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Ashes

We have a wood stove at our house and this requires disposing of the ashes every so often. To ensure complete combustion and to avoid a build-up of creosote in the chimney, we like to run the stove at an internal temperature of about a thousand degrees Fahrenheit or about 540 Celsius. At that temperature, all moisture is driven from the inside of the stove and the ashes that remain are about as dry as anything can be.

Sometimes, when disposing of the ashes outside a little gust of wind has blown some of the powder-fine ash into my face. On a couple of occasions I’ve had some of this material end up in my eyes or mouth. Because the ashes are so dry they immediately stick to any moist surface so trying to get rid of them is a major challenge. And, of course, getting rid of them is exactly what you want to do because they are distinctly uncomfortable when they are where they are not supposed to be.

The discomfort comes from two factors, the alkaline nature of its chemical makeup and the tiny particles themselves that are so strongly attracted to the moist mucosa. Ashes have long been associated with sorrow. Through the centuries, a variety of cultures have used the application of ashes as an expression of grief, perhaps most commonly in the case of bereavement. When one is wallowing in self-pity and pain, refusing to be comforted, sitting in ashes or pouring them on one’s head would only add to the misery.

An ancient prophet wrote of God’s intent to make some important exchanges. He wrote that for those who experienced deep grief (symbolized by ashes), mourning and despair over their sorry spiritual state, they would find their sorrow replaced by a crown of beauty, mourning would be replaced by the oil of gladness, the spirit of despair would be replaced by what’s he calls “the garment of praise.”

Cultural differences may make it a little hard for us to be excited about beautiful crowns, the oil of gladness and the garment of praise. While we may not identify strongly with those images, we do know about sorrow, mourning, and despair. Suffice it to say that the prophet is expressing God’s intent to replace those with their opposites: happiness, celebration and hope.

It all hinges on one important thing, though, and that is knowing God. Jesus, the Son of God in human form, came to earth to make the introduction. He dealt with the awkward issue of sin which separates us from Him and invites us to come without fear to the one He called “my Father and your Father.” (See John 20:17). In the presence of our heavenly Father, we are promised fullness of joy and eternal pleasure.

Ron Hughes
© April 2009