Standing up with care,

"Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliever us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up."

Daniel 3:16-18

Godly men standing up for what God had said. A perfect picture of how things should be done in my life and in ours as Believers. These men talked to the King as a man who held the position. They showed respect even in the face of death. I can't even always maintain a certain level of respect when my ideas are opposed! We need to take this to heart I think. We as Believers need to be standing up for things God told us to stand up for in a culture that is longing to assimilate into what everyone else is doing. We ARE called to live a life that sticks out to a dark world but as that light we need to be careful with how we do it. What a great passage with a lot of things to mull over but I think it's so important how these men responded. They respectfully answer in the face of death acknowledging the outcome of their actions may end in death. We as Believers need to realize that when we face something just because we stand up for God doesn't mean we don't have to face whatever the consequences are that result from it. Here it was death and they accepted the punishment with respect to the King because he was the King! God saves these men but the thing is he didn't have to! If God allowed them to die it wouldn't change what these men where doing! We need to remember the way we as believers handle ourselves and our lives may be the only "bible" they see in a day, a week, a month or year for that matter. The way we handle authority in our life does matter! Their action of standing up against what God had said not to do in a respectful way fully accepting the consequences is something we as believers who live in America very well could face in the future. Right now it costs us nothing but that is not guaranteed and when our faith starts to cost us something will we still be standing firm fully accepting the consequences in a respectful manner worthy of our father?

Father your a good God. Your a good God because you define what good is and this world does not. No matter what the situation we face we have to remember as believers greater is He who is in you than he who is in this world John says. Father I know the end of this tapestry and story your telling and it excites me that you choose to use people in places all over the world in your plan when you don't have to. I pray that we walk with care as Psalm 15 says so that when you want to use us as tools we are sharp and ready even when it gets messy and not what we expect. Let us represent and stand for what you stand for and hurt for what you hurt for handling ourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ as Phillipains 1:27 says.