Closer Than Your Next Breath
Susie Larson titles her most recent book Closer Than Your Next Breath: Where is God When You Need Him Most? (Thomas Nelson, 2023). Today, Susie ministers as an author, speaker, and radio show host. Most significantly, in God’s presence we receive correction, direction, comfort, and assurance. In addition, God’s powerful, moving, and flowing presence breathes life into all creation. And through new experiences and redemptive perspectives, God’s presence changes everything. Yet, if we live suspicious of God’s goodness, we may miss his goodness when it comes. Furthermore, Susie encourages, God’s always speaking — may we always be listening. God, who is closer than your next breath, moves at the pace of grace.
Above all, Susie underscores, whatever you know of God — there’s more. Everything God does aligns with His faithfulness. Thus, you cannot force something when it’s not God’s time, nor can you stop something when it is God’s time. God allows enough challenges to keep us dependent, enough goodness to keep us encouraged, and enough grace to sustain us. However, the author cautions, talking about God and encountering the presence of God represent two distinctly different concepts. Also, God pours His glory and strength into places we would rather hide. Because absolutely nothing matters more than our oneness with God. As Christians we possess access to an ocean of grace. An ocean to wide to swim across, too deep for us to measure.
For the supernatural gift of Jesus’ peace, freedom, and wholeness defies our circumstances. But Jesus, the Beginning and the End, never functions as our means to an end. So, even when God seems silent, Susie exhorts, stay open to the idea of the goodness of God. You change from the inside out as you walk in God’s presence and get to know His heart for you. Certainly, our choices matter and our calling matters. Above all, it matters deeply whether or not you engage with the things of God. Because you’re most alive when you’re at the center of God’s will.
In conclusion, Susie counsels, trade saving face for saving grace. God calls us because every God-sized assignment reminds us how much we need Him. Yet, we find ourselves prone to rehearse things that God’s deliberately forgotten. And we find ourselves just as apt to forget things God distinctly asks us to remember. So, when you weary in the waiting, God, closer than your next breath, draws near to remind you what’s true. God works wonders through us — often in ways we dismiss because we see those ways as small and insignificant. God lavishly loves us. His grace saved us, the Holy Spirit sealed us — and faith changes us.
