Into The Oven - More Seeds of Hope

Today’s story seed is Into the Oven. From the Book of Daniel 3:19-20 King Nebuchadnezzar ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and cast them into the white-hot furnace. The man knew he hadn’t hit his goals for the year. He had discussed this with his boss, who was behind him 100 percent. They were taking a long-term approach as they tried to woo some of the top clients from the industry. It seemed like a solid plan, and they were making progress, but last month when the quarterly numbers were reported to the central office, his boss got fired. Late last night, he received a text to report to his new manager first thing in the morning. He was watching TV with his wife when he read the text. “I’m about to be fired,” he said to her. “You’re kidding? They just sent that to you in a text?” “No,” he said. “I’ve been told to report to my new manager first thing in the morning. I’m pretty sure that can only mean one thing. They will let me go as soon as I arrive.” She said, “Let’s pray about this.” They held hands and closed their eyes. He prayed, “Lord, help us to get through this and to trust that you will walk with us in this period of uncertainty.” Going up in the elevator in the morning, he was surprisingly calm. When he sat down in his manager’s office, she smiled at him. “I’m sorry to have to do this, but we have to let you go. We appreciate your work over the last seven years.” A security guard stepped into the office. “Officer Maxwell will accompany you while you empty your desk and leave the building. There are boxes in the storage closet if you need them.” “Thanks,” he said. It felt odd to him, but as he was emptying his desk, he felt a sense of gratitude. He wasn’t scared about the future. It was time to find something new. Later that day, he told his wife, “It was as if a wall of protection was around me. I thought I would be angry, depressed, distraught, but no. I found myself feeling thankful and confident that something better will soon arrive.” For those who have been fired from a job, it can be overwhelmingly painful. Sometimes there’s anger at the company, or a specific boss. Sometimes there’s anger at one’s self. Almost always there is worry about the future. It’s a highly stressful time. But people get through it, and they often find that they end up in a better situation than the one they left. Still, though, the heat is on when anyone gets fired. Now this is different from the scriptural oven King Nebuchadnezzar put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into. That one was white hot and designed to be a penalty for not obeying the king and refusing to worship his statue god. And yet, there are similarities. Many of us wish we could be like those three brave, pure souls that the fire could not harm, because their belief and trust in God was so strong. We may observe that our faith isn’t that strong or pure. Sometimes we may think that we are going to be thrown in the oven, and we won’t survive, and worse yet, we don’t deserve to survive. Yet, the closer you get to God, the more comfort you will find. It’s not that your life will be easy, but you will find a way to make it through the most difficult times. God is watching, encouraging, and will stay with you—even in the oven. Now let’s take 30 seconds to water the seed… When has God helped you through a difficult time?