Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego

Do you remember their story? When I was growing up my Aunt & Uncle had three Siamese cats: Shadrach, Missy, and Benji (Missy of course being the girl of the three). If you would of asked me a few years ago what I thought of when I heard the names Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego I would have told you stories about them...
Currently I am involved in a Beth Moore Bible study about the book of Daniel. This past week was over chapter 3 when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were thrown into the fiery furnance. And I have been thinking about the people in my life that are modern day Shadrach's, Meshach's and Abednego's. We all face fiery trials of some kind throughout our lives, and those that stand out in my mind are the ones that now, after being delivered through the fire, don't even smell like smoke. People like my friends Karen, Tim, Jenny, and Fulbright... My family: Aunt Gladys, Aunt Coral, Auntie, who served as additional Grandmothers to me and my cousins...
But who stands out most in my mind at this moment are two unbelievable Christian people who have loved me with all their hearts and have contributed in enormous ways to my faith, Terry & Margaret. During my first year of PT school Terry was diagnosed with melanoma, and after much prayer we learned that it was not in God's will to deliver Terry from the fire, and our prayers became requests that he be delivered through it. To this day he continues to fight the melanoma and the secondary effects that both the treatment and the disease have on him.
But let me tell you, if you didn't know that this was part of Terry & Margaret's lives, there is no way you would ever pick up on it. And the most amazing part of it all, the part that is the most encouraging to me, is their faith in our God who is bigger than any disease. When forced to come to terms with it all, they refused to bow down to bitterness, pity, anger or resentment. And they stand firm in their faith that God will rescue Terry from the fire of melanoma, and even if He does not, they will still praise Him. Oh, to have faith like that! They are being delivered through the fire, their binds have been burned off, and they don't even smell like smoke!! Hallelujai!
{Daniel 3:18, 25 & 27}