
God Is Closer Than You Think
How Intimacy with God Can Happen Right Now
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $17.09
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
John Ortberg
-
By:
-
John Ortberg
About this listen
What are you waiting for?
Intimacy with God can happen right now if you want it. A closeness you can feel, a goodness you can taste, a reality you can experience for yourself. That's what the Bible promises, so why settle for less? God is closer than you think, and connecting with him isn't just for monks and ascetics. It's for business people, high-school students, busy moms, single men, single women...and most important, it's for you.
God Is Closer Than You Think shows how you can enjoy a vibrant, moment-by-moment relationship with your heavenly father. Best-selling author John Ortberg reveals the face of God waiting to be discovered in the complex mosaic of your life. He shows you God's hand stretching toward you. And, with his gift for storytelling, Ortberg illustrates the ways you can reach toward God and complete the connection - to your joy and his.
©2005 John Ortberg (P)2005 The Zondervan CorporationListeners also enjoyed...
-
Counterfeit Gods
- The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope That Matters
- By: Timothy Keller
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Success, true love, and the life you've always wanted. Many of us placed our faith in these things, believing they held the key to happiness, but with a sneaking suspicion they might not deliver. No wonder we feel lost, alone, disenchanted, and resentful. There is only one God who can wholly satisfy our cravings—and now is the perfect time to meet Him again, or for the first time.
-
-
Keller Delivers the truth.
- By Anonymous User on 06-05-23
By: Timothy Keller
-
If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat
- 10 Lessons to Trusting God
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Maurice England
- Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Deep within you lies the same faith and longing that sent Peter walking across the wind-swept Sea of Galilee toward Jesus. In what ways is the Lord telling you, as he did Peter, "Come"? Out on the risky waters of faith, Jesus is waiting to meet you in ways that will change you forever, deepening your character and your trust in God. The experience is terrifying. It's thrilling beyond belief. It's everything you'd expect of someone worthy to be called Lord.
-
-
The Most Annoying Narrator, EVER
- By Reza Molavi on 03-08-11
By: John Ortberg
-
The Wild Ones
- The Pioneer Call of Emerging Voices from the Wilderness to the Frontlines
- By: Nate Johnston
- Narrated by: Lamont Mapp
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There is a move of God that is stirring and a remnant has heard the call - wild, radical lovers of Jesus who have been hidden for far too long. Now they arise as the burning ones to release the word of the Lord and fire of Heaven into the four corners of the earth. In The Wild Ones, prophet and worship leader Nate Johnston offers an urgent summons to the wilderness' prophetic voices, and a jarring wake-up call to the established church: If we are to experience a fresh outpouring of the Spirit, we must reform!
-
-
AN INCREDIBLE, GOD BREATHED BOOK
- By Ethan on 03-24-23
By: Nate Johnston
-
The Me I Want to Be
- Becoming God's Best Version of You
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Ortberg
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Me I Want to Be will help you discover spiritual vitality like never before as you learn to "live in the flow of the spirit." Pastor and best-selling author John Ortberg first helps gauge your spiritual health and measure the gap between where you are now and where God intends you to be. Then he provides detailed tasks and exercises to help you live in the flow of the Spirit, circumventing real-world barriers - pain and sorrow, temptations, self-doubt, sin - to flourish even in a dark and broken world.
-
-
Have listened several times
- By Thomas on 03-20-11
By: John Ortberg
-
The Life You've Always Wanted
- Spiritual Discipline for Ordinary People
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Jay Charles
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Life You've Always Wanted offers modern perspectives on the ancient path of the spiritual disciplines. But it is more than just a book about things to do to be a good Christian. It's a road map toward true transformation that starts not with the individual, but with the person at the journey's end - Jesus Christ.
-
-
Easy to Identify with - Good Practical Examples
- By Tim on 01-10-05
By: John Ortberg
-
Faith and Doubt
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Ortberg
- Length: 4 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We often think of doubt as the opposite of faith, but could it actually strengthen our relationship with God? According to John Ortberg, best-selling author and pastor, the very nature of faith requires the presence of uncertainty. In this refreshingly candid look at a life of faith, he traces the line between belief and unbelief: less a dividing line between hostile camps than a razor's edge that runs through every soul. His findings point us toward the relief of being totally honest.
-
-
One of the best books on faith and doubt.
