What do we do when we’ve tried to seek and trust God, and things only get worse?

Yesterday as our church gathered, my friend Adam reflected on all the hardship in the world, and challenged us to remember Matthew 6:25-33

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

He reminded us that in difficult seasons we can focus our mind on so many things, but only God knows what we truly need and can provide it.

What he said was true; and yet I found myself wrestling with it.  I fully believe that passage; I also know we can seek and trust God with everything we have, and the pain persists.

I was reminded of this reality for three young men who strived to honor God with their lives, and were led to a brutal death as a result:

Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace.  Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace.
Daniel 3:8-21

Matthew 6 seems to indicate that if we trust God, He’s got us covered; Daniel 3 reveals that the three men did that, and were thrown into a burning fiery furnace.

Perhaps you’ve felt this reality; despite your efforts to live for God, you keep ending up in the furnace.  These moments are real and common, and offer us an opportunity to seek and trust God on an entirely different level; while Matthew 6 invites us to consider that we are not alone and God will care for us, Daniel 3 invites us to live for Him whether He cares for us or not:

If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up. (v17-18)

“God is able to save us; but He might not.  Either way, we are serving Him.”

This is next level seeking and trusting.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego have moved past seeking God for their needs to seeking God even if He neglects their needs!  They go into that furnace wondering if He will save them, and are thrown in trusting the sacrifice of their lives was worth it to honor God.

You may know the end of the story — they not only do not die, but do not even smell like smoke, and many glorify God as a result — but we cannot be too quick to move on from this important moment: the three men tried to seek and trust God with their lives, He seemingly let them be brutally murdered, and they remained firm in their worship of Him.  If they could do this in the face of a fiery death, why do we struggle to do so in far lighter hardships?

Perhaps the better question is: how can we cultivate the spiritual resolve of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego?

It’s simple: they knew who God was, and that knowledge shaped everything else.

This is the heart of Jesus’ words in Matthew 6; he is reminding them of who his Father is, and what that means about their basic needs.  “God cares for His creation… why wouldn’t He also care for you, His dear children?  Your anxiety is not because He hasn’t provided, but because you do not believe He will.”  God is Provider; even more, He is worthy of all.  Jesus said this too, frequently, and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego lived it.  Though they were exiles, they were given positions of power, and serving God put this good situation at risk; honoring God was their chief purpose, even if it cost them their positions, their comfort, and even their lives.  Instead of prioritizing their lives, saying something like, “What good are we dead?  Let’s bow for now, but then worship God is secret,” they said, “Bowing to another God is not an option.  Our God could save us, but that’s not the point: He is.”

Both passages make foundational this mandate: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.”

Our invitation today is to consider how this mandate can be foundational in our lives as well, not just as a mantra, but in even the smallest decisions.  The more we live this out in small ways, the more likely we are to live it out when threatened.  The story of the three men is not about their strength and power, but their trust in God’s and a willingness to stake everything on it.  Seek God’s Kingdom in a meaningful way today, and watch for His response.