Beauty for Ashes and Joy for Mourning

Good morning, girlfriends!  I just read a devotion based on one of my favorite verses for dealing with my down times.  I wanted to share some of it with you.

Isaiah 61:3

"To console those who mourn in Zion,

to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning,

the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

that they may be called trees of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified."

In this mornings devotion by Sandra D. Bricker she states:

 "On the occasions that I've suffered a devastating loss, even though at times I couldn't see it, there was recovery ahead.  I would go on to live again, to smile, even to laugh.  When I didn't think I had a song left in my heart, somehow I was able to hear the soft hum in the distance, the promise of music on my horizon.

The more often we experience His willingness to turn our mourning into joy and our ashes into something beautiful, the easier it is the next time to believe that we will survive.  Like a muscle we've begun to exercise, our faith in what God will do in our lives is strengthened with its use."

Notice the underline portions of the devotion.  We ALL have times in our lives when circumstances seemed piled against us and we can't see through them.  We don't "feel" happy or "feel" like smiling or singing.  We put on our masks and go about our daily lives as best we can.  BUT...God does have a plan, doesn't he?  Think back to difficult times in your life.  Did God bring recovery?  Did God bring healing?  Did you feel happy again?  Yes, yes and yes!  Believe me, I've been there many times.  Times when I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Times when I thought God wasn't there and wasn't working.  But I somehow survived.  And even in those darkest moments, somewhere deep down inside of me I had a peace.  Thank God for His peace, even if it is faint, during those times!

Let God give you beauty for ashes today.  To turn that bad circumstance into something beautiful.  Let Him trade your mourning for joy.

Until next time, hang in there and hold on to Jesus!  Don't forget to check back on Monday for my mother/daughter blog post!  See you then.

Jennifer