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.
In Matthew 13:1-23, Jesus delivers the familiar parable of the sower and the seed. The point is that each one of us needs to receive the Gospel personally; then, we are to spread that message of eternal salvation (verse 23). Years later, the Apostle Paul would write, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (I Corinthians 3:6). We are responsible for evangelism, but it is always God Who gives “the increase.” We are to be faithful in witnessing and in waiting; the results rest with Him. “Sing Me Back Home” is a song of sad regrets and soaring redemption, combining the influences of a mother’s love and of musical lyrics. The original version by Merle Haggard is really good, but the relatively obscure rendition by the Flying Burrito Brothers is better.