Kingdom Movement: Walking and Talking with God

‘Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”’ Genesis 3:8.

Genesis 3:8 is one of my favourite verses in the Bible.

I am struck by how profound, yet how normal, it must have been for Adam and Eve to physically hear the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden.

Sometimes I have closed my eyes and prayed that Jesus would come and sit on the end of my bed so that I could see him with my physical eyes. I have prayed and longed for that physical closeness, just like I can see and speak with my friends and my family.

Here in Genesis, we learn about the history of humankind and how this Creator God created us for relationship with Him. It was God’s intention that humans be able to interact with Him and with one another in harmony, in a beautiful dwelling.

Genesis 3 explains the downfall of humans and how, through our choices, we severed that close relationship that God wanted with us.

God’s Kingdom Movement through history and the Bible, involves the restoration of that relationship and closeness that He wanted with us.

God physically came to live with us in the person of Jesus (John 1:14). People were able, once again, to hear the sound of the Lord God walking and experience the peace, hope and healing that He gave them.

When Jesus ascended to the Father, He sent His Holy Spirit to be with us, so that even though we don’t see Him physically, we can still experience His closeness and presence supernaturally today.

Our eternal hope is that one day, we will see Him face to face and we will be with Him forever (Revelation 22:4).

Yet, until we see His face, it is still possible, today, for us to walk with Jesus and have a relationship with Him. He speaks to us through the Bible, He speaks to us through creation or through other people.

I was in the prayer room at church with the interns from church recently and we were all sharing what God had been speaking to us through the Word. After we had shared, I felt so alive in my heart with all the wisdom and encouragement that they had sensed God saying.

There is a vibrancy to our lives when we listen and respond to God, and when we do this in community.

Let’s press into our Bible reading plan during this fast, and share with one another what we sense God saying.

May I encourage you to walk and talk with Jesus today, wherever you are, until we see Him face to face and embrace the eternity of hope and wholeness that He has for us.

- Susie Raybould