Beauty from the Ashes
What comes to mind when you hear the words, burn pile?
Twigs, tree limbs, grass clippings, leaves, unwanted debris, ashes, smoke...
There is a nearby neighborhood burn pile that builds up and collects all this unwanted "junk" and typically gets burned twice a year. Usually it is such a large pile that it burns and smolders for days. The last burn date was several months ago, but a few days ago I walked by the pile and noticed this:
Even in the midst of being uprooted and burned, God brought fruit and beauty from the ashes.
Do you ever feel like your life is full of unwanted debris? The sins and junk are crowding your heart and mind? You are carrying various pain and hurts that smolder; the smoke of those issues clouding and burning your vision, taking away any hope for the future?
I want to encourage you that there IS hope! God restores from the ashes. What we think is unusable and infertile soil, God sees as rich opportunity for growth. Often God allows these difficult and trying times in order to teach us something about ourselves and, ultimately, about Him.
I recently read a blog (http://www.incourage.me/2014/08/ordinary-tuesdays-for-the-broken-hopefuls.html) where the writer made this statement: God turns tests into testimonies and messes into messages. How true this is when I reflect on my own journey through life. I seem to learn and grow the most when I go through refining and difficult circumstances.
Psalm 61:1-2 says, "Listen to my cry for help, O God. Pay attention to my prayer. From the ends of the earth, I call to you when I begin to lose heart. Lead my to the Rock that is high above me." If problems are looming above you like giant mountains or you're faced with frustrations or deep heartache, God is there waiting to listen to your heartfelt cries.
It takes discipline to climb difficult mountains and face rocky circumstances. If your commitment to Him is waning, remember God is by your side, ready to help and restore your strength. Each step you take with Him brings you one step closer to conquering your goal and being whole, healed and filled with joy once again.
Twigs, tree limbs, grass clippings, leaves, unwanted debris, ashes, smoke...
There is a nearby neighborhood burn pile that builds up and collects all this unwanted "junk" and typically gets burned twice a year. Usually it is such a large pile that it burns and smolders for days. The last burn date was several months ago, but a few days ago I walked by the pile and noticed this:
There is beauty emerging from the ashes.
Sunflowers
Tomatoes
Even in the midst of being uprooted and burned, God brought fruit and beauty from the ashes.
Do you ever feel like your life is full of unwanted debris? The sins and junk are crowding your heart and mind? You are carrying various pain and hurts that smolder; the smoke of those issues clouding and burning your vision, taking away any hope for the future?
I want to encourage you that there IS hope! God restores from the ashes. What we think is unusable and infertile soil, God sees as rich opportunity for growth. Often God allows these difficult and trying times in order to teach us something about ourselves and, ultimately, about Him.
I recently read a blog (http://www.incourage.me/2014/08/ordinary-tuesdays-for-the-broken-hopefuls.html) where the writer made this statement: God turns tests into testimonies and messes into messages. How true this is when I reflect on my own journey through life. I seem to learn and grow the most when I go through refining and difficult circumstances.
Psalm 61:1-2 says, "Listen to my cry for help, O God. Pay attention to my prayer. From the ends of the earth, I call to you when I begin to lose heart. Lead my to the Rock that is high above me." If problems are looming above you like giant mountains or you're faced with frustrations or deep heartache, God is there waiting to listen to your heartfelt cries.
It takes discipline to climb difficult mountains and face rocky circumstances. If your commitment to Him is waning, remember God is by your side, ready to help and restore your strength. Each step you take with Him brings you one step closer to conquering your goal and being whole, healed and filled with joy once again.
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