(September 19, 2025) Angeline Selvakumari shares some great truths…

Blessed greetings to you, dear readers, in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who alone has the power to do extraordinary and supernatural things.

A few days ago, I was reading Daniel 3. Though I have read this passage many times before, this time it brought deep comfort and reassurance. I felt led to share a few reflections with you…

1) Strength in the Midst of Danger!
This chapter begins with a dramatic and intense scene. Three young Hebrews— Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego— are commanded by King Nebuchadnezzar to bow down and worship a golden image he had set up. When they refuse to do so, they are thrown by some of his strongest soldiers into a blazing furnace seven times hotter than usual (v19-20).

Verse 21 tells that these three were bound as they were— in their coats, trousers, turbans and other garments— and cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace!

The king thought that he had stripped away their freedom by casting them into the heart of that blazing furnace. For a moment, it looked like the end for the three young men.

The enemy must have believed he had successfully cut short God’s plan— derailing, delaying, or even destroying it. But God had a far greater plan in motion. Satan must have rejoiced when God didn’t immediately intervene. Often, when we pray, God answers at once. But at other times, there is silence— sometimes for years. This silence can shake our faith and tempt us to give up!

I don’t know about you, but I’ve experienced times when, after praying, instead of things getting better, they became worse. Perhaps you have found yourself asking: ‘Lord, why has it gone from bad to worse? I’ve been praying— why did you allow this?’

Yes, God could have stopped those Hebrews from being thrown into the fire. He could have quenched the flames before they ever entered. But He did something even greater— He waited for them in the fire. He was already there, ready to hold them in His arms!

Let’s learn from this incident (and be challenged)— when they fell into the furnace, I believe they fell straight into the everlasting arms of God! He had already gone ahead of them.

God always goes before us— walking ahead to protect us, even in the fire. Even in the middle of whatever your ‘fiery furnace situation’ may be, God is there for you— you are not alone! He will be there waiting—  to strengthen you, to sustain you.

Without God’s permission, nothing happens in our lives. He allows seasons of intense struggle— not to harm us, but to use us as living testimonies for the generations to come. God has called us to leave a legacy.

2)  Strolling in the Midst of Danger!
When the three Hebrews were thrown into the fire, all their bonds were loosed! The ropes that bound their hands and feet were gone. In the presence of the Lord, they were free— walking unharmed in the fire, with the Son of God beside them.

Daniel 3:25 tells of Nebuchadnezzar’s surprise and astonishment: ‘I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.’

In the Tamil Bible, this verse is beautifully rendered— it doesn’t just say they were walking, but that they were strolling! What a picture! They were cut loose— free from bonds in the very place designed to destroy them.

Dear brothers and sisters, you may find yourself in the midst of the fire right now. But as long as you remain in the presence of God, you are free. He is able to break every bondage. Know that there is freedom in the blood of Jesus Christ!

What amazes me most is not just were the three men delivered, but what they were doing: They were taking a stroll with their Maker!

Think about it— when do we usually take a stroll? People stroll in parks or gardens, calmly and unhurried, enjoying nature or good company, taking their time without pressure or anxiety.

Can you imagine this incredible Daniel 3 scene? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were strolling— calmly and without pressure— in the middle of a blazing furnace! The enemy thought he had them, but he didn’t realise one powerful truth: God had their back!

When you know the Lord, you too can declare out loud with confidence: ‘God has got my back!’

3) Security in the Midst of Danger!
Not only were their hands and feet unbound, not only were they walking with the Lord— they were completely unharmed, secure in Him! As Daniel 3:25 declares ‘… They are not hurt…’

This means there was no trace of the fire— no burns, no blisters, not even the smell of smoke on them. How is that possible? God had covered them so completely, it was as if they were not in the fire at all.

I imagine they must have been singing Psalm 23 as they were being led toward the furnace! Remember verse 4: ‘Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me;  Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.’

And indeed, He was! Waiting to comfort and deliver, just as He has promised! And here are just a few more of His precious promises:

• Psalm 91:11– ‘… He will command His angels concerning you to guard you…’
• Psalm 121:7– ‘The Lord will keep you from all harm— He will watch over your life…’
• Isaiah 49:16–  ‘See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands…’
• Zechariah 2:8–  ‘… Whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye…’
• John 10:28– ‘I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.’

Dear friends, whatever overwhelming or suffocating situation you are in right now— you will come out of it without harm. Just hold on to the Lord. He will make a way where there seems to be no way!

You may be trapped in an abusive relationship, drowning in a financial crisis, struggling with serious health issues, entangled in a legal battle, or grieving the loss of a loved one. But remember this— God has got your back!

Claim His promises. Keep praising Him through the storm. He will either bring you out of the situation or give you the grace to endure it— without harm. Just like the three Hebrew men, they came out of the fire completely unharmed!

