Color Bursts through Devastation - Kelley Barton

Some of us go through long stretches of despair, when life circumstances feel soul crushing. We can’t imagine coming out the other side. Each day is a test of our will to get from morning to evening.

In my neighborhood there are 2 families dealing with the death of their young adult sons who are deep in this phase of despair. I know a bit of that pain. When I was 11 years old, my father died suddenly. I adored him and his death shaped me in a profound way.

A few days ago, when driving from Lake Tahoe to Mammoth Lakes, we drove through a large burn scar area, filled with blackened trees. Then we came upon this view, where the Aspen trees were bursting with beautiful fall colors in the midst of the burned trees.

Year after year fires have devasted large swaths of California, taking lives, destroying homes and forests. Regrowth takes so long. Often it’s not the pine trees that we see returning to the land but ground cover, shrubs and other plants. I had never seen Aspens like this. And it gave me hope.

Even though despair can last so long, God can bring new growth to us with time. Hope that He has not abandoned us, even if it feels like it. That He is working under the surface and is loving us through our pain. Hope that we will eventually burst through the darkness with color.

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4 (NIV)

I like this translation, compared to the traditional “valley of the shadow of death”. Scholars have written that the Hebrew word sal-ma-wet means “darkness” and it was possibly written when David was in exile, fleeing King Saul (who wanted to kill him). That David was expressing his despair, loss of hope. He would not fear but continue through it, knowing God was there with him.

Hope was lost when the fire came through. But many years later, hope sprung and is now flourishing in the Aspens. For those in the midst of despair, I hope this image will help you feel God is there with you and it will help you get through one more day, one more month, and even one more year as you wait for the new to break through the darkness.