But Even If He Doesn't...

Recently I read a blog about Kent Brantly. If you haven't been watching the news, this is the man working for Samaritan's Purse who contracted ebola while caring for ebola patients, was sent to America for medical help, and miraculously recovered. The blog presented a new angle on the doctor's character, saying that while he lay in bed, waiting for potential death, he thought of the men who would be thrown into the furnace if they did not w0rship the king.

If you're like me, you might've done a double-take. Seriously? What does a fiery furnace have to do with potentially dying from a disease? I'm pretty certain I wouldn't start meditating on that, especially if I'm burning up from a fever! And yet Kent Brantly told a source that is what he was meditating on, and to him, it made perfect sense. Like those three Hebrew guys, he said with conviction, "G0d can rescue me...but even if He doesn't..."

The thing that got me was that I've never really thought about a modern-day situation of the fiery furnace in any context other than pe.rsecution. Whether it's ISIS slaughtering people, or a boss trying to convince you to be dishonest with tax forms for the sake of work, in my mind, the modern-day antagonist was always a person. And when we think about those situations, it's easy for us to think we'd jump into gallant action when a physical, personal antagonist threatens our fa!th. Bow down?! Of course we won't! or Lie for the good of the company? Of course not! But when that antagonist becomes ebola, or a miscarriage, or a sudden tragedy, or cancer, can we say with confidence, "G0d can rescue me. He can cure my ebola. He can mend my broken heart. He can raise the dead. He can purge the cancer from my body. But even if he doesn't..."

"But even if he doesn't..." what, exactly? What is a modern translation of, "We still won't bow down?" It's easy for us to say we won't bow down to someone, but what about a thing, an ideal, a dream? Can we truly say that even if He doesn't rescue us from horrible diseases or experiences, we won't bow down to self-pity, or anger, or bitterness, or hatred, or envy, or distrusting G0d? I wonder how Brantly would finish that phrase. Even if he was dying, he wouldn't give up hope or renounce G0d? Can we say we still trust the Father, even when He doesn't save us? Some sobering thoughts to think about.