Beauty out of Ashes.

I just found this new blog, Profoundly Seth.  I love reading her thoughts, and her kids are stinkin’ cute!  The writer’s name is Ellyn, and she recently posted on God using challenges to refine us.  She is facing challenges that I cannot imagine.  It just got me thinking.

 

Goodness knows that God is using these boys in my life.  Through them he is teaching me the art of patience faster than I ever really wanted to.  I’ve always prayed for God to teach me patience – momentarily forgetting the mode in which he does so – and really, although I’m sure that I will appreciate it at some point, I think in retrospect I would have asked to learn a different fruit of the spirit.

However, you’d be shocked at how quickly I can de-escalate my fuming, anger stricken, if-you-roll-your-eyes-at-me-one-more-time-I’ll-tape-your-eyelids-shut self these days.  These boys are doing wonders for my self talk.  ha!

The point being, he is absolutely refining me.  He is using these boys to help me know Him better, be who He created me to be, and realize that if I don’t want my buttons to be pushed, I should just lose the buttons {go touch-screen if you will}. 

In fact, maybe He even chuckled a little when he heard Jae utter that terrible word that starts with a ‘B’ in my direction. (That one that makes my blood turn to fire….yeah, that one.)  He says, “Oh Maggie, loosen up.  Do you know how many times you’ve said things that I could get bent out of shape over, and look here – I still love you.”

 

This quote came up on another blog I was reading today:

If Jesus gives us a task or assigns us to a difficult season, every ounce of our experience is meant for our instruction and completion if only we’ll let Him finish the work. I fear, however, that we are so attention-deficit that we settle for bearable when beauty is just around the corner.

              Beth Moore

 

So we’re stickin’ this one out guys.  Let’s see what God has in store.

 

In her blog post, Ellyn also talked about how she doesn’t think everything happens for a reason, but that God can bring amazing things from the ashes.  (Not sure I agree that everything doesn’t happen for a reason.  God allows things to happen, and uses them for His glory.  But he already knew what would happen ahead of time – so no sure where that leaves us.  My mind just exploded.)

Anyway, that led me to think about the situation that the boys are in the middle of.  Their small hearts are so full of ashes left over from the fire that ripped through their world.  They don’t even know what to do with all of their hurt.

But God is bringing beauty out of those ashes. 

I see it in small things.  Like when Zee asks me if God is listening to his prayers.  Or when Jae finally breaks down and cries with me.  Or when we have short moments when I can tell that the boys trust us, and know we love them.  Beauty.  Straight from ashes. 

God is incredible.