Beauty for Ashes
The return of Christ fills us with anticipation and even a bit of dread. For years, I used to avoid the books of Daniel and Revelation. I struggled with understanding them and I honestly feared the message they brought. I know that I am saved. I know my name is written in the Lamb’s book. I don’t fear the outcome of the end of this world. That I anticipate with joy and longing. What I used to fear was the process. Jesus makes no attempt to sugar-coat the horror of the end times. The Great Tribulation is described as being unlike anything the world has ever seen. History tells us this world has seen great and terrible tribulations. Those who lived through volcano explosions, the plague, war, famine, and destructive storms might wonder at just how bad those end times will be. Yet, even here – in this description of the most wicked and painful of times – we see God’s love through His restraint. For the sake of His children, He cuts the time short.
What brought me hope (ironically) was the book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet because his books (Jeremiah and Lamentations) contain such depth of sorrow you can almost see the tear stains on the pages. This man of God lived through the destruction of Jerusalem. It was more than a war against his city. It was the starvation of everyone around him. So great was the hunger that parents killed and cooked their own children to survive only to eventually starve when their tender bodies were gone. Yet, even there, God was with His child. Though many perished, Jeremiah and the man who wrote everything down for him, were preserved.
I cannot promise you that we will not see tribulation in our lives. I cannot promise that war, famine, or disaster won’t strike. I can promise you that even then, God is still with us. I can promise you that, for our sake, He will hold back the full ability of His wrath upon this wicked generation. Remember, He led Lot to safety. He comforted Hagar in the wilderness, He sustained the widow who shared with Elijah. They still experienced the struggle, but they also experienced the miracle and the love. Our God gives us beauty for ashes and peace for turmoil.
(Written by Keegan Harkins.)
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