The Beauty in Obedience
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The grandeur of God’s creation is wonderfully showcased when looking across vast valleys and majestic mountains. From high views of flower strewn valleys to painted skies at sunset, it’s a stunning glimpse at the heart of the Creator. Few places can outdo the beauty of Yellowstone National Park. Open fields teeming with wildlife; buffalo grazing with eagles overhead, elk bellowing beside geysers erupting, wildflowers blooming where prairie dogs play, all while high snowcaps melt to ensure water for them all. It is breathtaking. It’s the Serengeti of America, with bears instead of lions, wolves instead of cheetah, bison instead of elephants, elk instead of giraffes, and moose instead of rhinos. God shows off in this place.
Steve and I have been married now for 44 years and for 40 of those years we have dreamed of camping in the wide open spaces of America’s west. Now, in our mid 60’s, we realized that if we were ever going to do it, we better seize the day and make a plan. So with camp chairs, binoculars, camera and a book — we found the perfect spots to sit in fields and watch in silence. Front row seats in a most magnificent theatre.
As we rode along the winding roads of Yellowstone, I was reminded... Several years ago, on safari in Kenya, God taught me something I needed to learn. I was watching the beauty of a mother lioness with her cubs. All was peaceful as they lay on the banks of the Mara River with a rug of green grass and a blanket of warm sunshine. She licked and nuzzled her cubs. But in the midst of this beautiful moment, it came to me that almost everything around her was willing to kill her. Just as disturbing, the reality, that unless she killed something, both she and her cubs would soon die. It shook me out of any pollyanna feelings in that moment. As I whined to God over the harshness of it, He whispered to my heart, “Nature is beautiful, yes. But never forget it will also watch you die. You might think that something so lovely should also be kind. It is not.” If you’re shrugging your shoulders and nodding your head thinking, “Well, of course…” — then you are ahead of where I was. It hurt my heart to face the ugly truth of something so mesmerizingly beautiful. But it “grew me up” a bit too. And it taught me something important.
Don’t just drink in what you see on the surface,
look more deeply at what is fully there.
Driving through Yellowstone, Steve and I began to notice that many of the evergreen trees framing the roadways had been damaged. Severely. Deep gashes had cut through their bark and gouged their sap-rich trunks. Scarred. Some bore more deep wounds than others; some had no marks at all. Yet most all of them were thriving. Scarred, but alive. We asked a ranger what had happened to the trees, she said it was the bison. During rut, in their excitement, they scrub their horns on the trees in a show of strength. So the tree suffers as the bison scrubs. But did the tree, refuse to grow, because it had been wounded?
For a moment, please sit with me — in the fields of Yellowstone — and let’s look at a completely different story from long ago — that fits right here, today.
I’ve just finished reading the book of Daniel with its insights into his story, his obedience, his intellect, and the way he honored God with his life. What a man he was. Two of my favorite childhood Bible stories revolve around Daniel’s obedience and God’s covering over him.
The “fiery furnace” and the “lions den” were two stories that had my attention during those long ago Sunday School days. Both are found in the book of Daniel. Both are intimidating and inspiring.
Daniel Chapter 3 tells of how Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to worship an image of gold made by King Nebuchadnezzar. These three friends and fellow captives of Daniel’s refused to worship any image or god apart from the One Holy God. Interestingly, Daniel apparently was not present during this event. Biblical scholars and theologians agree that while it is not known where Daniel was, he was not present when his friends were tested. The powerful story conveys Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s refusal to acquiesce to Nebuchadnezzar’s demands and God’s rescue of them.
Daniel Chapter 6 shares the events that led up to Daniel being thrown into the lions den. Again, interestingly, we do not know where Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were during this trial that came to Daniel. It is believed they were elsewhere and not present, or indeed they would have likely joined Daniel in the lions den. Daniel was persecuted for praying to God. He refused to pray to the earthly king he served in his captivity. Daniel would pray to no one other than GOD. For this, and because of schemes and trickery of other men, Daniel was punished. He was left overnight in the lions den.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego would not worship an idol.
Daniel would not pray to a king.
They were pressed to “go along with” what others said they should do.
They obeyed God instead.
In both stories, God intervened — the suffering and death that men intended to inflict on Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was defeated. The flames did not touch and the lions did not devour. As a child these stories went deep inside me. I believed that God could and would rescue.
As an adult, far from those sweet Sunday School years, I still believe, but in deeper ways. For I’ve felt nearby “flames” and I’ve smelled the stench of “lion breath”. I’ve not been burned or devoured, and yet I never forget that many have — some have been martyred, some have suffered and are still suffering because of their unshakeable faith in God alone. So we grow our faith. Facing the uncertainties of life, remembering that God is good, in life or in death. He is always good — even in this broken world.
The Lord plants us where he plants us.
The world comes along and scars us with its horns.
The world’s ways will wound us, making us doubt, causing us to wonder, “Where’s the One who put me here and why does He allow what is happening to me”.
The study notes of my Bible say:
“Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were pressured to deny God, but they chose to be faithful to him no matter what happened? They trusted God to deliver them, but they were determined to be faithful regardless of the consequences. If God always rescued those who were true to him, Christians would not need faith. Their religion would be a great insurance policy, and there would be lines of selfish people ready to sign up. We should be faithful to serve God whether he intervenes on our behalf or not. Our eternal reward is worth any suffering we may have to endure first.”
Have you ever felt like the evergreen trees framing the roads in Yellowstone?
Has “life” left deep gashes? Are there scars?
Do you still grow, reaching with all your heart, for what is higher, better, purer?
Have you set your heart on what is good? Even when life hurts?
To see the beauty of the enduring evergreen rather than focus on its scars?
To see the truth of God’s love for you rather than focus on what has caused you pain?
Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were all teens when the invading army of Babylon captured them and took them far away from home, family, and all that was familiar to them. They were taken. Never to see mother, father, sister, brother again.
Social and cultural ways of the time suggest that they were likely castrated. (Do we go deep enough to recognize the probability of what happened to them?)
They were most likely “scarred” after they were taken.
Any dream of a wife or children or a home of their own was taken from them.
Their life did not unfold as they had hoped it might; in their day a Jewish boy would have dreamed of a family of his own.
Their wishes, whatever they might have been, were removed. A king who did not love their GOD had full control of their lives.
They were deeply scarred evergreens who still grew amazingly tall. So wonderfully tall that thousands of years later, we still know their names and tell the stories of their faithfulness to God.
If life has left deep gashes…if you have scars…let your heart sit with the many great ones and be inspired to keep growing, keep reaching, keep your eyes set above and let your heart, mind, and soul grow tall. Treetops never focus on their scars. Instead, they reach up.
Always up.
For, “He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wing you will find refuge.”
— Psalm 91:4
