1 Kings 20:23, 27-28
“Meanwhile, the officials of the king of Aram advised him, ‘Their gods are gods of the hills.  That is why they were too strong for us.  But if we fight them on the plains, surely we will be stronger than they.’…When the Israelites were also mustered and given provisions, they marched out to meet them.  The Israelites camped opposite them like two small flocks of goats, while the Arameans covered the countryside.  The man of God came up and told the king of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord says: ‘Because the Arameans think the Lord is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys, I will deliver this vast army into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord.’’”

Luke 9:28b-29, 34b-35, 37
“…[Jesus] took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray.  As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightening…a cloud appeared and enveloped them…A voice came from the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.’…The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him.”

Isaiah 40:4-5a
“Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; and the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain.  And the glory of the Lord will be revealed…”

Mighty God, majestic mountains lie like stepping stones to heaven’s gates.

Though you are seated in the heights, you walk the depths with us.  You claim victory in the heart of the shadowlands.

Raise our rugged valleys as we follow in the wake of your glory.  Be the God of shining peak and troubled plain.­

We ask this in the name of the One who ascended the hill to descend into the valley of death for us, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Listen to ‘On Solid Ground’ by Loud Harp