"Continuity"

"In my distress I cried unto the LORD, and he heard me." (Psalms 120:1)

  Besides the fact that "degrees" can speak of time, or as some might look at it, infinity; it also speaks of height, as in a journey to a higher place. This is something else that Jesus did for us, to allow us access into the Holy of Holies; the place previously forbidden was made accessible by the blood of Jesus Christ. When the curtain was torn, it was torn from the top downward, which signified that it was torn by God. Back to the point about owning what we are and our great need for God's mercy; this is the key to the access granted, because without the "distress" access is denied. In other words, in the words of James, "Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." (James 4:10) Sometimes it is not even a matter of God coming to our rescue, it is a matter of us having the right perspective. The closer we get to God, the further away our problems appear. It is not very hard to figure out that certain things will loose their ominous appearance when we have a better view of God's power and might. Whatever it is, in the sight of Almighty God, things shrink in size and the threat is greatly reduced. I am not saying that God does not do anything, not at all; God only needs to hear our cry, and it is enough to give us comfort and peace in any situation. As a matter of fact, just knowing that He hears me, that He is there listening, that alone is enough to ease the distress. When the Creator of heaven and earth listens to my cry, what else is there to do! Worry is no longer the issue, that is for sure! How do we know when God hears us? Looking at the closing verse from yesterday, Paul used the term that explains it all, the term "persuaded." It is a term that means to believe and have confidence in. Do you believe? If you believe that you are His child, then you should also believe that He listens when you cry out to Him. I am persuaded that He hears me all the time. There is many times in a day that I will acknowledge that He heard me, and I instantly will ask for His forgiveness for something I said. I think sometimes we forget that He is right here within us...

"As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him: rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: in whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." (Colossians 2:6-12)