“Oops, I’m sorry!”
“Well I mean… yeah, that’s fine.”
“I probably did something wrong.”
“Ugh I’m so (insert negative adjective)!”
If I had someone follow me around and tally up the amount of times per day those phrases spew from my mouth, we’d be counting tally marks for days. Maybe you’re like that too. I think there are a lot of us insecure people out there who really struggle to get what’s on our hearts out from beneath the weight of our self-shaming tongues. We apologize profusely for things that are barely minor inconveniences. We settle for less or just plain what we don’t want. We assume that we are at fault or to blame for every awkward/accidental/unfortunate event that happens in our lives (big or small). We describe ourselves in a negative light and forget our value.
We hear the lies and we give them control.
We are beaten down by our self shaming and succumb to insecurity.
And we lose our boldness.
Friends, it has taken me awhile to completely “get” this. For real. I have never been extremely opinionated or super assertive, but I have been bold. I have stood my ground before. I have fought for what I believed in even when it wasn’t cute. It seems that somewhere in the changing of seasons and overall craziness of life I have forgotten what it looks like to be bold.
Let me tell ya, the Lord is refining me through and through and has been showing me that I am called to boldness. I sometimes forget that I’m a daughter of The King. It’s easy to not remember that The One who planned my life even before my parents planned me, finds value in me. Often, I skim over the fact that those truths set me (and you) apart from the rest of the world. Those truths call us to boldness.
In Daniel 3 We meet three bold Jews Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego who all refuse to fall down and worship false gods. The king at the time Nebuchadnezzar was obviously not having it because these men were disobeying his command.
In Daniel 3:13-15 we read, “Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?'”
The threat is real here, we’re talking their lives are on the line. But the response of the three men is confident. It is bold.
Daniel 3:16-18: ” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into a blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
That’s that’s Old Testament for, sorry not sorry! Not only did the three refuse an order by the king, they also made it very clear that even if they weren’t rescued they would gladly choose death over worshiping his gods. There were no excuses, there was no “Uhh I’m sorry king please don’t kill me, like can I clean royal toilets for the rest of my life? That fiery furnace doesn’t sound fun…” No! None of that! They spoke in boldness because they had faith in God, the only one who could rescue them.
Later on in the story we find out that the king had the furnace 7x hotter than its regular heat (so hot that the soldiers who threw the three tied up men into the furnace were burned to death) and guess who walked out of the flames without even a hint of smoke on their clothes? That’s right, those three bold men who dared to defy the king (Daniel 3:22-27).
Oh how different my days would go if I just carried that boldness!! As fundraising deadlines approach, and the tide gets higher and higher it is SO stinkin’ difficult to not question the Lord’s provision. How wrong of me to think that God, the one who brought three men from a flaming furnace without a scratch or smoke-smelling hair would not provide for a calling he planned for his daughter.
So as of right now, I’m entering into that season of boldness. Those many many times I shudder and say “I’m afraid!” or “I’m scared!” or “I can’t!” or “that’s awkward!” or “I don’t want to!” will be replaced with “I have nothing to fear.” and “I’m not afraid.” and “With God, all things are possible.” and “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” and “I will.” Because when I am serving my Father around the world next year, I want to- I need to stand firm in faith even when speaking truth in boldness and love is not easy. I need to be bold for The One who first was bold for me.