- By Jerome M on 02-28-09
By: John Ortberg
-
Counterfeit Gods
- The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope That Matters
- By: Timothy Keller
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 4 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Success, true love, and the life you've always wanted. Many of us placed our faith in these things, believing they held the key to happiness, but with a sneaking suspicion they might not deliver. No wonder we feel lost, alone, disenchanted, and resentful. There is only one God who can wholly satisfy our cravings—and now is the perfect time to meet Him again, or for the first time.
-
-
Keller Delivers the truth.
- By Anonymous User on 06-05-23
By: Timothy Keller
-
If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat
- 10 Lessons to Trusting God
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Maurice England
- Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Deep within you lies the same faith and longing that sent Peter walking across the wind-swept Sea of Galilee toward Jesus. In what ways is the Lord telling you, as he did Peter, "Come"? Out on the risky waters of faith, Jesus is waiting to meet you in ways that will change you forever, deepening your character and your trust in God. The experience is terrifying. It's thrilling beyond belief. It's everything you'd expect of someone worthy to be called Lord.
-
-
The Most Annoying Narrator, EVER
- By Reza Molavi on 03-08-11
By: John Ortberg
-
The Wild Ones
- The Pioneer Call of Emerging Voices from the Wilderness to the Frontlines
- By: Nate Johnston
- Narrated by: Lamont Mapp
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There is a move of God that is stirring and a remnant has heard the call - wild, radical lovers of Jesus who have been hidden for far too long. Now they arise as the burning ones to release the word of the Lord and fire of Heaven into the four corners of the earth. In The Wild Ones, prophet and worship leader Nate Johnston offers an urgent summons to the wilderness' prophetic voices, and a jarring wake-up call to the established church: If we are to experience a fresh outpouring of the Spirit, we must reform!
-
-
AN INCREDIBLE, GOD BREATHED BOOK
- By Ethan on 03-24-23
By: Nate Johnston
-
The Me I Want to Be
- Becoming God's Best Version of You
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Ortberg
- Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Me I Want to Be will help you discover spiritual vitality like never before as you learn to "live in the flow of the spirit." Pastor and best-selling author John Ortberg first helps gauge your spiritual health and measure the gap between where you are now and where God intends you to be. Then he provides detailed tasks and exercises to help you live in the flow of the Spirit, circumventing real-world barriers - pain and sorrow, temptations, self-doubt, sin - to flourish even in a dark and broken world.
-
-
Have listened several times
- By Thomas on 03-20-11
By: John Ortberg
-
The Life You've Always Wanted
- Spiritual Discipline for Ordinary People
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Jay Charles
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Life You've Always Wanted offers modern perspectives on the ancient path of the spiritual disciplines. But it is more than just a book about things to do to be a good Christian. It's a road map toward true transformation that starts not with the individual, but with the person at the journey's end - Jesus Christ.
-
-
Easy to Identify with - Good Practical Examples
- By Tim on 01-10-05
By: John Ortberg
-
Faith and Doubt
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Ortberg
- Length: 4 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
We often think of doubt as the opposite of faith, but could it actually strengthen our relationship with God? According to John Ortberg, best-selling author and pastor, the very nature of faith requires the presence of uncertainty. In this refreshingly candid look at a life of faith, he traces the line between belief and unbelief: less a dividing line between hostile camps than a razor's edge that runs through every soul. His findings point us toward the relief of being totally honest.
-
-
One of the best books on faith and doubt.
- By Jerome M on 02-28-09
By: John Ortberg
-
Life Changing Love
- Moving God's Love From Your Head to Your Heart
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Patrick Walsh
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Life Changing Love, John Ortberg reveals the God you've longed to encounter: a Father head over heels in love with you, his child, who is intensely committed to your highest joy. Ortberg takes you to the very core of God's being to discover a burning, passionate love that gives and gives and gives. He explores the life-changing ways this love has expressed itself through Jesus.
-
-
Decent book, below average narration
- By Jake on 02-07-17
By: John Ortberg
-
Soul Keeping
- Caring for the Most Important Part of You
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Tommy Cresswell
- Length: 6 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When is the last time you thought about the state of your soul? Best-selling author John Ortberg guides you through several practices to restore your soul so you can experience a life of wholeness, balance, and hope. The health of your soul isn't just a matter of saved or unsaved. It's the hinge on which the rest of your life hangs. It's the difference between deep, satisfied spirituality and a restless, dispassionate faith.
