One early morning I was taking a walk down a back country road with just me and the trees.
I love doing things like that. Getting away from the noise of the world is so important. Letting my brain breathe in the fresh air and peaceful stillness of God’s beauty is the best medicine for a crowded mind. Some days I have to make myself just be still. Watching birds fly careless and free, trees standing strong and steady, and the gentle touch of the wind on my skin brings so much peace.
This particular morning was just that. I walked through God’s beautiful creation clearing my mind of all the clutter of life. As I strolled down this quiet back country road I came across this sweet little flower. It stuck out to me because it was surrounded by death. We have had a pretty brutal summer with hardly any rain and crazy hot temperatures. So when I saw this flower, it struck me as odd. The dried-up leaves and dead brush all around it seemed normal given our weather, but then there was this bright beautiful flower standing tall.
It got me to thinkin’!
It took me back to a time when I was surrounded by death. A family member was in the process of passing away and as my family was trying to handle that, my marriage was also coming to an end. A month before all of this started, I had also given birth to a beautiful little boy. I was surrounded by death, but ironically when I prayed earlier that year I felt the Lord gave me the word “Life”.
I don’t know if you do this, but every year I pray about a word for the year. Something I can pray about, meditate on, and just be guided through the year with. When I get the word I find myself trying to figure out what it means. At the end of every year, it leads to something completely different from what I had envisioned, ha!
This particular year it seemed almost cruel to have been given this word during this time. Surely I must have gotten it wrong. Even the life I had given birth to seemed wrong. “How God could this sweet little boy enter into this world at a time like this? Why would You let this happen? His beautiful life is surrounded by death! How could I ever remember his birth and it not break my heart?”
Well, the Lord in His sweet way reminded me of his name. Asher. While pregnant, I was reading my Bible and I came across the word “ashes”. I paused at this and thought..” ashes…ashes…Asher. Hey, that’s a good name for a baby!” I looked up the meaning and it meant “blessed one, happy”. Perfect! It was decided. That’s going to be this little boy’s name.
In that heartbreaking moment, when I was surrounded by death the Lord reminded me of that night. He showed me that He was giving me beauty in the ashes. His name was formed from the word “ashes”, his life began in the midst of ashes, and God knew all of this. His timing was perfect. My beautiful, lively, rambunctious, hilariously, happy little boy was given to me for such a time as this. He brought “Life” when I was surrounded by so much death. Never, ever could you have told me at the beginning of that year that it would have ended as it did, but God knew. He knew what I would need and exactly when I would need it.
I know it’s hard to find hope in what seems to be hopeless times. It seems that God isn’t paying attention or doesn’t care about what is happening. Let this be your reminder, just as the flower was to me. He knows exactly what you are going through and how to help you. If you can trust Him in those dark moments and look past all the death, He will speak life to you and help you see the beauty in the ashes.
