Hey there, friends. I am Cindy Young, and you are listening to Primarily Scripture. This is a scripture study podcast geared toward helping you learn simple tips and tricks that will help you go from simply reading your scriptures to studying them and loving them! We follow the Come Follow Me curriculum, which puts us in the Book of Daniel this week, and today we're going to talk about pondering. For the last few weeks, we've been talking about searching, and there are literally dozens and dozens of different things you can search for. There's no way that I could cover all of them. But the good news is we actually have already talked about some of them earlier this year. For instance, in February, we talked about how learning about and connecting with Jesus is the absolute most important part of scripture study. So we can take that idea and turn it into searching for Jesus. And in March, I gave you some ideas to help you understand the scriptures better, including looking for lessons, defining unfamiliar words and phrases, and figuring out if the passages you're reading are stories or sermons or information. Now, all of those tips and tricks include some kind of looking and finding. So really when you think about it, we have already covered this idea of searching much more than what we've talked about in just the last three weeks. And the same way that searching was already part of our other tips before now, it will remain part of the tips and tricks as we move forward, too. So pay attention, and you will see that searching is part of almost every tip I share. Now we're going to focus on pondering, and that's a really big word that means to think about, but it doesn't mean to think about it just a little bit. Pondering is thinking deeply and to really consider and work through all of the connected parts. So what we are going to ponder today is feelings. There are parts of the Old Testament where there are very few feelings to find, especially when you get into, like, an informational passage, and it lists genealogy or geography. But especially in the stories like what we're studying this week, you will be able to find- either directly because it says it right out, or through inferring- what these people were feeling. Now, some of you might wonder, "Why are we pondering feelings? Wouldn't we want to focus more on the things that people do?" And the answer to that is yes, of course! What the people do is highly important. But remember that feelings are a super important part of the human experience. We all have them, and this makes them very relatable. We can recognize feelings, understand them, and connect with them. So when you take the time to figure out what people in the scriptures might have been feeling, then you're going to be able to recognize, understand, and connect with the scriptures much easier. And isn't that something that we all want? When you use feelings as a study tool, you'll understand the people and situations better. You will see these stories as things that really happened with people who really lived. And then when that happens, you'll be able to remember the stories, learn the lessons, and apply them to yourself on a deeper level. Plus, and this is super important, the added time spent finding and pondering these feelings will give the spirit more time to teach you and touch your heart. So let's open up to Daniel chapter three and find some feelings. This is a very famous scripture story, and I bet you've heard it before. I'll just review it really fast. The children of Israel were in captivity, and King Nebuchadnezzar had built a golden image, like a statue, and everybody was commanded to worship this golden image. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew that worshiping idols was against God's commandments. When they refused to worship the idol, the king threw them into the fiery furnace as a punishment, and anyone who got near the furnace was killed because it was so, so hot. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were one hundred percent protected, and there was even a fourth person seen in the furnace with them. It was the Son of God. Do you remember this story? Oh, it is one of my favorites! So good! All right, so we've reviewed the basics of the story. Let's take some time now to find and ponder the feelings that are within this story. Some of them are easy to find 'cause it comes right out and says it, but there's a lot of this story where the feelings aren't named for us. When this happens, you have to do some work. That's where the pondering comes in, right? We're gonna really think about it and figure it out. You can even use your imagination to help you with this. Let's start by reading in verse 14."King Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, 'Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego? Do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up?'" Now, real quick, have you ever read a text message and you weren't sure what the intended tone was? It reminds me of Sally asking Lightning McQueen in the movie Cars. She asks him, "Was that a 'yeah, okay,' or a 'yeah, okay,' or a 'yeah, okay?'" Do you remember that scene? We don't always get the right feeling from just the words, and we have to figure out what the