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Today's Word 09-18-26 How Close Do You Want to Be · The Early Morning Praise Party w/ Sherry Mackey

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: It's your early morning praise party. I am Sherri Mackey
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: and it's time right now for today's word. How close
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: do you want to be? James 2.23 says, and so
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  Speaker 1: it happened just as the scriptures say, Abraham believed God
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  Speaker 1: and God counted him as righteous because of his faith
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  Speaker 1: and was even called the friend of God. You hear
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  Speaker 1: these people talk about God as if they know him personally.
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  Speaker 1: They'll say things like, and God told me, and I
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: was praying, and I felt God leading me. And you
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  Speaker 1: can hear the excitement in their voice. There's a confidence
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  Speaker 1: and intimacy in the way they talk about their relationship
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  Speaker 1: with God. And then there are those who hear that,
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  Speaker 1: and then they think, well, God doesn't talk to me
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  Speaker 1: like that. I don't feel that close to God. But
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  Speaker 1: why is it? The Bible tells us that God has
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  Speaker 1: extended the invitation to everyone. He isn't hiding from you.
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  Speaker 1: He isn't making you chase him while he remains out
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  Speaker 1: of reach. Hebrews 4, 16 says we can fearlessly and
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  Speaker 1: confidently and boldly draw near to the throne of grace.
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  Speaker 1: Think about that thing. Draw near. That means God wants
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  Speaker 1: to be close to you. But intimacy with God doesn't
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  Speaker 1: happen by accident. Just like any relationship, closeness develops through time,
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  Speaker 1: through communication, through trust, and through consistency. You can't build
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  Speaker 1: a deep relationship with somebody you never spend time with.
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  Speaker 1: And the same is true with God. If the only
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  Speaker 1: time we talk to God is when we need something,
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  Speaker 1: we're missing the beauty of knowing him. God wants more
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  Speaker 1: than a relationship where we only call when there's an emergency.
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  Speaker 1: How would you feel if that's the only time somebody
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  Speaker 1: talked to you is when they needed something from you?
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  Speaker 1: You need to talk to him when you're happy. Talk
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  Speaker 1: to him when you're confused. Talk to him when you're
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  Speaker 1: making decisions. Talk to him when you don't know what
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  Speaker 1: to say. Tell him what's on your heart and then
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  Speaker 1: take time to listen. Sometimes we're so busy talking that
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  Speaker 1: we never become still long enough to recognize his direction. See,
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  Speaker 1: the more time you spend with God, the more familiar
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  Speaker 1: his words become. The more you seek him, the more
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  Speaker 1: sensitive you become to his leading. The more you trust him,
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  Speaker 1: the deeper your relationship becomes with him. And here's the
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  Speaker 1: beautiful part. You don't have to wait until tomorrow to
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  Speaker 1: get closer to God. You can draw near right now
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  Speaker 1: in this moment. You are as close to God as
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  Speaker 1: you choose to be. So the question is, does God
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  Speaker 1: want to be close to me? And the question is,
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  Speaker 1: how close do you want to be to God? Because
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  Speaker 1: the invitation has already been extended. So come closer, seek him,
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  Speaker 1: talk to him, listen to him, know him. not just
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  Speaker 1: as a God who can bless you, but as a
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  Speaker 1: father who loves you, walks with you, guides you, and
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  Speaker 1: desires a relationship with you. Don't settle for knowing about
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  Speaker 1: a God when you can personally know God. Lord, we
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  Speaker 1: want to know you more deeply and more intimately. We
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  Speaker 1: don't want to simply know about you. We want to
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  Speaker 1: know you. Give us the desire and the discipline to
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  Speaker 1: seek you daily. Teach us to make time for you
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  Speaker 1: to talk with you and to become still enough to
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  Speaker 1: hear your voice. Help us, God, to trust you, follow you,
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  Speaker 1: and grow closer to you each and every day. Thank
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  Speaker 1: you for inviting us into relationship with you. Lord, we're
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  Speaker 1: drawing closer today and every day in Jesus' name. Now,
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  Speaker 1: that's your word for today. Take it, apply it to
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  Speaker 1: your everyday life, and you continue to be encouraged and inspired.
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  Speaker 1: It is Your early morning praise party. I am Sherri Mackey.