Walk through the Fire

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.

        ~Isaiah 43:2

 

Two months ago, fire swept over our east pasture, leaving scorched scars of black and smouldering timber.

 

 

 

Soot-charred remnants of tall, green forest and lush, brushy pasture.  Heart-sick family and scared goat mamas.

 

Every day, we drove the lane and the blackened landscape jarred the beauty.  A stark reminder of the fire's devastation.

 

 

And then something began to happen.  A little rain, a lot of sun, the passing of time...  We hardly noticed at first, but what we thought was dead, was only waiting for a chance.  A chance to prove that there is always Hope.  Up from the blackened earth, the first little shoots of green.

 

 

 

 

 

Around that charred pole, the most tender of sawbriar sprouts rise whole and strong, just begging for the happy goat herd to come find them.

 

Goat Lesson #1:  Most favorite food in whole world is the prickly sawbriar vine, well, bananas are high on the list too, but sawbriar is their ambrosia!   And it's coming back!   Hero husband says I'm nuts to rejoice over stickery, viney weeds, but it makes the goats happy, and that makes me smile...

 

And there's more good news!  Trees that we thought were charred beyond redemption are bringing life back to this burnt out piece of land.

 

 

 

From bleak and painful in fire's aftermath

 

 

To new and growing, restored in God's great design,

 

 

In this life, we are not promised days of ease.  It can be a fight to live from the moment we draw breath.  Heart-aches and pain, stress and difficulties can mar the joy and quench the spirit.  Overwhelming circumstances can leave us desparate and despairing.  I think the prophet Isaiah understand perfectly and carried God's message of Hope straight to our hurting hearts...

 

But now, this is what the Lord says...

Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have summoned you by name;

you are mine.

When you pass through the waters,

I will be with you;

and when you pass through the rivers,

they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire,

you will not be burned;

the flames will not set you ablaze.

For I am the Lord, your God,

the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

                           ~ Isaiah 43:1-2 

 

When mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in November of 2010,  we began that walk through the fire.

 

Perhaps you are there right now.

 

The pain was literal, as if the flames were seeking to scorch our very souls.  There was no way to go around, or to escape this road-trip through our very own holocaust.

 

Our journey carried us into the emotional belly of hell so many times.  The grief we bear now is a reminder of that walk.  We will never forget the pain, our souls forever bear the blackened scars of pancreatic cancer's path.

 

But that's not the end of the journey...

 

The promise Isaiah shares is true.  The Lord has redeemed our burnt and hurting souls, carrying us through the fire, and giving us Hope that we will ultimately be Restored.  We will again feel the soft, summer rains quenching parched spirits and bringing beauty and joy to lives that have felt the fierce flames.  From blackened hearts, the first tender shoots of life, good and whole, will reappear. 

 

Mom has passed through the fire and rests in Glorious Peace even now.  We, too, have passed through the fire and find strength and rest in the One who loves us beyond reason...

 

You are precious and honored in my sight...

I love you.

                   ~Isaiah 43:4

 

What beautiful promise...He speaks to each one of us!

the great Jehovah dips low and whispers to our hurting hearts,

 

You are precious to me

and I love you more than you can fathom...

 

Loves us no matter what.  No matter what.  Forever and For Always. 

So...

 

When the waters threaten to sweep over you,

and the fire seeks to set you ablaze...

 

Remember, that there is One who carries you, shielding you

from the fiercest of flames 

and Loves you with the most Holy of Love.

 

He will bring beauty from the ashes...

He will redeem the pain...

 

How can I not be Graced with Hope this day?

                                    Jane