-
-
Dallas Willard for Dummies
- By Marty Villa on 06-29-15
By: John Ortberg
-
Eternity Is Now in Session
- A Radical Rediscovery of What Jesus Really Taught About Salvation, Eternity, and Getting to the Good Place
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Dean Gallagher
- Length: 4 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author John Ortberg dispels the myth that eternal life is something way out in outer space that we can only hope to experience after we die - and that being saved is merely about meeting the minimal entrance requirements for getting into heaven. Instead, John unpacks the reality that the moment we trust Christ, we are initiated into “eternal living” with God as a here and now reality, one that will continue beyond our life on this earth.
-
-
Speaker
- By Karla J Altman on 06-14-20
By: John Ortberg
-
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
- How to Stay Emotionally Healthy and Spiritually Alive in the Chaos of the Modern World
- By: John Mark Comer, John Ortberg - foreword
- Narrated by: John Mark Comer, Kris Koscheski
- Length: 5 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"Who am I becoming?" That was the question nagging pastor and author John Mark Comer. Outwardly, he appeared successful. But inwardly, things weren’t pretty. So, he turned to a trusted mentor for guidance and heard these words: "Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life. Hurry is the great enemy of the spiritual life." It wasn’t the response he expected, but it was - and continues to be - the answer he needs. Within this audiobook, you’ll find a fascinating road map to staying emotionally healthy and spiritually alive in the chaos of the modern world.
-
-
Pedantic and Patronizing
- By Hannah Raveling on 08-06-20
By: John Mark Comer, and others
-
I'd Like You More If You Were More like Me
- Getting Real About Getting Close
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Dean Gallagher
- Length: 8 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
I'd Like You More If You Were More like Me takes on one of life's most important questions: How can I get closer to God and other people? We were created for deep connections. When people have deep connections, says John Ortberg, they win in life. When they don't have deep connections, they cannot win in life. I'd Like You More If You Were More like Me offers help in overcoming one of the biggest obstacles to making deep connections: the fact that we're so different. Different from God and different from each other.
-
-
Terrible Title Fabulous Book!
- By 3boymama on 10-03-18
By: John Ortberg
-
All the Places to Go...How Will You Know?
- God Has Placed Before You an Open Door. What Will You Do?
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Todd Busteed
- Length: 6 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Very rarely in the Bible does God command someone to "stay". He opens a door, and then he invites us to walk through it—into the unknown. And how we choose to respond will ultimately determine the lives we will lead and the people we will become. In fact, to fail to embrace the open door is to miss the work God has made for us to do. In All the Places to Go...How Will You Know?, best-selling author John Ortberg opens our eyes to the countless doors God places before us every day.
-
-
Really enjoyed this!
- By Tobi Stone on 07-20-16
By: John Ortberg
-
Love Beyond Reason
- Moving God's Love from Your Head to Your Heart
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: John Patrick Walsh
- Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Reveals the God you've longed to encounter: a Father head-over-heals in love with you and committed to your highest joy.
-
-
Love Beyond Reason (Unabridged)
- By Tim on 09-21-09
By: John Ortberg
-
Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them
- How Community Pays Tremendous Dividends in Happiness, Health, Support, and Growth
- By: John Ortberg
- Narrated by: Jay Charles
- Length: 8 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Community is more than just a word; it is one of our most fundamental requirements. So how do flawed, abnormal people such as ourselves master the forces that can drive us apart and come together in the life-changing relationships God designed us for? In Everybody's Normal Till You Get to Know Them, teacher and best-selling author John Ortberg zooms in on the things that make community tick. You'll get a thought-provoking look at God's heart, at others, and at yourself. Even better, you'll gain wisdom and tools for drawing closer to others in powerful, impactful ways.
-
-
The need for community
- By phil jurson on 08-31-04
By: John Ortberg
-
Get Your Life Back
- Everyday Practices for a World Gone Mad
- By: John Eldredge
- Narrated by: John Eldredge
- Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Get Your Life Back, New York Times best-selling author John Eldredge provides a practical, simple, and refreshing guide to taking your life back. By practicing a few wonderfully simple practices - or what John calls “graces” - you can begin to recover your soul, disentangle from the tragedies of this broken world, and discover the restorative power of beauty.
-
-
For Such A Time As This
- By Michelle on 04-18-20
By: John Eldredge
-
Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools
- An Invitation to the Wonder and Mystery of Prayer
- By: Tyler Staton, Tim Mackie - foreword
- Narrated by: Tyler Staton, Tim Mackie
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Prayer is the source of Jesus's most astonishing miracles and the subject of Jesus's most audacious promises, and yet, people find prayer to be boring, obligatory, or confusing. Join Tyler Staton, author, pastor, and national director of the 24/7 Prayer movement, as he invites you to discover the incredible gift of prayer.
