Beauty From Ashes

To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. (Isaiah 61:3 NLT)

Ashes upon ashes.

All of us will encounter seasons of life that have been marked by pain and loss. Ashes are what is left when something is burned. The mental picture of ashes that comes to my mind when I read this verse are all the things we have experienced or are experiencing that are grievously painful or difficult. Wounds we have experienced, bills we cannot pay, losses we have endured.

Steve and I were in conversation this week to come up with a word for our annual photo fridge magnet that could encapsulate the year of ashes that 2024 has been for our family. It fits perfectly with this scripture from Isaiah, “Resurgam,” a latin phrase that means, “I will rise again.” As believers, we have this promise from Isaiah 61 that the ministry of the Messiah was to come and heal our broken hearts! The Lord’s promise to us is that as we entrust our ashes to Him, rather than sprinkling them on our heads like one in mourning would do, He grants us crowns of beauty!

I love how the verse ends with a focus on the transformation that happens when Jesus ministers to us in the depths of our pain. As we bring Jesus our ashes, part of the beauty that comes is a life that is lived “evergreen,” fruitful, even with the darkest and hardest hours we have ever faced. The Lord calls it being an “oak of righteousness.” The best part? It is all for His Glory! (see Isaiah 61:3)

Has pain fractured your heart?

Does your soul bleed inside?

Do financial concerns loom?

Is the future unsettling?

Jesus brought us into existence, and there is no one who can better understand the pain and hardships we endure more than He can. Because Jesus is our Shepherd, He doesn’t leave our side. He is the saving Shepherd who stays. The Shepherd who defends. The Shepherd who holds us when we cry. The Shepherd who will make every wrong right and enable us to move forward through pain to fulfill the good works He planned for us before time began.

Every storm answers to Him. This means every painful relationship, every bill you get from the hospital, every tear you cry or see your child cry, every pain inside your body, every fear that visits you…all of it answers to Him.

But mightier than the violent raging of the seas, mightier than the breakers on the shore—the Lord above is mightier than these! (Psalm 93:4 NLT)

Resurgam...yes, we will rise again! Both in this life and the life to come. We bring Him our ashes…our wounds, fears, and tears. We lay them down before a trustworthy Lord and trade sorrow for joy. His joy.

In freedom and focus on our Beloved, whose glory matters more than anything, we move forward into our God-given purpose. Tested by severe storms, we are anchored deep into the roots of His unchanging love. As is His promise in Isaiah 61:3, we become an “oak of righteousness”, a picture of the strength and radiance that comes from a life lived in total trust in the One who promises beauty from ashes.