In Daniel chapter 3, Daniel's friends have been set up as disobedient Jewish agitators. They are commanded to worship an idol and they refuse. They are thrown into a fiery furnace, and they survive without even smelling burnt! You can here a dramatic reading from the "Ed Sullivan Show" in 1960 by following this link: https://youtu.be/D_Y7H0Q_tkE

We learn in Daniel 3 that God walks with us in our difficult moments and wants us to be faithful to him!

The same message is heard in Psalm 30:1-5.

And we can gather the same idea from John 18:33-37 as we meditate on Jesus' conversation with Pilate. Jesus' kingdom is not one we must physically fight for. But it will last forever and we have a king that can walk with us through all our difficult moments.

Here is our first Advent question: What is keeping you from fully enjoying the promise that Jesus will come again?