meaning behind them is. So we have to infer, which means form an opinion based on the evidence. So with that, how do you think the king felt right here? What do you think he sounded like when he asked them, "Is it true?" Do you think maybe he was happy? Did it sound like, "Is it true? You won't worship my idol? Yay!" Yeah… probably not. Or maybe was he trying to learn about their beliefs?"Hmm, is this true? Explain it to me so I can understand." Maybe. I don't know if we have enough information from just this verse to know how he was asking. Let's keep reading and see if there are any other clues to what his attitude was. Verse 15 says, "Now if ye be ready to fall down and worship the image which I have made, well. But if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" Okay, so now we know that the king wasn't trying to understand. He wasn't happy. He was threatening them. He basically said, "I'll give you one more chance, but if you don't do what I say, I'm going to immediately throw you in the fire." What a bully! Okay, so now when we read this, we can remember it better, and let's face it, it'll be more fun if you imagine the king talking like a bully. What does he say to them? He asks, "Is this true? You really dare to not worship my idol? Really? All right, last chance. You do what I say, or I'm gonna burn you up right here and right now. You really think there's a God out there that can save you from me?" There we go. There's the feeling that we're looking for. This time we didn't find that feeling and then ponder it. We had to ponder first in order to find it. Isn't that a cool little trick for finding things in the scriptures? The more you ponder, the more you will find. All right, so now we understand the king's feelings a little bit better, we know exactly what kind of tone he was probably using, don't we? We just instinctively understand when someone is being threatening and a bully like that. We can almost hear it already in our own heads. Now that we've found his feelings, let's keep going and figure out how Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego felt. How would you feel if the big scary king threatened you like that? Do you think they were worried or scared? Oh, gosh, I sure would be. And maybe they were, but that didn't stop them from giving the bravest and most awesome answer ever in verses 16 through 18. I'm gonna paraphrase it here, but basically the way they responded, they said, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter." They're not gonna tiptoe around their answer. They're just going to come out and say it."Our God is able to deliver us, and we believe He will deliver us from you. But if not, even if that doesn't happen, you should know, O King, that we absolutely refuse to serve other gods- Or worship the golden image." Wow, such a bold and courageous answer! Now, if you read this in a boring voice, and admit it, sometimes we all have a boring scripture reading voice, you might miss how awesome this actually is. So when you read, try to think about it at the same time. Remember that these were awesome young adults.(Experts think they were probably in their mid-20s.) So here are these young adults who don't care that the king was threatening to burn them up. They didn't even try to say it to him nicely because they were determined to follow the Lord no matter what. Is it going to make the king mad? Yep. Could they die? Yes, they could. Are they freaking out? Not even a little. They just shrug their shoulders at the thought of being thrown in the fire, and they have the faith to say, "It's fine. I mean, God can save us, but being saved isn't the only reason to keep the commandments. We are going to obey no matter what anyone else says or does." Now, that is a memorable story! What an amazing example! And someday when you feel like the whole world wants you to break the commandments, you can remember this story and the feelings in it, and how bold and courageous Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were. For instance, everybody else is buying lotto tickets? So what? I don't do that. The cool kids will make fun of me if I don't vape, or drink, or wear inappropriate clothes? Well, I don't really care what they think, now do I? Following Jesus is my priority, not making a good impression on some random guy who's making questionable choices. What a great way for them to respond that I can follow! Can't you relate to this story so much better than just the boring scripture voice that reads the words but misses the feeling of the story? This way is so much better. Okay, so now let's keep going. After this truly epic response, how did the king react? Do you remember? Oh, he was full of fury! And in this instance, it actually says it in verse 19, "Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury." It even says that the form of his visage, his face, was changed against them. Oh, he was mad, mad, mad! He was already being a bully, and then when these guys stood up to him, he got insanely mad. And how do we know this? Well, if you keep reading, you'll learn that he decided to heat the furnace to seven times hotter than usual. And then he called in his strongest and best soldiers to throw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego