Our friend, Tom Steipp, recently shared this devotional by Ephraim Kwok which we thought was thoughtful and worthy of sharing at such a time as this. We’re grateful for God’s Word…true and trustworthy as it is.
Living through trials
(Reference Daniel 3 and Daniel 6)
These are difficult and challenging time for many people, including Christians. The economy is uncertain and we are feeling insecure about our future. In the midst of our difficulties and trials, we are reminded that God will see us through, if we depend on His divine providence. There are several lessons we can learn from the book of Daniel on this topic.
God sees us “through”, but not escape “from”
It is very important to note that God never promised us that we would never see bad times or difficulties in our lives. In fact, He said in John 16:33 that “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” It should be clear to us that as long as we are in the world, we will experience tribulation. However, God did promise us that He will see us through and that we shall overcome.
In the case of the three Jewish young men in Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, God did not deliver them “from” the fiery furnace; instead, God miraculously saw them “through” the fiery furnace. Likewise, we can learn the same lesson from Daniel 6 – God did not deliver Daniel “from” the lion’s den, but God saw him “through” his ordeal inside the lion’s den and protected him.
As Christians, we often make the mistake of asking God to exempt us from the tribulation of this world. Of course God can intervene and deliver us, but more often than not, God would not deliver us from the turmoil, but God will see us through. This is especially relevant to us these days; will we be affected in today’s economic turmoil? The answer is yes and that we would be affected to some degrees or another, but rest assured that Jesus has overcome the world, and He promised to see
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