4)  Safety in the Midst of Danger!
The king and his officials believed the fire would consume those three Hebrews. But what actually happened was something remarkable: the fire didn’t dictate the outcome— the Hebrew men, by the power of God, dictated the situation!

Daniel 3:27 says, ‘…The fire had no power…’ Let me tell you this: Your situation has no power over you— unless you give it that power. Do not surrender control to your fear, pain, or crisis. Refuse to let the situation dominate you. As a child of God, you carry His authority.

The ‘fire’ you’re going through at present may be real, so dangerous— but it is powerless against the one who walks with the Fourth Man! That means the situation you are in has no power over you; You are are safe.

5)  Scoring in the Midst of Danger!
Every event in our lives— whether joyful or painful— has one divine purpose: To bring glory to God— even in the midst of fire, even suffering, even loss we can score for God and His kingdom!

After witnessing the miracle, King Nebuchadnezzar declared: ‘They trusted in Him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God’ (Daniel 3:28).

He went on to glorify God: ‘Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language which speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made an ash heap; because there is no other God who can deliver like this’ (v29).

God allowed that fire. He even allowed it to be intensified. Why?

• He trusted those three young men to walk through those fires in faith. And they did!
• The lesson here is that He trusts us too to walk through our fires, our trying times.
• He will use our testimony to bring glory to His name as He did with those young Hebrews.

So be encouraged, my brother, my sister— whatever you are going through right now is not in vain. It will bring glory to God, and you will emerge from this fire as His powerful vessel, refined and radiant scoring for the Lord!

6)  Supremacy in the Midst of Danger!
Sometimes we may find ourselves asking, ‘What’s the point? If God is going to get all the glory and all the honour— if He alone is exalted— then where do I fit into all this?’

But when we read the rest of the story in Daniel 3, we see a beautiful truth: God is a rewarder of those who faithfully trust Him. Those three young men were not only honoured in the spiritual realm, but were also rewarded here on earth. Verse 30GNB tells that ‘… the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to higher positions in the province of Babylon.’

Satan had planned their destruction. He intended to end their lives, their favour with the king, their ministry, their faith, God’s plan for them, the faith of others who witnessed their trial… and ultimately halt the expansion of God’s kingdom.

But none of that happened. Instead, God turned the enemy’s plan on its head and used the situation to expand and strengthen His kingdom across the earth.

Look at what the fire accomplished: It fulfilled God’s plan, brought glory to God, strengthened not only their faith, but also the faith of other Jews— and even non-Jews like the king himself! It brought them favour in the eyes of both God and man (the king). It did not end their lives; rather, it gave them a new beginning— a renewed purpose, vision, and position. It proved that what the enemy meant for evil, God turned for good (Genesis 50:20).

The king— who once commanded all to bow to a golden image— publicly declared the supremacy of the God of Israel: ‘…There is no other God who can deliver like this’ (Daniel 3:29).

7)  Salutation in the Midst of Danger!
Finally, the three Hebrew men left behind a powerful and lasting legacy— a salutation of zealous unshakable faith that continues to speak to us even today, in these dangerous days of 2025!

God allowed them to go into the fire so they could stand as a testimony for generations to come. Their story challenges and inspires us to live with the same zeal for the Lord.

They had boldly declared: ‘… Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up’ (Daniel 3:17–18).

Look at the audacity and conviction they had for the Lord! They were willing to face death rather than compromise their faith.

How often do we become discouraged when things don’t go our way? And yet these young men, through their unwavering devotion, have not only strengthened their own faith— but ours too.

8) Serving in the Midst of Danger!
Let me ask you… challenge you (even as I am challened myself)—

Can you still serve God… in the midst of whatever your ‘fiery furnace’ is today? Such as failure, sickness, family struggles, health challenges, professional pressure, personal heartache, repeated disappointment, brokenness… or, for that matter, even in the midst of blessing and abundance?

Don’t turn back. He is waiting for you. That’s why Jesus died on the cross— so He could intercede for us and fully understand what we’re going through. He is not distant or indifferent. He is near, and His arms are open!

• So hold on to Him!
• Be courageous, even in dangerous times!
• Boldly ‘stroll’ with Jesus by your side.
• Serve your Lord with zeal.
• Live a life that leaves a legacy to others.

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Pastor Angeline Selvakumari is Honorary Editor–in–Chief Echo of His Call, India’s Spiritual Newspaper, and newly appointed  Head and Chief Functionary of  EOHS offices. In furthering Echo of His Call ministries, established 1969, her father, Dr S Selva Raj broadcasts 5–minute YouTube messages in English, Tamil, Hindi and Telugu daily, trusting the Lord to provide for the costs. Link: sam@echoofhiscall.org 
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