into the fire. But then the fire was so incredibly hot that those soldiers- remember they're his very best soldiers- died in the process! Can you imagine being so mad at three kids who won't bow to your statue that you're willing to let your very best soldiers die just so you can make a point of how strong you are as king? I mean, this guy was on a crazy power trip, and he had serious anger issues! He was bullying everyone he could and not caring which people died along the way, even his best guys. That is next level crazy. Some serious red flags here! So now the epic response from Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego gave us an example to follow, but what can we learn from this part of the story? Let's ponder a little bit and kind of explore this thought. Do you ever struggle to control your temper? I know I have at times. Do you ever take it too far? Have you ever disagreed with how someone handled a situation and you took it as an invitation to fly into a rage? I mean, the king lost his best soldiers for no reason other than his own pride. So do you ever figuratively hurt yourself and your own situation when you lose your temper or decide to get even with someone? Uh, spoiler alert, yes! You always hurt yourself when you fail to control your emotions. Giving in to the natural man is easy, and we all do it sometimes. But remember that the natural man is an enemy to God. So maybe let's not let our natural man and natural woman tendencies take over, right? Isn't that one lesson we can learn here? Do you see how pondering the rage that the king felt has led us into some self-reflection? It even led us to the doctrinal truth found in a completely different book of scripture that the natural man is an enemy to God. That is part of the magic of pondering. As you have these ideas and follow different trains of thought and explore the doctrines and principles that are connected to them, this is where the Spirit can do his very best work. Because now you're looking for all the little things that are connected to the story, and the Spirit will lead you to the ones that the Lord wants you to think about. This is where inspiration and revelation come directly to you, and you made the space for it to happen. Now, it would have been easy to read this story and say, "Those men had great faith and were very brave, even when the king got angry and threw them in the fire. And the Lord protected them because of their faith and courage." And that is all true. But isn't the story so much more meaningful when you look at the details carefully, when you ponder the feelings at each point in the story? It can really make it come alive. Now, my other tip about pondering today is to look at the big picture and connect it all together. We don't have time to go through all the different stories in these first seven chapters of Daniel, because there are actually a lot of them. But let's quickly review some of the references to King Nebuchadnezzar, since we're already talking about him. In chapter one, the prince of the eunuchs mentions in passing that the king might kill him if the people he's taking care of aren't perfectly healthy. Yikes. In chapter two, the king does decide to kill all the wise men in the whole kingdom because they couldn't tell him the dream that he himself had already forgotten. Wow. Luckily, Daniel could interpret the dream, but oh my goodness, what a temper! No wonder in chapter four, Daniel is hesitant to tell the king the meaning of his other dream, because it turns out to be bad news for the king. Do you see this big picture that's being painted of the kind of person Nebuchadnezzar was? If you just read through chapter one once And you notice that the prince of the eunuchs said, "Oh, I don't know, the king might kill me," you might skip right over that. But when you put it in context with the rest of this big picture, these things make more sense. He probably was terrified. He's not just saying, "Oh man, the king will have my head if I do that." He literally meant,"No, no, no, I can't do that. The king might actually, literally, kill me." And now we can understand his feelings better, too. Do you see what I'm saying? Now, it also makes it that much sweeter when we read chapter four, and we learn that eventually Nebuchadnezzar was humbled, and he did turn to the Lord. And we know that when people find Jesus, they can make lasting positive changes, and we see a glimpse of that here. And isn't that amazing to see a transformation of somebody who's so angry and mean and horrible, who then goes and tries to tell the whole world how wonderful God is? Such a great ending of Nebuchadnezzar's story! So be sure to look at the big picture as you're pondering. You might be surprised at what the Spirit teaches you. All right, that's it for this week. Come back next week, and I'll have more simple ideas to help you as you ponder the scriptures. I'm Cindy Young, and this is Primarily Scripture. Bye, guys! Thanks for tuning in to Primarily Scripture with Cindy Young. Don't forget, you can subscribe to the newsletter and download free worksheets on the website primarilyscripture.com. And if you like the channel, be sure to subscribe, like, share, and leave a review. See you next time