I Lift My Eyes

Not the Teton range to be sure, but not too terribly far from them, and beautiful nonetheless.

"I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth," - Psalm 121:1-2

I don't suspect I'll ever forget the first time I saw the Teton range in Wyoming. Driving south out of Yellowstone, the forest seems to go on forever. Evergreens fill the landscape and block the sky as the road winds through them. Then suddenly they open up, and a large lake appears; Reflecting in that lake is the Teton range, towering over the landscape.

Since that moment, that has become my favorite place in this world, outside of home sweet home.

Mountains are an amazing thing. Their size is both intimidating and inspiring; Their terrain is both difficult and refreshing.

As Jews traveled to Jerusalem, they would sing these Psalms in this section of the psalter, songs sometimes called Pilgrim songs.

I'm sure that those that truly revered God would be filled with awe, wonder, and praise as they saw the mountains surrounding Jerusalem.

When viewed from a Biblical perspective, I think mountains do a good job at doing just that for us even today.

As the Psalmist looks to the mountains and asks the question, "where shall my help come from?" he doesn't respond with, "the mountains shall help me."

Instead, he looks to the Maker of the mountains, knowing it is from there that his help will come.

When we're troubled, do we ponder creation? Do we look at the lilies of the field or the birds of the air (cf. Matthew 6:25-34)?

Do we lift our eyes to the mountains?

If God is capable of making something as supremely beautiful, powerful, dangerous, and exciting as mountains, how much more capable is He of moving mountains in our own lives?