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.
Personal disasters are the source for many songs. Such songs are rarer in Christian music. The traditional hymn “Come, All Ye Tenderhearted” is quite unusual. It is a warning song (like many Victorian-era songs, Christian or otherwise), but the spiritual lesson is implied, not overtly stated. Previous generations of Christians were not offended to be reminded of the brevity of life; the words of Jesus in Luke 12:20a would have been met with nods of approbation: “Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee.” The Stanley Brothers’ live version of this song (which they learned from an old Baptist hymnal) is appropriately somber and moving.