Waking up in the middle of the night, I hear the crackling of flames in the distance. Fire! But instead of jumping out of bed, I turn over and go back to sleep.

The sound and sight of fire is very familiar to us these days. Every year at the end of rainy season it’s the same: hills and pastures are burned until there is nothing left but rocks and charred soil. It’s the easiest way to get rid of all the tall grass and brush after several months of growth. And it’s a welcome opportunity for people to hunt all the animals that flee from the fires. Of course it also does a lot of destruction on the way, since new trees and plants get consumed by the fire if people don’t protect them well enough.

Amazingly, only a few days after the fires have gone out, the first green shoots are already pushing up through the ashes as seemingly dead soil produces beautiful little flowers.

Every time I see this it reminds me that God can bring forth new life even when things look hopeless and dead to us. It also reminds me that sometimes things have to be destroyed before something new can grow. So next time you feel like your plans are destroyed and dead, don’t despair, wait. Maybe God is preparing the soil for something beautiful.

• Twitter