Melodic Mondays
Those of you who know me know that I love music even though I am not musical myself. I listen to good music as often as I can. It is beneficial to the brain, valuable to the vocabulary, and strengthening to the soul. Isaiah 12:2-3 is a lovely passage that includes this soaring statement of surety: “The Lord JEHOVAH [YAHWEH] is my strength and my song.” This could be translated, “God is my mountaintop and my music.” Yes, He is! Each Monday, I want to study this subject and suggest a song to listen to. Anyone reading this devotional has easy access to any song. (I am an exception because I do not go on a computer or other information device.) If you do not like my suggestion (and we all have different tastes), you can think of or search for one that speaks to you. Then, it can become a source of encouragement throughout the week.
One of the most well-known parables of Jesus is that of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). The wayward young man decides that swilling the pig slop and sleeping in the filth of the pig sty of this wicked world is no way to live. “He came to himself” (verse 17), returns to God (verses 18-19), but finds that it has been God all along who has watched him and drawn him back. This young man’s story is, to some degree, the story of each believer. A traditional Gospel song that uses the imagery of this passage is “Weary Prodigal Son.” The plaintive version by the Carter Family highlights their simple and winsome family harmonies.