Smoke

In Daniel 3, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego show strong faith. They walk into the fire boldly, trusting that God will be with them. And - He is!

So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.

- Daniel 3:26-27

When faced with the fires of life, they have a faith that is unshakeable - a confidence that can only come from Christ. They show us that through fires, we can be refined like gold. Christ-followers don’t have to leave a fire smelling like smoke.

I sat listening to Jared’s sermon on Sunday morning and was struck by an ironic coincidence. The night before I had gone to a beach bonfire and the smell of smoke still lingered in my hair. As Pastor Jared shared how we can be refined like gold rather than reek of smoke, I breathed in the scent off my own head and couldn’t help but chuckle. Maybe God knew that sometimes I need very tangible (even stinky) metaphors to hear His voice.

Today I am writing to the reader who looks back on 2020 and can still smell the smoke in their hair. I’m writing to the person who feels like they didn’t live out a Daniel 3 kind of faith.

The fire left you charred, covered in ash, desperate to wash the smell off of you. Whether it was COVID, or the financial ruin, or the divorce, or the depression… you got burned. And when you read Daniel 3, all you can think is - I didn’t have a faith like that. The fire made me doubt. I hurt people. I betrayed myself. And rather than running to God, I ran away from Him.

Friend, can I tell you this? This story is still for you.

It might be tempting to feel the guilt over the mistakes you made and run. But the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego isn’t just for those who have it figured out. It’s also for those who are struggling to see the fourth person in the fire.

I have good news for you, God is still for you.

Even in the moments where the heat was so overwhelming you ran away. He was still there, chasing after you, standing in the flames beside you. When you couldn’t see him or feel him, even when you cursed His name for letting you go through this. He was still choosing you and fighting for you.

Psalm 139:7-8 says,

“Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there! If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!”

One of my favorite worship songs, “On and On” by Housefires, echoes the words written by the Psalmist:

Where can I run from Your presence

Where can I flee from You

Even if I hide on the highest mountain

You are there

If you look back on the last year and you wish you had a different story to tell, remember this: the Lord was with you the whole time and He still wants a relationship with you. He still wants to refine you and remove all of that smoke. And one thing we can be certain of is that more fires will come, and we will have an opportunity to learn from 2020. We can enter the next fire and say “I know what I’m going to do differently.”

We can look back and be so thankful for a God whose blood washes it all away. And thankful to know that no mistake will ever stop Him from chasing after you.

So we walk forward. Into the next fire. Knowing that we can be refined. Here’s to a year with less smoke, because in the fires we can surrender to the Refiner.

Cristina Schmitter

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