Have you ever woken up in the morning with a song going through your head? I certainly have, probably hundreds of times over the years, and have never really thought anything about it. . . until I attended a workshop several weeks ago.
In this workshop the teacher said to pay attention to the song going through your head, especially when it’s a hymn. Write the words down in your journal. Look up scripture verses that apply to the song. You never know what message God wants you to hold in your heart that day.
Today was the first time it’s happened to me since the workshop. The hymn is called, “Guide Us, O Thou Great Jehovah.” Sounds like something heavy to wake up to, doesn’t it? Let’s take a moment to go over the words.
Guide us, O thou great Jehovah,
Guide us to the promised land.
We are weak, but thou art able;
Hold us with thy pow’rful hand.
Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit,
Feed us till the Savior comes.Open, Jesus, Zion’s fountains;
Let her richest blessings come.
Let the fiery, cloudy pillar
Guard us to this holy home.
Great Redeemer, Great Redeemer,
Bring, oh, bring the welcome day!When the earth begins to tremble,
Bid our fearful thoughts be still;
When thy judgments spread destruction,
Keep us safe on Zion’s hill,
Singing praises, Singing praises,
Songs of glory unto thee.
~ William Williams, 1717-1791
One of the things I love best about the LDS Hymnbook, put out by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (nicknamed the Mormon Church), is that there are scriptural verses included pertaining to the particular song. For this one there are two. We can find the first verse in the Old Testament.
“And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people” (Exodus 13:21-22).
Moses led the Israelites to a land promised to the Lord’s people. The Lord gave them guidance and protection by day as pillar of cloud, and by night a pillar of fire. Can you imagine how much easier it would be to follow the Lord if we had a towering cloud to follow during the day and a tower of fire at night? The truth is, we can, though not in the literal sense. This is where the second scripture verse helps us understand.
“For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived—verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day” (D&C 45:57).
This song and these scripture verses may mean something completely different to you than they do to me. As this song was in my head this morning, I need to think for a moment on how they must apply to my own life. The meaning that pops out for my personally is that we have to take the Holy Spirit for our guide. It has to be a choice, and a daily one. We can only do this by making correct choices in all aspects of our lives. If I do this, I will not be deceived when wicked choices and temptations are brought before me. It will be interesting to see how this will influence my life today.
The next time you wake up with a song going through your head, especially if it’s a hymn, take a moment to write down the words and see what message the Lord has waiting for you.
