Is this a Sin? Recognizing Conviction

In this episode, Dayna talks about conviction and how to recognize the Holy Spirit’s voice in everyday decisions. She shares how something may not be sinful, but still might not be right for you.

Through personal examples and Scripture, she explains why conviction looks different for everyone and how to tell if something is pulling you closer to God or away from Him.

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Buckle on up, besties. Hello and good morning, good afternoon, good evening, whatever time it is when you're listening to this episode, and welcome back. Whether you are brand spankin' new or this is your 20 episode with me, 20th episode with me. Wow, that's actually crazy. That's insane. Can we believe it? 20 episodes together, you guys. Thank you so, so, so much for being here. My name is Dana and I am your host. This is Gospel to Go, the bite-sized Bible study you can take with you anywhere. Today, as you might be able to tell by the title, we are gonna be talking a little bit about conviction. Um, I've gotten some questions lately about just like my personal life, which I actually love. Like I love when you guys just ask questions. Like, I love getting questions. I love um sharing more about my personal life and how the Lord is working. And um, that's why I've been doing like a little more of like the morning routine over on TikTok. I actually I post them both, TikTok and Instagram, but um I like to post the morning routines because it just gives you a little glimpse into like what my daily life looks like and how I'm trying to add God into it. But I digress. I had a question about what book genres I like, which is funny because I'm having a really hard time getting through the book that I'm in right now. And maybe I'll talk about that a little bit in a second. I really liked it, it was off to a good start, and then it just kind of got a little bit slow in the middle, and like we can't be having that. We can't be having that. Like, I need it to be a page turner, okay? And I'm like, do I do I just abandon it or do I keep going? And I think when I hop off the mic tonight and get ready for bed, I'm going to pop it open and try to get through it. But anywho, um, it it started to like stir up some. I was like, okay, I've I've felt this before where like I feel like I know what this person is asking and I know that that person is listening right now. So hi girl. Um, and I just feel like I need to talk about it. Like I want to talk about it. I want to talk about conviction. I want to talk about um the shows we watch, the music we listen to, the media we consume, and all of the good things. So that is essentially uh in a uh nutshell what this episode is going to entail. So we're gonna be dig deep diving a little bit into my personal interests and how I sort of navigate that. And hopefully there will be some advice that the Lord will come through me and share with you guys so that you can kind of understand and better know how to navigate um these situations when they arise in your own personal life. So if you are not driving, obviously somewhere safer, you can join me. Bow your head. I invite you to pray along with me before we start this episode. Jesus, thank you so much for bringing me and my friend on the other side of this podcast together today. I feel so blessed to have this platform and so blessed to have an audience that wants to grow closer to you, Lord, um, and trusts me to do that and do that with them. And Lord, I just I appreciate you and I love you. I am grateful for all that you have done in my own life and that you continue to keep guiding me. And with that, I pray that you bless my friend on the other side as well with whatever it is that they are walking through, any conviction that they might feel, any uncertainty or disappointments or doubts that they might have, Lord. I pray that you put your hand on top of those and that you take them from them, that they have the courage to just leave it at your feet and enjoy this day, Lord. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. You know, it's been a hot minute since we've had a dinger appearance, dare I say. Oh, there we go, right on cue. I don't know if y'all can hear him. He is about three rooms away, and he is in his crate because it's 9 p.m. and it's his bedtime. I have my mic on, so I don't know how much you're gonna be able to hear him, but I just want to preface that I do have an eight-month-old puppy, a golden retriever, and he's a male. Yep, it's about the worst you can get. Love him to death. Praise Jesus for my little bestie friend, but he can be a little bit of a nuisance. So if you do hear whining in the background, that is him. Wish I had the time and energy to cut that out, um, but I don't. So thank you for bearing with me. Um, so as I kind of mentioned before, before we prayed and everything, I had this question about the books I read, and it got me thinking because I don't watch um, like it just started making me think about like the books I read and the shows I watch and everything. And um, we had been kind of talking about me and this friend over over uh Instagram DM. We had been sharing a little bit about like our preferences with books and shows, and um, we were kind of talking about like the spice and the horror, and you know, is this right for me? Is this something that I am allowed to do? Quote unquote. I don't really watch horror anymore. Um, I do watch reality TV sometimes. I I watch it like honestly, quite often. So I'm kind of thinking, like, where is the line? Is one worse than the other, or is there something else going on? Um, not everything you guys is inherently