Becky Thompson - God So Close: Experience a Life Awakened to His Spirit

God So Close

2022 Becky Thompson

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Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by W Publishing, an imprint of Thomas Nelson.

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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked AMP are taken from the Amplified Bible (AMP). Copyright 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Scripture quotations marked ESV are taken from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version). Copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. HCSB is a federally registered trademark of Holman Bible Publishers.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version. Public domain.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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ISBN 97807852444318 (audiobook)

ISBN 9780785244417 (eBook)

Epub Edition December 2021 9780785244417

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

ISBN 9780785244288

Printed in the United States of America

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For those who seek to worship in Spirit and Truth

I put my laptop on the kitchen table and opened a new document. As I sat facing the rolling green space behind my house in Tennessee, I thought about all I hoped this book would do once it reached you. So I pulled out two additional chairs at my table: one for you and the other for the Lord, because I wanted to remember that this is a conversation between friends. It looks like a book, but my prayer is that it reads like a transcript of a conversation over coffee.

Returning to my own chair, I took my seat behind my computer and prayed, Lord, what do You want to say to her? What do You want to remind her of? What do You want to teach her? What do You want her to know about who You are?

I waited, listening for His voice. Becky, begin with love, God answered. Tell her its because I love her that I made a way for us to be together. Tell her I sent My Son and My Spirit so I could be close to her just because I love her so much.

I started to cry. It has always been love, hasnt it? We try to make our lives as followers of Jesus about so many things. But the foundation of all we believe is that the Father so loved us that He bought back our eternal relationship through the blood of Jesus. The Father so loved us that He wouldnt leave us orphans, and even after Jesus came and returned to heaven, He sent His Spirit so we could be together. Love.

So well start there, just as He prompted. My prayer for you is that before you read one more word, you will feel the presence of Gods love in the room with you. I dont know what your day has been like. I dont know what youve faced or even if its morning, afternoon, or night as you read this. But I know this with full certainty: God is with you. Not in a clich, Yeah, Becky, of course God is with me; Hes everywhere kind of way. The Spirit of God is with you and wants to take all the cares youve been shouldering.

Its been a lot, hasnt it? Maybe everyone knows or maybe only God does, but what youve been walking through has been heavy. You need joy. You need peace. You need a good break and just not to be responsible for all the things anymore. My friend, what I can offer you is the reminder that the only one who can carry it all, take care of it all, and sort through all the details isnt distant or distracted. Hes right here. Sometimes we forget that God has all the answers and Hes right here with us.

Can we focus on His closeness for a second? Can we turn our hearts and attention on what it actually means that the same God who made all things is in the room with us right now? Hes not a God who was only present and real during biblical times and has since set aside His power. He didnt form the earth and then step back, brushing the dust from creation off His hands, leaving us to figure out each day on our own. Hes the God who sent His Son in the flesh and sent His Spirit into our hearts so He could walk each dusty day with us, washing off the worries of the world with the fresh, living water of His presence.

Do you sense Him reminding you of this truth? Take a deep breath, and let me pray for you.

Lord, melt away all the stress my friend has been carrying. Bring healing to any deep sadness in her heart. Help her sense Your love surrounding her now. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

You were made to be with Him. You werent made to simply know about God but to experience a relationship with Hima relationship in which He is just as real to you now as He was in every story youve ever read about Him. Listen, my friend: Your God hasnt stopped talking, healing, intervening, or directing. He has not stopped loving you just as fiercely as He did on the day He first thought of you and saw the life He had planned for you. No, Hes been whispering to your heart, drawing you closer, being miraculously present with you moment after moment. And He wants to awaken you to what it means to be filled with His Spirit.

I have a feeling youve picked up this book because you want more than ordinary. You want to experience God, hear from God, and know Him as a friend. You want the full relationship that is available to you, with nothing missing, and nothing short of all He has to offer. My prayer is that this book becomes more than words on a page, that it becomes a door for you to discover a deeper understanding of God, others, and yourselfawakening hope inside you, stirring life where you feel discouraged, and prompting you to pursue God in His fullness.