My Journey With Jesus: A Life of Learning Guided by the Holy Spirit

By Gene Thompson

If anyone diligently desires and seeks God with their whole heart and is determined to live a life pleasing to God, the Holy Spirit will have an opportunity to lead them on a lifetime of discovery and learning. Thompson shares his individual experiences, scriptural instruction, and relevant Bible verses to help other Christians grow spiritually. His hope
and prayer is for readers realize that all of man's greatest achievements and earthly treasure cannot compare to the least in God's kingdom, for His city is eternal. Christians should not live for what they could have in this life, but for eternity.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Sep 21, 2022
• ISBN: 9781667853277

Gene Thompson

Gene Thompson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Global Business at Rikkyo University. His EMI-related research focuses on the intersection between learner self-beliefs and behaviour, appearing in journals such as the International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, System, Studies in Higher Education, and Language Teaching Research.

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Preface

What Does God Want?

Have you ever seriously asked God, Lord, what do you want of me? This is a fundamental issue every believer must address in order to grow spiritually. C.S. Lewis was no exception and here is his answer to the question:

…it is not so much of our time and so much of our attention that God demands; it is not even all our time and all our attention; it is ourselves. For each of us the Baptist’s words are true: ‘He must increase and I decrease.’ He will be infinitely merciful to our repeated failures; I know no promise that He will accept a deliberate compromise. For He has, in the last resort, nothing to give us but Himself; and He can give that only insofar as our self-affirming will retires and makes room for Him in our souls. Let us make up our minds to it; there will be nothing of our own left over to live on, no ordinary life. I do not mean that each of us will necessarily be called to be a martyr or even an ascetic. That’s as may be. For some (nobody knows which) the Christian life will include much leisure, many occupations we naturally like. But these will be received from God’s hands. In a perfect Christian they would be as much part of his religion, his service, as his hardest duties, and his feasts would be as Christian as his fasts. What cannot be admitted—what must exist only as an undefeated but daily resisted enemy—is the idea of something that is our own, some area in which we are to be out of school, on which God has no claim. For He claims all, because He is love and must bless. He cannot bless us unless He has us. When we try to keep within us an area that is our own, we try to keep an area of death. Therefore, in love, He claims all. There’s no bargaining with Him.*

There are remnants of the old self within each of us that we cling to and do not want to part with—areas of sin and selfishness. Some we recognize, others we don’t. Because God loves us, he brings them to our attention, one by one over time. Whenever he does, we have a decision to make: resistance or surrender. If we resist, we consign ourselves to spiritual stagnation and decline. If we surrender, he prunes it away, allowing the fruit of His Spirit to blossom more fully and bringing greater Christ likeness and intimacy with him.

…put off your old self, which belongs to your former maner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and…be renewed in the spirit of your minds…

—Ephesians 4:22-23 (ESV)

There are many books written, and read, about knowing God. There are Bible study helps, classes and all kinds of encouragement for Christians to know the Bible and what God is like. Some people call it Being Saved, Accepting Christ, or Receiving Christ or Having a Personal Relationship with Jesus.

Few have read a book or heard a sermon about experiencing God, or viewed a YouTube video.

People the world over desire to experience the miraculous—to see and experience those things that are over and above, beyond, higher, surpassing and outside the natural realm. But for most, particularly nonbelievers, life is limited to the earthly realm, conforming to the ordinary course of nature and those things that can be deduced by human reasoning alone.

As born again believers, earth is not where we are meant to reside! We are created to walk and live in the supernatural and to experience supernatural healing, provision, favor, deliverance and protection. We are living in a time right now when we need to know how to live in the supernatural—to experience signs, wonder and miracles in our own life. Rejoice! And renew your faith in the supernatural!

What are your experiences with God? How has He revealed Himself to you?

You reveal your presence —Psalm 75:1b.

But as for me, I will always proclaim what God has done… —Psalm 75:9a

In several of the Psalms David promises God that he will tell others about God saving him from danger or helping in another situation. His reason for this is so God can get the glory, and others will believe in and trust God. Then God will be praised and honored for his majesty, love and faithfulness by future generations, even those yet to be born (Psalm (22:22-31). Similarly, it is my hope and prayer that seven things might result from those reading this little booklet.

1. To record what God as done for me. I cannot brag about being successful or take credit for what God has done.

2. To raise expectations of Christians, or non-Christians, to know and experience what is available through seeking God with their whole heart. Many Christians appear to be totally unaware of the possibility of experiencing God daily.

3. To provoke to jealousy a person who is not yet a believer in the risen and ascended Jesus Christ.

4. To encourage other