It is time to turn up the heat. When you are trying to move forward, you will encounter obstacles. This is not the time to fold under and give up. It is time to push through. Whatever you have done before, turn it up! (Fasting, prayer, praise, meditating and hearing the word of God, etc…)
Endure Is the Cure (refer to post on June 10, 2018)
Isaiah 43:2 -4 New King James Version: 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.3 For I am the Lord your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Saba in your place.4 Since you were precious in My sight, you have been honored, And I have loved you; Therefore, I will give men for you, And people for your life.
Hallelujah! God is with us through the fire. The fire will not burn us, and we will not drown in challenging times. We must hold on to the word of God, and God will give us the grace to go through any situation.
Challenging circumstances can cause you to bow and give up. I am determined not to bow to a difficult situation. I will bow only to the Highest God.
This reminds me of the Hebrew boys in the fiery furnace:
In Daniel 3, King Nebuchadnezzar built a golden image as a god. Nebuchadnezzar had everyone in the kingdom bow to the gods and the golden image when they heard the horn and flute. The Chaldeans reported to Nebuchadnezzar that certain Jews that were appointed to the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, did not bow or serve the gods or the golden image he set up. The king was angry and brought them before him and demanded they turn to the gods and the golden image, or they would be thrown in the fiery furnace.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego refused. Instead, they said the God we serve would deliver us out of the fire.
This made Nebuchadnezzar furious, so he told his men to heat the furnace seven times hotter.
Daniel 3 starts at verse 21.
21 Then, these men were bound in their coats, trousers, turbans, and other garments and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell in the midst of the burning fiery furnace.24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished, and he rose in haste and poked, saying to his] counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? “They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” 25 “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking during the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the [ Son of God.”
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar went near the [mouth of the burning fiery furnace] and said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, servants of the Highest God, come out, and come here.” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego came from the midst of the fire. 27 And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them.28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, who sent His Angel[ and delivered His servants who trusted in Him, and they have frustrated the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own God! 29 Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this.” 30 Then, the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the province of Babylon.
Instead of bowing to the situation, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego trusted God to deliver them. It transformed people’s lives, and they ended up promoted. Finally, people were bowing and serving the true and living God.
We as believers should have things happening in our lives that have people glorifying the true and living God.
Do not admit defeat; turn up the heat!
Prayer: I praise you, God, for being with me in every situation. I repent for bowing when under pressure to evil and the circumstance. I choose to bow to the true and living God and stand firm on the promises of God. People will see and glorify your name, In Jesus’ name! Amen.