In the summer of 2018, my husband and I went to the southern Oregon coast for our vacation.  We love the beautiful blue water and the dancing waves.  We also love the grand mountains, which parallel the coast. 

The summer before our vacation, a terrible fire had gone up the Chetco River near the place we camped. It had burned over 190,000 acres of beautiful lush green forest, thick with trees, ferns and other dense undergrowth. Aaron had been in forestry for a year, so he wanted to see the results of this fire. We took off and drove through mile after mile of charred, black tree trunks with no or little undergrowth. The vast devastation was overpowering!  This colossal, flourishing, verdant, forest was reduced to black trunks and twigs!

And then, as we drove along, we saw something startling and impressive.  We saw some green in the midst of the black trees!  Growing out of the burnt trunks, were the starts of new branches!  Little bright green twigs were sprouting, spreading out their tiny emerald needles. New life was coming from the charred, begrimed, tree trunks!

Don’t we have times when we feel cremated?  Our fiancé left us for someone else.  Our spouse ran off with another person.  We lost our job – through no fault of our own, yet the bills are due. We have been slandered when we were honorable. We, or a member of our family has an accident that results is a great disability, and life is never the same.   No, life is never the same after those and similar incidents.  We feel the ashes of our former life around us, and our heart feels charred and despondent.  How can we go on? 

There is only one way to go on, and that is to reach up to the only One who can really help us.  God knows what has happened, and He knows the excruciating pain and numbness that we feel. Turn to Him and vent your pain and frustration on Him.  He can take it.  Let Him start the healing process for your deadened heart. 

Turn to Him and ask for His help.  He runs to the cry of those who turn to Him.  As you are ready, He will show you the next step to take.  He knows who you are and what you need.  He sees you healed and whole with new purpose, and He knows how to get you there.

God can bring new life out of the charred remains of your life. Turn to Him, and allow Him to do it.

Praying for healing, joy and purpose as your discover your new life,

Lisa Veach