bad, but that doesn't mean that everything is beneficial from you. Okay, this is like we're talking conviction versus you know, everything is a sin. I'm gonna bring you in to 1 Corinthians 10 23. I have the right to do anything you say, but not everything is beneficial. For those of you that may be new, I love to quote my Corinthians, my Corinthians, my Ephesians, my Romans, my Galatians, because the Apostle Paul wrote these letters. These were letters that were essentially written to um certain church churches. So for example, 1 Corinthians is a New Testament um letter traditionally um, you know, credited to the Apostle Paul, um, written about somewhere around like A.D. 55 to the Christian community in Corinth. It addresses internal divisions, moral lapses, and um doctrinal confusion within the early church. So a lot of times, like the church would um ask Paul these questions, and Paul would write back a letter basically explaining what they can do or how they can fix it or like what they should do with their faith. There are 16 chapters in 1 Corinthians, um, and it's a pastoral letter. There are many themes in this uh this book. If you guys are new to the Bible, I always recommend going to the Gospels first. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I also like um the beginning, so Genesis and Exodus just to kind of understand like the background. But then I usually uh recommend going to like Romans, Ephesians, Corinthians, because I think that Paul does a pretty good job like speaking um to it, just when you read it like a letter, like it it just helps it make sense, right? So we have themes like unity, um, your uh moral purity. Hello, I can't speak tonight. Love, spiritual gifts, uh, resurrection. There's a lot of good goodies in there. So, anywho, 1 Corinthians 10 23, it says, I have the right to do anything you say, but not everything is beneficial. Christianity isn't just about a list of do's and don'ts. Okay. Like, I really want to emphasize that actually. Christianity is not just like God giving us a list of don't do this, don't do this, don't do that. And I wish that like there were people listening to this that, and maybe there are, like, that are kind of on the fence about faith or Christianity or about God, because I feel like that's kind of like the outsider's perspective is like, well, an all-knowing and all-loving God shouldn't tell us what we can and can't do, right? Well, he doesn't actually. The cool thing about God is he gives us a choice and you can do anything. Like it literally just says it right here. I have the right to do anything you say, but not everything is beneficial. And I think understanding where your personal line is, and you'll learn that and you'll grow with the Holy Spirit, I think that it is going to deepen your faith and it's going to make you an overall, dare I say better person. I don't really want to say a better Christian. I just, I think that the more that I've understood and listened to my gut, which I now know in turn is really just the Holy Spirit guiding me, I've become an overall. I don't really want to use the word better. I just have overall become a more happy, a more healthy, a more positive. Um, I feel like I sit up a little straighter. I feel like I hold my head a little higher. Overall, I just feel better as a person, if that makes sense. So, Christianity, it's not a it's not about just like getting this list of don'ts from God. It's about becoming more like Christ. And sometimes the Holy Spirit will nudge you away from things that aren't technically a sin. Maybe they're just not helping you grow. Okay, like for me, I don't feel peace watching horror anymore. And actually, do you want to know that it pains me to say that? Danny and I's favorite show used to be Ghost Adventures, and I love it. I love history, I love researching historical things, I love um like the wild, wild west. Like ghost adventures, if you know, you know. They're like always um exploring in like the western coast. And I know some of my listeners, this is so cool. Some of you guys aren't from the United States. I am in the US. Um, I've actually never been out of the country. I guess if you count Canada, I guess Canada is technically another country. But I will, I will use my passport for the first time ever at our honeymoon this June. We are going to Punta Cana. I'm very excited, but uh nevertheless, I have never been out of the country, but I think that I'm very, I'm very, very fascinated with like history and like all these different kinds of things. And I have just found so much I don't know, fascination, I guess, in researching like ghosts. Like, can you say that? I don't know. Like, I I just I love it, but there is definitely a fine line. My mom has always taught me growing up that like you definitely cannot, you know, you gotta be you gotta be really careful about if you're like trying to communicate um with people that have crossed over. And oh, I'm gonna go off on a tangent. I'm sorry guys, I'll try to make it quick. On Easter, uh, we were spending time with Danny's family, and some of his family had shared that, you know, they had done like readings and things like that. And I have had a reading done before. Was it a it was a tarot card reading, I think. And I remember thinking, like, is this like this is witchy? Like, I probably shouldn't do this. And I had asked my mom, like, I talked to my mom about it. I had talked to one of my best friends who's very Christian and very, you know, I was like, I just kind of, I just kind of went into it thinking, God, like this is for fun. And like whatever I'm receiving from this, like I know ultimately it is from you. And I think that that