Beauty for Ashes

I love Isaiah 61... it's one of my favorite passages of scripture. God promises that to all who mourn, he will give "beauty for ashes." What a promise! I serve a God who knows everything I mourn and all my dirty ashes.



I've got powdery ashes in my fireplace. I can't stand them. As a matter of fact, I keep thinking they need to be cleaned out and still they sit. Do you have any ashes piling up that need to be cleaned out? Maybe it's worry or stress for your finances or a relationship? Sometimes my worry piles up, layer by layer, packed in like charcoal soot. I often can't even remember what it is I'm worried about... I just have this nagging feeling in my gut that won't go away. Just like my fireplace, I go on about my day ignoring it and thinking I'll get to it later. In my fireplace, these ashes are piled up from several fires; layers of burnt wood... what once was a beautiful blazing fire has now become a cold dark chasm. Each fire brought comfort, memories, warmth, and beauty. Once the fire went out, the leftovers remain. The longer they sit, the more distant their predecessor becomes.



My ashes that pile up from unaddressed issues do the same. Sometimes, I can't see the beauty in my life for all the soot that has piled up. I forget all the things God has done in my life for centering my thoughts on what He hasn't. God's desire is to give beauty for ashes, joy instead of mourning, praise instead of despair. He has planted me like a strong and graceful oak for his glory. I'm cleaning out ashes today...