Beauty From Ashes…

Beauty From Ashes…

When we cry out to the Lord with an earnest heart the Lord hears and the Lord responds immediately. Immediately may be a different time frame than we humans know, but His response will rain down like a spring shower – drops everywhere, covering every inch of our being. Whom shall we fear? Where are the ashes of our tragedy? They were transformed through confession, repentance and redemption.

Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple. ~Psalm 27:3-4 NKJB

The blood of Jesus Christ transforms our ashes into beauty – if we have eyes to see it, if we have ears to hear it. When we cry out to the Lord our eyes and ears should be focused on the Lord.

God’s time unfolds in His way and at His pace. Being born again into a new creation of the Spirit changes the timelines and opens doors that were once closed. We are able to see God’s beauty in tragedy a little easier, not always, but when we see with the eyes of God, we see His work and nothing else.

Allowing our heart songs to rise is one of the ways we can see the beauty of God in our tragedy. What happens when we are stuck in a situation that feels like a trap or feels like we have been put in a very dark place – the office, traffic, a hospital with an ill friend or family member – a place where it seems that God isn’t present? He is, turning to Him, and asking – “God where is the beauty in this situation?” changes the situation.

For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. ~Psalm 27:5-6 NKJB

Practice may not make perfect but it does make better. Practicing, praying, calling out and repeating brings us closer and closer to Jesus Christ. The closer we get, the easier it becomes to rely upon Him and seek His beauty in all our situations.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.
Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord! ~Psalm 27:13-14 NKJB

Either the Gospel is the divine Word of God teaching us how to live and how to be a reflection of Him, or it’s nothing more than a historical account of events.