could just like still be dangerous. I'm sure people are probably like, I'm sure you guys probably are like, Dana, what the heck? I mean, this was like a over like was it a year ago? It was almost a year ago. So I think had I been given the option to do it now, I would feel more convicted, and I don't think I would have done it. Um, but anyway, we had talked about this with his family about how some of them had done readings, and I what's funny is I had had like a couple glasses of wine, and I feel so much less, you know, when you when you have a couple drinks, you're kind of feeling like relaxed, you're feeling curious, you're feeling like at least I get very like screen, I don't know what the word is. Like, I start just thinking, like really deep thinking. Okay, I'm like deep in thought and I'm thinking like, wow, this is really cool. Like, never thought of it from this perspective. And I start researching, and I literally immediately am like researching. I'm like, is it wrong to believe in like anything other than the traditional afterlife? Wow, I'm like really opening up to you guys right now. Like, okay, I actually didn't think I was gonna share this with anyone, but I guess I am. Let's go, let's do it, God. Hold my hand, hold my hand. Yeah, I'm like literally sitting here Googling, um, like, is there such a thing as reincarnation? I'm searching, like, does the Bible teach against reincarnation? Because remember, guys, I've never like read the whole Bible yet. I haven't, I'm not there yet. Okay. And it said that it does strictly go against reincarnation and that God has uniquely created each and every one of us to live um a life with a purpose, right? And so I'm like, oh yes, I knew that. So uh yeah, next time Dana has a couple drinks, let's maybe not talk about uh just like really let's like not get too deep into thought and let's take your phone because I was like googling it all. I was like, wait, is it bad I watch ghost adventures? So this is actually so funny that we're talking about this topic this week. But anywho, okay, and I hope that y'all had an amazing and blessed Easter. Um, but we were talking about Ghost Adventures. So yeah, I don't watch Ghost Adventures anymore because the last time that I watched it, I felt really icky, like it was a demonic episode. And I feel like a little annoyed because I think a lot of the episodes that have come out recently are like focusing on that, and like I just don't find joy in that at all. Um, I like learning about like the history of something and like maybe why that person passed, or like good memories of them, or like you know, I love when like they show up on the camera and stuff, but once it becomes like demonic, I am just like out and made me feel really icky. And I I remember being kind of embarrassed to tell Danny to turn it off because I was like, Dan, it's just a show, like this thing cannot come through the screen. I'm like, but can it? So I like forced myself to take a nap, and when I woke up from the nap, I was not feeling refreshed at all. It was like one of those naps where you wake up and you're just like, I feel worse. And I was talking to my one friend and she was like, Yeah, like let's not do the ghost adventures anymore. And I was like, good, okay, all right. So, anyways, I still love Halloween, I still love the idea of like spooky, scary stuff, but like to an extent, I guess. So, all that to say, wow, what a rant. All that to say, I don't really do um horror movies anymore. Where in the heck was I? Okay, so we were talking about that. Um, reality TV, wow, would you guys believe that that little section wasn't even in my notes? I wasn't even supposed to go into that. I was supposed to talk about. Um, I've had moments where I'm watching reality TV and I do feel that little nudge like this isn't feeding you. This isn't really feeding your soul, this isn't really benefiting you, this isn't doing anything positive in your life. Like, what is this doing? Um, so Danny and I have always loved Love Island. I do not think I will be tuning in this year. I just don't think I can do it. I think it's fun, but then you kind of have to sit back and think, like, why? Why do you think it's funny? Why do you think it's like great? We're literally watching people get their hearts broken on TV, do absolutely insane challenges with absolute no morals. Sorry, um, completely uncovered. I'm seeing every little bits and pieces of their everything. And it's just not like there's nothing in that for me. And the more that you watch or listen to something, the more likely, even if you're conscious of it, the more likely you are to start sort of acting that way. You guys probably heard this growing up. Like the more you hang out with someone, the more you're gonna kind of turn into them, right? And so it's the same thing with whatever it is that we're consuming. It's the same thing with whatever your favorite influencer is. Like, what who are you letting influence you? What are you letting influence you? Right. And so I feel like when I watch reality TV, I get this craving for extensions and I want to get my eyelash extensions back on, and I want to get my lips filled again. All things that I've had, right? I've had hair extensions, I've had lash extensions, I've had Botox, I've had lip filler, and I just don't do it anymore. And then when I watch these things on reality TV, I'm thinking, wow, like I don't look pretty enough anymore. Okay, because it's a dating show, right? All these girls are beautiful and gorgeous and stunning and wonderful. So Danny and I still watch reality TV, but we've switched to more like game show type things. Um, we loved dancing with the stars. I we are