“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
Most of us understand how God “works for good in all things” as Romans 8:28 says. Even in times of loss and difficulties, God works to bring some measure of good out of it. Those times of trial may strengthen our reliance on God, or reveal a true friend, or provide us with an unexpected opportunity. Even in the ash-filled skies of this summer, there has been a silver lining…or rather, a pink-orange one.
On the church Boundary Waters trip, the smoke ruined the usually crystal-clear view of the stars at night and the lakes by day. But the ashen skies yielded instead a most gorgeous pinkish-orange sun that painted a strip of light across the water. Such beauty in the ashes. God brought some measure of good out of a bad situation.
But when Isaiah wrote to a grieving people, he promised more than a little beauty IN the ashes. He promised that God would exchange their ashes for a crown of beauty, exchange their sorrow for a joyous blessing, and exchange their moans of despair for shouts of praise and celebration. God would remove the times of difficulty and replace them with times of joy. Beauty FOR ashes.
This is our ultimate hope in Christ. Not that God would provide little blessings in the midst of all our suffering, but that God would ultimately remove our suffering and replace it with an eternal joy.
Have a great week!
Pastor Mark