Читать книгу Beyond the Horizon - Harry A. Renfree - Страница 77

March 11

The wonders of nature never cease to amaze. God has designed such harmony and balance in the natural world. A prime example of this is the lodgepole pine tree, which is found extensively in British Columbia and the Northwest United States. The lodgepole pine belongs to what is called a “fire origin species.” When the cones of the lodgepole pine fall to the ground, they are sealed shut so that the seeds do not germinate in response to water and sun. The pine cones rest on the forest floor, sometimes for decades, until a forest fire sweeps through and the heat from the fire melts the seal; then the seeds fall out and germinate.

Metaphorically speaking, you’ve likely known people who are “fire origin species.” Perhaps you are one yourself—one who has been badly burned in life and who, out of the ashes, has started out again to build a new life. The fires of life have not destroyed you; they have made you even more experienced to face the battles ahead.

A few verses from the forty–third chapter of Isaiah fit this description: “But now, this is what the LORD says . . . “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 43:1a–2).

Isaiah, looking forward to the coming of the Messiah also writes: “The spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted . . . to comfort all who mourn . . . to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning” (Isaiah 61:1–3b).

“A crown of beauty instead of ashes.” Out of the burnt things of life, the ashes, God promises a crown of beauty.

Just like the lodgepole pine reforests the devastated land.