There comes a moment in every life when you must decide who you are—
not when the path is easy,
not when the outcome is guaranteed,
but when the fire is right in front of you.
Life has a way of revealing what you’re made of.
Not through the victories, but through the flames.
And recently, as I’ve walked through my own fires, one truth keeps returning to me…
a truth woven through every chapter of Book 3 – For Such A Time As This: Appointed To Rise, etched into every loss, every healing, every rising:
Resilience is not born in comfort.
It is forged in conviction.
And few stories capture that conviction more powerfully than Daniel 3.
But If Not… Still, We Will Not Bow
(Reflections on Daniel 3:17–18)
An Excerpt From Book 3- For Such A Time As This: Appointed To Rise
There is a truth I’ve come to understand deeply throughout my life—woven through every story in this book, etched into every loss, every healing, every rising. That truth is resilience.
I think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—three men standing before the fiery furnace, unshaken. In Daniel 3:17, they boldly declared:
“Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us.”
But it’s verse 18 that holds the weight of real faith:
“But if not… we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image.”
They knew God could save them. But they also knew their obedience wasn’t contingent on the outcome. They would not bow. Not to fear. Not to pressure. Not to power. Their courage became a legacy—one that echoes across time.
So many heroes have followed in their footsteps. They didn’t stand because they were guaranteed victory. They stood because it was right. Because integrity, honesty, loyalty, and goodness are the hills worth dying on—even if no one ever applauds you for it.
Because sometimes, bad things happen to good people.
The rain falls on the just and the unjust.
And yet, we rise.
Not for reward.
Not to become martyrs.
But because doing what is right is reason enough.
We can see the world around us changing rapidly.
We witness injustice, cruelty, and compromise in the name of convenience.
More and more, we may be asked to bend the knee—not always to a golden statue, not to a false god—but perhaps to something that dishonors what we know is true.
Maybe it’s pressure to conform.
Maybe it’s being asked to exchange truth for comfort, or conviction for silence.
Whatever fire you walk into—may you face it with the same unshakable resolve as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
May you step forward with the same audacious faith as Bob Pierce, who boarded a plane with no return ticket but a heart full of trust.
May you walk with the sacrificial conviction of Florence Nightingale, who lit a lamp in the darkest places and stayed when it would’ve been easier to go.
REFLECTION — THE CALL TO STAND ANYWAY
I hope the stories within these pages stir something deep within you:
a remembering,
a strengthening,
a call to rise.
May the courage of those who came before us
give you the boldness to stand taller,
give more freely,
love more fiercely,
and lead with grace and unwavering strength.
Because the fire is not the end of you
—it is the place where your faith becomes visible.
You were appointed to rise.
Not because the flames won’t come—
but because even in the flames,
you remember who you are.
And you.
Will.
Not.
Bow.
DECLARATION — Appointed to Rise
I choose truth over comfort.
Conviction over compromise.
Faith over fear.
Like those who walked through fire,
I stand.
I rise.
I will not bow.
For such a time as this—
I am appointed to rise.’
Book 3 For Such A Time As This: Appointed To Rise is available on Amazon – https://amzn.to/42LJiL0
