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.
The background to “We Are Climbing Jacob’s Ladder” is found in Genesis 28:10-22. Alone and on the run from his angry brother, Jacob was granted a reassuring picture of heaven and “the angels of God ascending and descending” on a stairway (a better translation than “ladder”). The traditional spiritual based on this account confirms that our Savior provides us with freedom – full, free, and forever. I particularly enjoy the rendition by Bernice Johnson Reagon.