Into the furnace...

Has your light dimmed?

With all the craziness going on in the world around us, it's easy to become distracted by the darkness. Perhaps we even allow ourselves to succumb to the pressures of the world or the opinions of others, and forget the light of Christ is within us. Have you allowed your light to dim?

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were among the Jews taken captive and brought to Babylon under the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar. The king had a golden statue made, and at the sound of the musical insruments, all people were instructed to bow to the ground and worship the golden statue. Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah refused to obey the decree- their trust was in God. They knew their disobedience would get them thrown into the blazing furnace, still they refused to worship the statue or serve other gods. Whether God chose to save them or not, they would praise Him and sing to Him amidst the burning flames. The light of faith, the light of God's mighty love within them was greater than their fear of the furnace heated 7 times more than usual!

We have a choice... we can focus on the darkness around us or we can allow God's life and love within us to be a source of light in the world. Like the young men in the book of Daniel, may we trust God enough to still sing and praise Him when the trials (or fire or lions) come.

May we ask God this Lent, to reignite our light of faith; may He fan into flame the gifts within us, so that we may not grow weary in doing our part to build up the Body of Christ.