huge on traitors, and then another one that we're watching now is called Um The Million Dollar Secret, I think, which is very similar to Traders, and I'm loving it. We're obsessed. Now, I think these are also things that you could consider to be not great, right? Or sinful because they are shows based on like trying to figure out who the liar is in the show. Um, however, there's like the line where I know what's influencing me and what's not, right? So, like if I'm going to pick reality TV to watch, because I've always been a big reality TV girl, I'm gonna pick one of the game shows and something that's more entertaining in like a psychological way. Because again, if you haven't caught on yet, like I like to think, I like to overanalyze, I like the psychological stuff, I like the psychological thrillers. We're gonna get into that when we talk about books. Um, but I'm not gonna watch trash TV, like excuse my language, but truly like, and that's not to bash, it's truly not to bash like anyone that's ever been on the show. Um, I just think like we know the difference, right? Between like trashy TV, like Jersey Shore, like we all we all know and love it, right? We've been there, but at the end of the day, like there's just nothing in it for us, right? Okay. So oh my gosh, Danny just texted me and was like, I'm not dealing with him tonight. He is trying to claw out of his crate. Okay, so, anyways, I want to talk about what conviction actually feels like. Wait, first, let's talk about the book really quick. So I'm reading this book called Wow, I don't even remember what it's called anymore. But if you guys have been following me for a couple weeks, then I've probably already mentioned it. I think it's called Look Closer because yeah, that's literally how long I've been reading it. I think since like the middle of March, which is kind of long for me. Like we're going on a month and I'm barely halfway through. That's very like out of character for me. But it got a little raunchy, and I think that's what turned me off about it. I was like, okay, I'm not really here for like cheating on our significant other. Um, but I do think that it's gonna have a good twist, so I'm trying to like bust through it. So we will see. But traditionally I reach for um ghost stories, anything of like that's very like mild ghost, again, nothing demonic. Um, I love, love, love, love psychological thrillers. I don't really do murder. Um, and I love me a good, like, what's the Abby Yimenez? Like, just a give me a good summer quick read romance, like a summer romance, flingy, whatever. They're not too spicy. I haven't read a spicy book in a while. I think the last spicy book I read was Verity, and I don't even know if you would consider that spicy because it's not really about love, but man, it goes into some heavy detail. Um, and that was years ago. That was like three years ago, I think, three and a half years ago, maybe. So um, yeah, I definitely wasn't feeling any conviction back then, really. Um, but yeah, so let's talk about what conviction actually feels like. So conviction is not gonna be shame, fear, or like a constant, you know, you're a bad person. It's more of like a gentle nudge, it's sort of loss of peace, and it's this awareness that you're like, this doesn't feel right, like this is not for me. Okay. Um I want to make that very clear because there's also something that's called like religious OCD where, and you may have experienced this where you're kind of starting to get like way too obsessive about your thoughts and is this from God? Is this not from God? And um, you know, I never I feel like when you start to feel really shameful about it, or you feel any sort of sense of fear, it is not from God. Remember, so that's not conviction, that's just the enemy playing tricks on you. Okay, conviction is gonna feel like almost like you have a big sister inside you that's like, hey, Dana, we know we're not supposed to be doing that. Like it just feels wrong. But you're not like, oh my gosh, I'm the worst ever. This guilt is taking over me. Like, I feel so horrible. It's more of like that gentle nudge. Uh, John 16, 13 says, When he, the spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. The Holy Spirit doesn't just tell you what's wrong, he guides you into what's better. And this is the big point. This is like the peak of this episode and why it's different for everyone. Something might not convict me, but it convicts you. And something might convict you that doesn't convict me. And listen, turn me up. Okay, turn that volume up right now. That does not mean one of us is more holy than the other. It just means that God is working on us in different areas. I just shared with you that a spicy book three years ago did nothing for me. But maybe God was working in a different area in my life right now. He's like, okay, this spicy book, least in my concerns for Dana. We got so much more to work on. It's probably what he was thinking. Um, you might feel differently. Maybe you're still in your spicy book area. You haven't really era, you haven't really, you know, thought about it yet. You haven't really felt convicted there, but maybe you're feeling convicted in a different way. And you're feeling like, you know, going out on the weekends right now isn't, you know, fulfilling you. Whatever it is. It's imagine if we felt convicted about every sin we were committing. First of all, we're all considering, oh my gosh, I can't speak. We're all committing so many sins right now at the same time. We're all doing it. Like we all sin. It's that doesn't make it right, but we're not perfect, okay? And if we were convicted for every single sin that we were doing