Just some early morning thoughts from me to you…
But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.’…Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up?’
‘…we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.
If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’
…and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, ‘Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?’ They replied, ‘Certainly, Your Majesty.’
He said, ‘Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.’
Daniel 3: 12, 14, 15b-18, 19a-20, 23-25 (ESV)
The contemporary Christian singing group “Mercy Me” hit the charts twenty-five years ago with their incredibly hope-filled song “I Can Only Imagine,” from which a movie of the same name and about the journey of the group, and the main singer’s life, was produced.
In 2017 they introduced another song entitled “Even If” from which a follow up movie was also produced and released in February 2026.
Here are some words from the song “Even If” which they shared, inspired by the story in Daniel of the interchange between Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and King Nebuchadnezzar, resulting in their being thrown into the fire of a blazing furnace—
“They say sometimes you win some,
Sometimes you lose some.
And right now, right now I’m losing bad.
I’ve stood on this stage night after night,
Reminding the broken it’ll be alright,
But right now, oh right now I just can’t.
It’s easy to sing, when there’s nothing to bring me down.
But what will I say when I’m held to the flame,
Like I am right now.”
In the verses in Daniel, the trio of God-followers, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, under threat of being thrown into the fire for failure to obey the “worship” required by Nebuchadnezzar, stood with God, and refused to obey the king’s laws, when they said—
“If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3: 17-18).
Maybe not a similar circumstance to theirs, but we have all been there.
Facing mountains too high or wide to scale or get around. Burning hot valleys with no end in sight. Dreams on fire and going up in smoke. And never-ending storms.
Looking ahead at your life, an empty picture looms before you. Cloudy at best.
But we see in the story in Daniel, that God joined His three followers in the furnace, bringing them to safety. Four, not three, in the fire.
So, what should we then expect, facing all we face?
Embracing the lesson from the holy trio in the story in Daniel, standing with their God no matter what, listen to a few more words of Mercy Me from their song “Even If”—
“I know You’re able and I know You can.
Save through the fire with Your mighty hand.
But even if You don’t, my hope is You alone….
You’ve been faithful, You’ve been good.
All of my days Jesus, I will cling to You.”
Something to remember, in whatever you and I face, and wherever we are in our journey—our hope is in the “Fourth Man in the Fire.”
Our faith is in God alone.
Because, looking back at life—we can see He was always there, always faithful.
So, no matter where we are, as we look ahead, we can believe in Him.
God’s got us. God is always at work in our lives, for good.
Even if we can’t see His plan, right now.
In His Name–Scott
You will be blessed and encouraged for the journey before you as you listen to Mercy Me singing “Even If.”
