Beauty for Ashes

This week in our Sunday school class, we discussed several of the chapters in Isaiah. Our teacher asked a question about the term "beauty for ashes" and for examples from people's lives. Because I knew I would struggle to share my personal examples of difficult experiences followed by beauty, I shared what I know from what I have seen out in nature. Scott and I love to take our family to the great outdoors, and have seen massive areas destroyed by fire (in both Yellowstone and in Alaska) that have begun to regrow. Over time, the growth is different, but beautiful and healthy. It's a stark contrast from what it was before, and remnants of the burned forest remain, but the new growth is a different type of beautiful, framed by the background evidence of death and destruction that linger for many years after the fires.  Back in 2023, we took a few of our children to visit Alaska, and one of the hikes we did together was through an area that had experienced a massive wildfire several years earlier. All 4 of the following pictures are from that hike.

Alydia and I in Sterling Alaska, summer 2023 (James and Scott are there too, just not in this picture.)

Wildfires cause destruction, for sure, but that ash that's left behind is incredibly nutrient-dense. When you have seen a glorious forest, and then witness the devastation that comes after it's destroyed by fire, it makes your heart ache for what was lost. But the new life that springs up from the rich, ash-filled soil in the forest is beautiful; forest fires shift ecosystems, make way for new strong life, different trees and plants, and even different animals that may live there. What takes the place of the forest that was is new and different and beautiful also. Beauty for ashes. But it is not the same. And we can't expect it to be the same as it was before. It will be a new, different type of beautiful, like these young purple flowers that likely wouldn't have been able to grow in a dense forest, but are thriving with the ability to get much more light in this "new" environment.

I have seen this play out in my human journey too. I have many examples of moments when I felt like things were "burning down" in my life. My snowmobiling accident when I was 18, and I had to quit college for a semester and move back home. My mother's severe battles with depression. My husband's health challenges. Gideon's passing away. All of these have left devastation in their wake, as I witnessed the life I thought I would have go up in proverbial flames and leave ashes behind. However, the new life is beautiful in its own different way. I appreciate my ability to walk, move, and have children after wondering if that would be possible with my accident that compressed several vertebrae in my back. I am so grateful my mom is still here and that she is doing better, and I am close with all my siblings because of some of the difficult experiences we shared struggling to know how to help our mom. As my husband's health continues to be a rollercoaster, we appreciate each day of life, the life we have shared together and continue to create. I still love to listen to his heartbeat and after open-heart surgery, I truly feel like it's such a miracle. After Gideon passed, we added two more beautiful children to our family, and we treasure our moments with our loved ones in a different way than we could have without his loss.  The life I have is different from the life I thought I would live, but still so beautiful in a different way. These are exactly what the Lord promised in Isaiah 61. The Lord was appointed to "bind up the brokenhearted" (verse 1), "to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes..." 

I wish I could say that I expect no more "forest fires" in my life, but I do not think that is how it will play out. I am grateful to say that I can trust in the Lord and know that He truly does provide beauty for ashes, and I am excited to see what beautiful things are in store. 

Chase family May 2026