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 JEHOVA [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.
As we approach Palm Sunday, I think of Jesus approaching Jerusalem, knowing that in days He would die on the Cross. Luke 9:51 is one of my favorite verses: “And it came to pass, when the time was come that He should be received up, He stedfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.” This purposeful courage of Jesus is both humbling and heartening, for if Jesus could willingly make that journey, then we can likewise complete our trek of faith. The song “The Way Worn Traveler” speaks of following the footsteps of Jesus, not to Jerusalem, but to the places He calls us to visit. It was written in 1836 and recorded a century later by the Carter Family. The best version that I know, though, was rendered by Johnny Cash on his album Personal File. It was recorded in 1980 but not released until 2006 after he died. It is just a man with his guitar singing a song he loved, singing of “palms of victory.”