There’s a lot of prayer going on out in the world today. Lots of prayer. Lots of Rosaries, lots of evening prayers. Lots of novenas and Masses. Lots of people asking God for His help. Lots of people asking God where He is during this time when the world is in such turmoil. Lots of people simply praising Him and being thankful.
Which one of these people are you? Which one am I? I think we’re all these people in different ways, saying prayers like,
Lord Jesus, please be with all those being affected and infected by coronavirus, and please be with my friends and family and keep us healthy. And please be with those who are struggling at this time. Please be with our government leaders and please save us from economic turmoil.
Lord Jesus, while I do not understand why this is happening, I thank you for all that you have done for me and those around me, and for this country. I thank you for the lessons that we can learn from this experience, that I can learn, and I thank you for your love and mercy as we struggle through this. I thank you for the people you bring into my life, and those lives that you bring me into to be your instrument.
Lord Jesus, why? Why is this happening? Why is this spreading so fast and why did this person have to die? Why did I have to lose my job? Why am I losing everything? It was nothing I did and this is completely out of my control? Where are you in all of this? Why would you let this happen?
Perhaps one of these has been your prayer to God in recent days and weeks. Perhaps all of them have been, in one form or another.
But there is one prayer, one prayer in particular that transcends understanding and yet, overpowers everything, and it takes place in the first reading today. It is prayer of praise, and praise specifically when you are in the heat of your trials, literally in the fire.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego – all captives, slaves to Nebuchadnezzar, refusing to worship his god. They say,
“There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up.”
And because of this, and their Faith in God and obedience to Him – they are thrown into a white-hot furnace. But as they are being thrown in, they don’t plea for their lives. They don’t wail out in fear, asking God where He is. Well, maybe the thought crossed their mind for s split second, I mean even Jesus asked this of His Father while on the cross. But ultimately they accept God’s answer whatever that may be, and they praise Him.
They praise Him.
They remain in His word, and were truly His disciples, and they knew the truth, and regardless of whether God did save them or whether they die in that fire, they know the truth, and the truth ultimately will set them free.
Well, we know the rest of this story… A fourth man, a son of God sent by God enters that fire, shields them, and saves them.
I’ve thought of this type of situation often, not only in the scope of this scripture reading, but if I knew that death is imminent. I’m on a plane, crashing to the ground. I’m one of the Christian Martyrs on a beach in Libya a few years back, head covered, ISIS terrorists with swords ready to behead me. Or I’m sick, barely able to breath due to COVID-19.
Yes, this may seem morbid and harsh, but such is life – and whichever white-hot, imminent fire you find yourself in – how will you be talking to God at that time? How will you be talking to Jesus? Would it be a prayer of praise?
I honestly think for many of us, if not most of us, it would be. For me, it would probably saying the Our Father over and over, mixed with some Hail Mary’s for her intercession, more intently than I ever had. I think a lot of us would probably do that. Others may quote scripture, recite the Psalms.
Bottom line is that when it really comes down to it, I think a lot of us would be praying to God in this way, just as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did all those years ago, remaining with Jesus – fully engulfed, in His Word. I don’t know, kind of makes this whole thing we call life and the struggles we have to work through right now seem a whole lot less threatening, because Jesus – is by our side.
