I lift up my eyes to the hills – from where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Psalms 121:1-3 ESV

The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 121:7 ESV

This was one of my grandmother’s favorite Psalms. My grandmother lived her life looking to the Lord for help, and He delivered. I honor her by using it this week. When my grandparents retired, they moved from their farm in Indiana to the Ozark mountains of northwest Arkansas. They loved  the Ozark mountains, and we always enjoyed visiting. They often took us to see the huge Christ of the Ozarks in Eureka Springs.

I guess the Ozarks influenced me more than I knew! I love to hike mountain trails, hard on the uphill but easier coming down, usually. When our children were young, we hiked Grandfather Mountain, Hanging Rock, and Pilot Mountain. As they got older, we hiked a section of the Appalachian Trail and Angels Landing in Zion National Park in Utah. Our ultimate hike was the Inca Trail in Peru.

But as I think about our verse for today, and lifting my eyes to the “hills”, it suggests that I am in a valley; perhaps a dark valley, where all I can see are the mountains around me and the difficult paths that lead out. Most of us have been in a “dark valley” at some point in our lives. Maybe you are there now.

But the second part of the verse gives us hope as it reminds us where our help comes from – our help comes from the Lord. He who made the heavens and the earth, the mountains and the valleys, and each one of us. He is our help. The Lord watches over us. He is with us in the valley even when we feel alone. And He walks with us as we struggle to find our way out. He holds our hands, strengthening us and whispers hope as we climb. The Lord keeps us from falling. The Lord is our ever present help to guide us to the mountain top.

 The Lord also graciously places others in our path as He helps us out of our dark valley. People to offer advice and encouragement, to guide and direct us so that we can make it to the joy of the mountain top.

This week, invite the Lord into your valley, accept His strength and hope, embrace the people He has brought into your life, and hold His hand as you climb with Him to the beauty of the mountain top. If you have reached the joy of the mountain top, thank the Lord for all that He has done to get you where you are!

I thank God for each of you! And I thank you for joining me this week as we “lift our eyes to the hills” and climb out of the valley with the Lord as our help.

Blessings and mountain tops!