I am sure that a good number of folks have read or heard the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and their tangle with Nebuchadnezzar and the fiery furnace. And where it is a great story and demonstration of the power of God and His protection of His followers, the bible verses below I believe to be overlooked, at least I know I tend to.
“28Nebuchadnezzar answered and said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king’s command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God. 29Therefore I make a decree: Any people, nation, or language that speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb, and their houses laid in ruins, for there is no other god who is able to rescue in this way.’” — Daniel 3:28-29 (ESV)
King Nebuchadnezzar recognized the power of God and that power was demonstrated to and for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego who refused to worship any other god than their God, my God. These men devoted themselves to God and in return, He protected them from the fiery furnace and made it possible for the king to see and recognize their worship.
Now, the actions taken by the king related to the tearing “limb from limb” is a bit harsh as related to the worship of other gods than our Lord, but the recognition of His power and the idea that we should be worshiping Him is the takeaway here. The three men worshiped God and only God and it was seen and recognized by the king which caused him to side with the men and recognize and demonstrate the more that comes from God (as noted as the story progresses).
For me, I am reminded that it is my task to simply worship God and allow others to see me. I have to be willing to stand for Him and demonstrate my reliance on Him and fully and publicly devote myself to His worship. When others see, they will recognize and where first they may be in wonder, they will also want to know more.
When you worship, what is the environment you worship? Are you allowing others to see as you worship publicly? What if you did and allowed others to see and wander and want more?
Trevor's Thoughts 