequence of our sin, but when I'm truly following hard after Christ, I have a hard time understanding why things aren't easier. I've learned, however, that if I wasn't faced with the difficult situations, I wouldn't be nearly as dependent on Christ. And if He wasn't there to rescue me from those rough patches in life, then I would most definitely keep trying to promote myself instead of giving God all the glory He is due.
What follows is a post I wrote about one of my favorite "impossible situations" found in the Bible. I'm challenged and convicted by the obedience these believers showed, in spite of their circumstance, and in awe of the faithfulness God showed to them.
It's funny how many times you can hear a Bible story or an encouraging word or verse from someone, and not really let its application sink in. There are tons of Bible stories I've heard over and over during the course of my life, but never really taken anything from them or seen what truth I can take away and apply in my life.
A couple of weeks ago, my mom was talking to me about the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. You can find it here, if you want to read it! It's a story I've heard a million times and thought about how "cool" it is, but nothing more. I've honestly never put much more thought into it than that. Multiple times, over the past 2 weeks, though, God has brought that story to mind and given me insight into how I can apply it to my life right now.
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were totally being obedient to God. They definitely didn't make a mistake by choosing not to bow down to the gold statue that Nebuchadnezzar set up. Yet somehow, they still ended up in the middle of chaos - in the middle of a blazing fire, to be exact! But, God was totally there with them. And, in the end, it says they came out not even smelling like smoke. I mean, how could they give credit and glory to anyone other than God after that?
I've struggled- big time- the past couple of months with understanding why when I feel like I'm being obedient to God, things turn out completely differently than I thought. If I'm trying to listen and obey and I have a peace about my decisions, that I feel sure come from God, why would I end up in the middle of heartache and chaos?
I feel like I'm standing in some fires of life right now - even after making decisions I thought were being obedient. But, I know that God is right there with me - even when I feel all alone or discouraged. And, at the end of all this - I know God is going to deliver me. I want to come out of this like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego - not even smelling like smoke! It's exciting when I think that at the end of all this I can look back and give glory to God alone for the way I know He will deliver me. Even now, the way my heart and thoughts and attitudes have been growing and changing, can't be attributed to anyone other than Him!
I am a camp counselor and I was sharing this with the girls in my cabin. We spent a lot of time talking about God's plan for our lives and His direction and leading. One of the questions I asked the girls in my cabin during devotions was to raise their hand if they thought always knowing exactly what God's will was, and what He had planned next, would make it easier to follow Him. I'm pretty sure just about every hand was raised. And honestly, before really studying and processing the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, I have to say, I would have totally agreed with them. But I was struck by another sort of reality or truth that I can take away from this bible story.
My new perspective? If I was Shadrach, Meshach or Abednego I'm not sure it would have been any easier for me to follow God's plan for my life if He told me it included, literally, being thrown into a fire. Especially once I was informed of the fact that it was because I was choosing to serve only Him and no other gods. I mean, my reward for obedience is something that is sure to lead to my death? I feel like that's a question I would be asking - but, I definitely don't think knowing that was God's plan for my life would make following it any more enticing. In the end, God still received all the glory and praise due to Him, but I know for certain I would not have been all happy- go- lucky to jump on board with that plan! So really, knowing the plan, probably wouldn't have made things any easier.
The reality is, I don't know God's specific, step-by-step plan for my life. And, I'm never going to know exactly what He has next. What I do know is that in good times and bad, He is with me every step of the way and I want to always be living in obedience to Him, in spite of what it costs me. Regardless of my circumstance, I want to live my life so that when people look at me, they see Jesus working in me. I want my life to always point to Christ - whether I'm standing in the fire or not.
Ashley McGarvey is a 20-something, fantastic, Jesus-loving, kind, compassionate, full-time, year- round camp counselor at New Life camp. Oh to be one of the girls in her cabin! She is a daughter, twin, aunt and friend. I met Ashley about 13 years ago and have loved being reunited with and stalking her on facebook. She has always made me happy.
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