Some seasons seem so hard. The difficulties encountered in such seasons can leave you in the position of despair. One morning during a period when I was experiencing so much difficulties, as I was scrolling through my phone, I received a message notification and the title was BEAUTY FOR ASHES. Of course, this was not the first time I was hearing about the phrase beauty for ashes but out of curiosity, I decided to read what the message carried.
As I read through the message, I discovered that ASH is a sign that something has been ultimately destroyed. For instance, if you see a building at a particular position and a few weeks later, you pass by and notice only ash covering the area where the building was, it is an immediate sign that the building has been burned down. With this, it is apparent that the building is completely destroyed. What we see at that moment is nothing more than powder (ash) and is only a sad reminder of what used to be before it was destroyed to ash. In our sight, ash may symbolize nothing but loss but in God’s sight ash is raw material for producing something even far more beautiful than what it used to be. This message was truly amazing as it really made me to understand what God means when He says through his word that He will give us beauty for ashes.
This season, our focus is on breakthrough. Someone reading this may be at the point in life when it seems all hope is gone. You have tried all you can by your own efforts, but nothing seems to go right. You may be at the point of devastation where all around you seems to be ash of disappointments of the past. Your dreams, plans, relationships, profession etc seem to be crashing and you feel so downcast and wondering if any good can come out of your mess. You really need a breakthrough but yet, you have tried all you can to fix things and nothing seems to be working. So, what then can you do at this moment?
All hope is not lost! Hand your ASH to God. Take out some time alone in prayer with God. It is okay to cry at His feet. Be real with God for He knows your hurts and is always willing to help if you will let Him. Hand over the pile of the things in your life that seem to have been destroyed and turned to ASH. God is a loving father who desires that his children experience His love in every way. In our hands, all the baggage may hurt us and even cause ruin but in the hands of our amazing father, the ash of destruction is raw material to produce something far more beautiful than it was before.
Hear these words from your loving Father in Isaiah 61:1-3
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.”
I tell you dear friend, your breakthrough is at the point of human impossibilities and what is impossible with man is possible with God. God will give you beauty for ashes. Trust God even with those areas of your life which you feel is destroyed and watch him transform the broken pieces to something far more beautiful than you can ever think or imagine. It does not just suffice for you to read this and take no action. I pray this message stirs up the desire in you to go back to God in your brokenness, cry out for God’s mercy and help, believe His and trust in God’s restoration process. I know of a friend who was falsely accused for committing a serious crime at his job and a letter was sent to the headquarters of his office for him to be dismissed. During our fellowship meetings, he cried out to God and requested for the brethren to join him in prayers. It was a whole season of serious praying and trusting God for the vindication of this brother, not knowing how it will happen. It was not long from then when he said the headquarters actually received the letter for him to be dismissed but after handling the situation, instead of a dismissal, he was promoted far beyond what he expected. This friend thought God will just vindicate him from the false accusation but in God’s plan, the difficult situation he went through was a stepping stone for his promotion. His story was not only for him but the testimony helped to stir the faith of other believers to trust in God.
For someone reading this, you feel like you are lost or you feel like you made wrong choices (drug addictions, theft etc) and your life itself looks like the ash we are talking about, totally destroyed and nothing can fix the situation. You have read about going to God through this writeup but you do not know how to go about having a relationship with God, talk less of laying your burdens at His feet. I have good news for you. All hope is not lost. Jesus Christ is here to fix your life and give it a total new face. He will give you beauty for ashes. Jesus Christ is waiting for you to come as you are and as he works through the Holy Spirit in you, you will not remain as you are. Jesus Christ will beautify your life. Just take some time to say this prayer with deep conviction from your heart.
Lord God, You are a great and loving father. Lord, I acknowledge my sins and wrong doings. I come to you this day to cleanse me of my sin and make me whole. I believe in Jesus Christ who died on the cross for my sins and I commit my life to You this day. Take my heart, cleanse me and consecrate me and use me for your glory. Thank you Lord for saving me. Through the name of Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior, Amen.
If you genuinely made this prayer, believe God has heard you and you are welcomed to the family of believers. We encourage you to grow in faith by studying and meditating on the word of God, making prayer, praise and thanksgiving a lifestyle, strive to flee evil and bad habits, fellowship with other believers to grow in knowledge of the word of God and seek spiritual guidance. If you need help, please feel free to contact us @ arisesisterministries@gmail.com or leave a comment in the comment section and we will connect with you.