Beauty from Ashes
Ashes.
What do you think of?
My first thought is complete destruction of something that once was. Something once standing strong reduced to small particles on the ground easily dispersed through the air until they are barely a substance at all.
In Isaiah 61:3 the writer describes his calling:
“To console those who mourn in Zion,
To give them beauty for ashes,
The oil of joy for mourning,
The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
That they may be called trees of righteousness,
The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”
The Hebrew word for ashes also means “worthlessness, insignificance, distress and sorrow.” And, oh, how many days I have experienced these ashes in my life. When so much of what I thought to be true about the world, the people I knew, and who I am was dismantled and disintegrated. When I was gasping for breath with weight on my heart. Desperation.
But God… the promise of beauty. Of growth. Of dignity.
In this rich Truth, ashes no longer seem meaningless. In fact, quite the opposite, they have powerful purpose. Wood ash has benefits for the earth, infusing nutrients. Although burnt to the ground it nourishes the soil from which newness emerges. And then, a planting. A farmer is intentional about his crops. He envisions a tiny seed as a field of glory.
I live in a relatively rural area of South-Central Pennsylvania. Just a few minute’s drive from town leads to wide fields of a variety of seasonal crops. Often, in the middle of the expanse, is a lone tree. I imagine this tree, surrounded by the fruit of the ash-enriched earth, with abundant life and sure substance. The Hebrew word for “tree” has the element of strength, valor, force, virtue. From nothingness comes might.
Today I believe although I can not see. And one day, all things, even those reduced to dust, will be made new. Until then, I live with hope, trusting that through it all, God may be glorified. Facing each new day with grace.
