“Even If” Faith: Standing Firm When Life Gets Hot

🔥 When the heat is on, will your faith hold?

In this powerful episode, Mike Stone unpacks the bold faith of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3 and applies it to the modern pressures we face. You’ll learn what it means to have “Even If” faith—trusting God regardless of the outcome—and discover how to stand firm when culture demands you bow.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- The parallels between ancient Babylon’s idols and today’s cultural idols.
- How faith is tested when culture collides with conviction.
- Why courage isn’t the absence of fear, but trust in God in the face of it.
- How your faith in the fire can spark faith in others.

Resources & Scriptures Mentioned:
👉 Daniel 3:16–18 – “Even if” faith in the fiery furnace
👉 Isaiah 43:2 – God’s promise in the fire

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CHAPTERS:
00:00 Introduction: Facing the Fires of Life  
00:32 Modern-Day Fires We Face  
01:00 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego’s Story  
02:28 Today’s Idols and Pressures to Bow  
03:32 “Even If” Faith  
04:35 When Following God Costs Something  
04:57 Jesus in the Fire  
06:10 A Personal Story from Mike  
07:25 Coming Out Without the Smell of Smoke  
08:00 Four Key Lessons from the Fiery Furnace  
08:34 Encouragement for Your Fire  
09:09 Closing Prayer & Call to Action

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Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Hello my friends, and welcometo Behind the Mike Podcast.

(00:03):
I'm Mike Stone, and todayI want to talk about something
that we all face, even if itlooks different for each of us.
I'm talkingabout the fires of life now.
I'm not talking aboutliteral flames, of course,
but the fire of pressure,the fire of temptation,
the fire of hardship,the fire of standing

(00:25):
for what's rightwhen it feels like
everyone else around usis bowing down.
Maybe for you it's the fire of atough workplace.
Maybe it's the fire of criticismfor your faith
or the fire of health struggles.
There's even the fire of grief.
The question is,when the heat is on,

(00:47):
will your faith hold?
It's a big question.
And today we're going to lookat one of the boldest
stories of faith in the Bible,one of my personal favorites,
the story of Shadrach,Meshach, and Abednego.
To see what their couragecan teach us about walking
with God when life gets hot.

(01:14):
Well, I can't help but thinkabout VeggieTales and the story
of Rack, Shack and Benny,whenever there is a reference
to the storyof the fiery furnace.
Like ‘emor not, VeggieTales left
a memorable impressionon a lot of people,
even parents.
Well, today,if you look in Daniel

(01:37):
chapter three, it paintsthe scene which is King
Nebuchadnezzar buildsthis massive
golden statue 90ft tall,nine feet wide, and he commands
everyone in Babylonwhen the music plays,
bow down and worshipthe image I've made.
Anyone who refuseswill be thrown

(01:57):
into a blazing furnace.
That's pressure.
Everyone else is bowing,everyone else is complying.
And if you don't, you pay for itwith your life.
We've heard lots of storiesabout things like this
in the past.
Makes you think.

(02:18):
And now we may not be askedto literally bow down
to a golden statue,but the pressure
today is still real.
Bow down to the idol of success.
Bow down to the idol of comfort.
Bow downto the idol of approval,
or bow down to theidol of politics, money or even

(02:40):
social validation.
Culture still says bow.
Or else I think it'sgetting worse.
But sometimesthe fire looks like
being left out,being criticized,
being canceled, or evenlosing opportunities.
But here's the truthfaith is tested

(03:01):
when culture collideswith conviction.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednegohad a decision to make,
and so do we.
When the music played,everyone bowed
except for three men.
And when the king demandedan explanation,

(03:24):
they shared theseincredible words.
“Our God, whom we serveis able to deliver us
from the fiery furnace.
But even if he doesn't,we will not bow
down to your gods.”That comes right
out of Daniel chapterthree, verses 16 through 18.
I love that that rightthere is the heartbeat

(03:46):
of unshakable faith.
It's the even if faith, God canheal my sickness.
But even if he doesn't,I will trust him.
God can restorethis relationship,
but even if he doesn't,I will follow him.
God can open this door,but even if he doesn't,

(04:08):
I will not compromise.
That kind of faithdoesn't bargain with God.
It simply trusts him.
Period.
And friends, that's rare today.
We like to follow Godas long as things
are going well.
But what about when it cost ussomething?

(04:28):
All my life I've heardif God is real, then why
fill in the blank?
The world sees Godas some kind of cosmic
Santa Claus.
I sometimes wonder if the churchin the United States faced
the same persecutionthat the church in China
is facing, or the churchin North Korea, or the Church

(04:49):
in Nigeria.
How many would simply bow down?
Courage isn't the absenceof fear, it's trust in God
in the face of fear.
So what happens?
Well, if you grew upin Sunday school, you know
they're thrown into the furnace.

(05:11):
They're bound,helpless, hopeless.
In human terms.
But Nebuchadnezzar looksand sees something shocking.
He says, hey, didn't we throwthree men into the fire?
But I see four, and the fourthlooks like the Son of God.

(05:38):
That's Jesusshowing up in the fire.
And here's what thatmeans for us.
God doesn'talways prevent the fire,
but he always, alwayspromises to be with us.

Isaiah 43 (05:54):
2 says,“When you walk through the fire,
you will not be burned.
The flames willnot set you ablaze.” Look,
you may be going through fire,but you will not
be going through it alone.
Think about your own life.
Can you recall a timewhen the heat was turned up,

(06:17):
but you sensed God's presencemore than ever before?
For me, there was a timemany years ago that I became
aware of a faction in our churchthat was absolutely going to
create division.
And I began to wonder,do I say something
and probably losevery close friends who had?

(06:41):
Or do I just pretend thatit's not happening?
With lots of prayer andfasting and time, I chose to go
to our church leadershipand risk being wrong
or looking foolish.
It was one of the hardestchoices that I've ever
had to make, and I did losesome really great friends.

(07:06):
But it was the right thingand God was with me
through it all.
Every step I took, I could sensehis presence.
The fire you fear may actuallybe the place where you see
Jesus most clearly.
So when they came outof the fire, the Bible says

(07:27):
they weren't burned.
Their clothesweren't even singed,
and they didn'teven smell like smoke.
And Nebuchadnezzar,well, this pagan god ended up
praising the God of Israel.
Here's the pointyour faith in the fire
can ignite faith in others.

(07:50):
Sometimes people won't beconvinced by your words,
but they'll be changedby watching your faith
under pressure.
The fire that you go throughcould be the very thing
that pointssomebody else to Jesus.
So let's recap.
The pressure to bowdown is real.

(08:12):
We all know thatthe courage to stand up
may cost us something.
Number three,the presence of God
meets us in the fire.
At number four, our witnesscan shine brightest
after the fire.

(08:34):
Friends, I don't know whatfire you're
walking through today,but I do know this.
You are not alone in it.
I mean thatI'm not just saying it.
You are not alone in it.
The same God who stoodwith Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednegostands with you.

(08:55):
So hold fast.
Don't bow.
Don't give up.
Let's pray together.
Father, you knowthe fires that are
in all of our lives.
I pray that you wouldencourage us to stand firm.
Give us the faith to trust,even if the outcome

(09:18):
is not what we want.
Give us the eyesto see your presence
in the middle of it all.
And may our livespoint others to you.
In Jesus name, Amen.
Hey, thank you for joining me onBehind the Mike Podcast.

(09:39):
If this encouraged you today,would you do me a favor
and share it with a friendwho might need the reminder
that they'renot alone in the fire?
As always, keep seeking Jesus.
He's worth it.
See you next time on Behind theMike Podcast.