He makes beauty from ashes

I’ve always loved that verse

Loved it because it reminded

That in all the pain

All the heart break

Scars, trauma, and incredibly bad mistakes

God can make something beautiful

But what if that little something starting to bloom into beautiful

Suddenly is faced with fire

What if that beauty starting to take shape

Is ripped to shreds and set on fire

Will you crumple with the tragedy?

Will you say, “thanks God but no thanks I’m out”?

Because purposefully standing in the fire seems like complete foolery

But what if it’s the ash He needs

The ash from when the fire consumes it all up

All the expectations

The dreams not of Him

The hope set on things here and not of above

The ash of our time lines

Our life plans

Our way to heal

What if we have to trust Him and stand in the fire

To let the flames consume it all

And be left with nothing but ash

But God…

He doesn’t leave

Everything consumed to blow away in the wind

But God…

Like the great artist that He is starts to sketch lines and shades with the ash of what was

He’s delicate

He takes His time

Careful to not leave any detail out

But God…

He creates something so beautiful far beyond what we could have imaged

And as He is working I start to see

That His sketching looks a lot like me

But it’s me there still with healing scars and broken dreams

Me with eyes that shine with life and joy even though they carry the weight of pain

And as I stare I start to realize that while I see me

The more The Creator works

The more I see Jesus in me

Through His kindness brought me through the fire

So that He could truly make beauty from ashes

And my life to grow to look more like Him