-
-
Vital enrichment to go higher up and deeper in.
- By D.W. Ross on 06-28-23
By: Tyler Staton, and others
-
The Practice of the Presence of God
- By: Brother Lawrence
- Narrated by: Victor Craig
- Length: 1 hr and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Practice of the Presence of God is a collection of the teachings of Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection (Nicolas Herman, c. 1614 - 1691), a 17th-century Carmelite friar. The book consists of 16 short letters, a collection of spiritual maxims, four conversations written down by Father Joseph de Beaufort and a brief bio, most likely by de Beaufort. The theme of the work is the cultivation and development of an awareness of the presence of God.
-
-
Anchor in God
- By Debbie Wescott on 04-16-25
By: Brother Lawrence
-
Life Without Lack
- Living in the Fullness of Psalm 23
- By: Dallas Willard
- Narrated by: Wayne Campbell, Gabe Wicks
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pause for a moment and ask yourself what your life would be like if it were completely without fear? If you did not fear death. If you did not fear life and what it might bring. If you did not fear any man, or woman, or any living creature. Would you live differently? In this unique work of never-before-published teaching, Dallas Willard revolutionizes our understanding of Psalm 23 by taking this comfortably familiar passage and revealing its extraordinary promises: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.... I will fear no evil."
-
-
Dallas in Great Form
- By Hermosa on 03-11-18
By: Dallas Willard
Critic reviews
"Those looking for an approachable, quick read on a difficult subject will appreciate this guide, which alludes to the mysteries of God's intimacy with Christians, but doesn't get bogged down in too many details." (Publishers Weekly)
What listeners say about God Is Closer Than You Think
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Steve A. Kovacs
- 04-17-22
Great book.
Nice message and nicely explained. Certainly a book that will open up some folks to being closer to God. Thanks to the author for writing it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
- Leslie
- 09-18-07
Great listen again and again
I'm on my third listen and I still laugh at the funny parts and want to pause the playback to make notes at the parts that really touch me. John Ortberg is, as always, an excellent teacher. His insights and comparisons to every day life make what he has to say so relevant to today's society and lifestyle. He is a gift! Where's Waldo? He's closer than you think ...
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
8 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- fiona
- 03-03-15
Real and helpful
Often entertaining, challenging in its honesty. John Ortberg helps us think about how to 'make up there come down here'.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Gatchison
- 07-31-14
To be in the dust of the Rabbi
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I recently finished listening to John's new book on Soul Keeping and wanted to hear more from him. This book is even better, and partly because it's narrated by the author. I'm listening to it for the second time, and working through the printed version too.
What did you like best about this story?
John's a masterful story teller about the Master.
Which scene was your favorite?
Two scenes that were most noteworthy. The first was John's story about a young father showing off pictures of his toddler. John's recognition that the man was looking at his son the same way that God looks at us was powerful. In addition, his description of the scene with Mary and Martha was perfect in helping me determine to be "in the dust of the Rabbi."
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
I have an hour commute each way on my way to work, so I listened over the course of three days.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 05-14-15
A Must Listen - Very Restorative
I absolutely enjoyed and benefitted from this book. Analogies, narratives, etc. were very thought provoking. The author has penned a book that the more you read/listen, the more you want to read/listen.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Denise
- 05-22-11
He makes God feel closer
John is serious about many things but has a great sense of humor that makes this a joy to listen to and packed with wonderful lessons. I highly recommend this book. It isn't a one-size-fits-all, feel-good book. Practical and entertaining. He helps you find God using examples both sublime and ridiculous, from Michelangelo to Where's Waldo to a 2 1/2 year old child. If you listen to this and don't learn something, you weren't listening!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- dshackl1
- 04-08-22
wow
loved it! Will listen to it a again. great wisdom and humor. easy to listen to while working.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 08-29-15
a good read
john ortberg has written many good books over the years and you can add this one to the list.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Peggy Brisgill
- 04-28-22
Outstanding content
He uses humor and Biblical principles mixed together to make his point. Recommend for anyone.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- stephanie
- 05-23-15
Amazing
John Ortberg is so inspirational! This book is an eye opener. It was a game changer for me.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful