“Now with all our heart we follow thee.” (Dan 3:18)
These words, dear Father, were spoken by Azarias as he entered the fiery furnace with two other faithful young men, after he confessed that the suffering of the Jews in Babylon was the result of their having abandoned Your commandments and instructions.
But then Azarias spoke these wonderful words: “Now with all our heart we follow thee,” which testifies to his sincere love for You.
We know how the story continued: the three young men emerged unharmed from the fiery furnace, and their wonderful praise of Your glory has resounded through the centuries to this very day in the Church’s Liturgy of the Hours.
Azarias has spoken what a true “word of conversion” is, dear Father, and what we can always say anew. Now with all our heart we follow thee and leave behind everything that hinders us. We can connect this with the words of St. Edith Stein: “We want to begin a new life every day.” That, dear Father, leads us to lasting conversion. Every day we have the opportunity to commit ourselves more deeply to You, and on this path our hearts are also more deeply permeated by Your love. Thus our whole life becomes a Kairos, a “Now” that we can seize. And this “Now” is You, whom we encounter, for You are always there, waiting for us, that our hearts may turn wholly toward You.
Azarias spoke these words in circumstances of great danger. Yet every circumstance invites us to open our whole heart to You. Then, dear Father, what the Prayer for Peace proclaims comes to pass: The peace that comes from Your heart transforms our heart so that it becomes a place of peace, bearing witness to the presence of Your Kingdom!