Skip to main content

"Lift Thine Eyes"



Last week at stake conference, I had the privilege to sing alto in a special women's choir for the a cappella number "Lift Thine Eyes" from Mendelssohn's Elijah. I had never heard it before, and I immediately fell in love with it the first time I listened to it. The message of the song is just as beautiful as the music:

Lift thine eyes to the mountains, whence cometh help.

Thy help cometh from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

He hath said thy foot shall not be moved.

Thy keeper will never slumber.

Lift thine eyes to the mountains, whence cometh help. 

To me, the words mean we can get help from the Savior at His temple, the mountain of the Lord. I also love the line, "Thy keeper will never slumber," a reminder that Christ is always there waiting for us to seek Him and rely on His strength and righteousness. We may fall asleep while praying, reading our scriptures, sitting in Church, or even attending the temple, but He is always aware and ready to comfort or help us. We are important to Him, and He will never forget us though we may forget Him. Isaiah affirms this:

13 ¶Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.

14 But Zion said, The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.

15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands . . .

18 ¶Lift up thine eyes . . .

(Isaiah 49:13-16, 18)

Sharing Time: What does this song mean to you?

Comments

DAD said…
beautiful daughter beautiful song

Popular posts from this blog

New URL Coming Soon To Avoid Using "Mormon"

photo by ilker In light of President Nelson's talk in October 2018 general conference , I will be changing the title and address of this blog very soon to eliminate the use of the word "Mormon." Because I won't be buying a domain name, I don't know what the new URL and blog name will be yet. I'm not very literate in the website world, so please bear with me as I roll out these changes. I'm trying to learn as much as I can quickly to reduce broken links and errors. Thank you, and I hope you keep reading my blog!

"Be Thou an Example of the Believers" at Home

Today, my husband and I spoke in sacrament meeting. Here is the first part of my talk ( read Part 2  and Part 3 ): “The effect of our words and acts is tremendous in this world. Every moment of life you are changing to a degree the lives of the whole world.” Those are the words of President David O. McKay.* If we have such an astounding influence over the world, we need to be examples of righteousness. As Paul counseled, “Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. . . . Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in so doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee” (1 Timothy 4:12, 16). The Lord said, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also” (John 14:12). So to be an example of the believers is to do what the Lord has done so that we can “save [ourselves], and them that hear [us].” We usually apply this principle to missionary work, but it also e...

Mormons and Gay Marriage

photo by Matt Cook It is known news that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) contributed much to stop gay marriage from becoming legal in California. However, most people do not understand fully why we are against it. I will address common questions concerning Mormons and their opposition to gay marriage. Are Mormons against gay people? No. As the expression goes, we "hate the sin, not the sinner." That creed applies to any person struggling with sin, not just gay people. What we disapprove of is the homosexual lifestyle. There are members of our Church who are homosexual yet as worthy as heterosexual members because they do not participate in that lifestyle. Elder Holland said , "Let me make it clear that attractions alone, troublesome as they may be, do not make one unworthy. The First Presidency has stated, 'There is a distinction between immoral thoughts and feelings and participating in either immoral heterosexual or any homosexual...