{"id":5142,"date":"2015-11-18T07:00:35","date_gmt":"2015-11-18T14:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/?p=5142"},"modified":"2015-11-16T06:48:59","modified_gmt":"2015-11-16T13:48:59","slug":"hear-our-praises-musical-musings-in-march-sabbatical-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/?p=5142","title":{"rendered":"Hear Our Praises \u2013 Musical Musings in March (Sabbatical Post)"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

On this third day of March, I\u2019m jumping decades from the two hymns I\u2019ve blogged about to a popular praise song. In accordance with the Ephesians 5:19 passage, I would classify this song as a spiritual song. And this is one of my favorite spiritual songs to make music in my heart to the Lord.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"???????????????????????????????\"<\/a>This particular song didn\u2019t become popular until I moved to Colorado and I believe my physical location in this world added to the meaning for me.<\/p>\n

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You see, I had lived in New York, Ohio, and Kentucky and I had seen mountain ranges from the Adirondacks to the Smokies, but I never knew what mountains really were until I lived in Colorado.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In a state that boasts 53 peaks over 14,000 feet, I have seen first-hand the heights of these mountains. Now granted I\u2019ve never climbed a 14er, but I have driven to the top of a couple and when you\u2019re on top of Mount Evans, you are up there.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In my spiritual life, I also have been at the top of a 14er. When the spiritual experiences have been greater than I could even imagine. I\u2019ve also been in some spiritual valleys. And I will be the first to tell you, there is a great distance between the two.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Standing at the top of a mountain peak and seeing the valleys below truly show the heights and depths of a spiritual mountain top and valley experience.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So when I sing the song, \u201cHear Our Praises,\u201d I have a greater understanding of the words. I can visualize the mountains and the valleys and understand the importance of each.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As you read through these words (and perhaps listen by clicking here<\/a>), I pray that you\u2019ll be able to visualize the mountains and the valleys and remember that we are to be praising God. Regardless of where you are on your spiritual journey, we must praise God.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hear Our Praises<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

May our homes be filled with dancing
\nMay our streets be filled with joy
\nMay injustice bow to Jesus
\nAs the people turn to pray
\n(Chorus)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

May Your light shine in the darkness
\nAs we walk before the cross
\nMay Your glory fill the whole earth
\nAs the water o’er seas
\n(Chorus)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Chorus
\nFrom the mountains to the valleys
\nHear our praises rise to You
\nFrom the heavens to the nations<\/p>\n

Hear our singing fill the air<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hallelujah, hallelujah
\nHallelujah, hallelujah
\nHallelujah, hallelujah
\nHallelujah, hallelujah<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

From the mountains to the valleys
\nHear our praises rise to You
\nFrom the heavens to the nations
\nHear our singing fill the air[i]<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I am reminded of Isaiah\u2019s words when he speaks of mountains and valleys. In our spiritual lives, there is nothing Jesus wants more than to level the ground beneath our feet.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sometimes there are rugged, rocky paths that stand between us and our spiritual growth. It is Jesus\u2019 desire to bring these paths level and clear out the rugged places.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cEvery valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.\u201d<\/em> (Isaiah 40:4 \u2013 NIV)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So how are you doing on your spiritual journey? Are you struggling to get to the top of the mountain or are you stuck in the valley? How much of your journey have you given to Jesus or have you asked Him for His help?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I\u2019ll remind you of yet another passage from the Book of Psalm. King David wrote, \u201cWhen I said, \u2018My foot is slipping,\u2019 your love, O Lord, supported me.\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 93:18 \u2013 NIV)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I can\u2019t find a single reason to be on this journey alone. Jesus is with you. He loves you. And He will keep your foot from slipping. All you need to do is ask for His help.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

If you are discouraged today, take heart. Jesus has overcome the world and He is by your side. The valleys can be overwhelming, but the mountains can only be appreciated because of the valleys.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Today, I pray that God will hear my praise.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Donna<\/p>\n

[i]<\/a> Hear Our Praises, Hillsong<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  On this third day of March, I\u2019m jumping decades from the two hymns I\u2019ve blogged about to a popular praise song. In accordance with the Ephesians 5:19 passage, I would classify this song as a spiritual song. And this is one of my favorite spiritual songs to make music in my heart to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[1794,2933,5010,5009,286,287],"class_list":["post-5142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-praising-god","tag-baking-in-colorado","tag-ephesians-519","tag-hear-my-praise","tag-hear-our-praises-musical-musings-in-march-sabbatical-post","tag-isaiah-404","tag-psalm-9318"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5142"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5142\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5146,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5142\/revisions\/5146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}