ever, it would be an exhausting life. So have some patience with God, okay? Maybe he's convicting you right now of something that I don't feel, and vice versa. Um Romans 14 5 says each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. God might be asking you to lay something down, not because it's evil, but because he wants your attention, he wants your purity, he wants your growth. Okay, check your fruit. I haven't said this in a while. Check your dang fruits. Okay, this is a good practical test. Ask yourself: does this bring me closer to God or pull me away? Reminder in Galatians, another fab by our guy, Paul. Galatians 5, 22 through 23. It's the fruits of the spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, and self-control. Okay, those are your fruits of the spirit. So does this bring me closer to God or pull me away? Is it bringing me one of those things? Love, peace, patience. For um, I always want to throw forgiveness in there. What did I say? Love, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control. Does this leave me with peace or heaviness? Is this shaping my thoughts in a way that looks like Christ? Okay, check it. Does it pass the test? If not, it's not from God. Okay, so move on. This is something I'm still working through too. I want you guys to know. There are things that I used to watch, listen to, or, you know, do without thinking twice. And now I'm like, I don't know if this aligns anymore. Like I feel kind of icky. I talked about this in my morning blog that I posted today. I started swapping, like, and like make little swaps when you can. Like, for example, I don't know if I'll ever be ready to fully shift all of my music over to worship music. I just don't know if I can do it. Um, maybe I just haven't found the right worship music. Sometimes I'm not in the mood to listen to it. Um, but I try anyway. So in the mornings when I'm on the way to the gym, I don't blast like future amigos and 21 Savage any longer. I blast worship music. Because hello, like, it's the first thing I'm putting into my ears in the morning. Like, let's make it fruitful. Okay? Like, let's hello, like, why am I gonna blast my ears with money, sex, drugs, and murder in the morning? It's the first thing. Mind you, I haven't even gotten in my Bible yet because it's five o'clock in the morning and I'm going to see my coach. I'm going to the gym. Like, I usually save my Bible for when I get home and I've like made my coffee and I can sit down, get cozy, and read. So, like, I'm certainly not filling my head with that kind of stuff before I get into my Bible. Okay. Um, it's just that feeling. It's like, uh, this doesn't feel right. This walk with God isn't becoming, it's not like about becoming restrictive. Okay. It's more so about becoming aware, maybe sensitive. You know, you want to be more aware of his voice and sensitive to his leading. Because the more that you listen, the more you're gonna realize he's not taking things from you. He's not. I used to be the victim. Oh my gosh. God, why did you take this away? God, no way you have something better in store for me. Okay, newsflash and uh spoiler alert, he did. You're gonna realize the closer you get with them that he's not actually taking these things from you. He's refining you, he's shaping you, he's making you into the person that he's always meant for you to be. And like, how freaking cool is that? How cool is that? I want you guys to take a few things away before I love you and leave you. Not everything is a sin, okay, but everything does have an impression on you. Everything is shaping you. So, what are you gonna let you shape you? Who are you letting influence you? Okay, remember that. Remember, conviction isn't condemnation, it's just simple direction. Listen to the Holy Spirit, let him guide you. If it steals your peace, it just might not be for you anymore. This goes for music, this goes for people, this goes for places, this goes for a job. Okay, God will outgrow you from things that you once felt comfortable in, and change is okay, change is good. Okay, just keep God at the center of it. Okay. I love, love, love you so much. Thanks for being here today with me on this ride. Like, actually, thank you. Because when I started talking about like ghosty stuff, I was like, girl, where are we going with this? Where are we going? I literally almost paused it and was like, okay, maybe this just like isn't, maybe we're just not gonna do this. But I'm gonna let it rip because the Holy Spirit led me in that direction. I'm just rolling with it. So I hope you guys don't like I don't know. I hope you're not thinking I'm crazy. But if this is your first episode, your girl does love to go on tangents. But hello, can I get one more like 20th episode, you guys? Ugh, I thank you so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much. Thanks again for being here. Share this with a friend or a family member, someone in your life, maybe that is trying to go grow the relationship with God or needs to hear a little bit of this podcast, maybe needs to hear one of these messages, maybe just needs to get into their word. Okay, this is a fun way to share the gospel by sharing gospel to go. As always, I appreciate you guys for doing that. If any of this podcast or something that I said maybe stuck out to you or like made a light bulb go off, or you want to share something with me, message me on Instagram. That is the place I check my DMs. I don't check my TikTok DMs um because they're really confusing to get to. So that is all for today. I love you so much. Never ever forget it. And don't you dea forget. Jesus loves you. I will see you guys next week. Have a fantastic weekend.