Choosing Obedience When the Road Doesn't Make Sense- Part 3: Obedience Meets Discernment

Obedience is powerful— but discernment keeps it aligned.

In this episode, we unpack what it really means to test what you're hearing, filter your thoughts through scripture, and respond with wisdom instead of pressure.

 If you've ever questioned whether something was God, your flesh, or fear— this conversation will meet you right there. 

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:29

Hey girlies! Welcome back to Gospel Girlies, the Gospel Center podcast for women. I'm your host, Angel, and around here, we're about honest faith, real life, and choosing obedience even when the road doesn't make sense. So get ready to have your hearts filled, your souls lifted, and your faith ignited. To my returning listeners, welcome back. And anyone new tuning in, welcome home. All right, y'all, let's get into it. So, today we're talking about something deeper than obedience. We're talking about what happens when obedience meets discernment. Because it's one thing to say, okay, God, I'll obey. But it's another thing to ask, wait, is this actually God talking to me? Have you ever been in a situation where you thought, is this God telling me to do this? Is this the enemy trying to stop me? Or is this just my own overthinking and emotions? That is the space where obedience and discernment collide. And that's what we're unpacking today. Let's start with scripture. In John 10, 27, Jesus says, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. So biblically, we are supposed to be able to recognize God's voice. But recognizing his voice is something we grow into. It's learned, it's practiced, and it's developed over time. And that's where discernment comes in. And child, y'all know my journey with discernment. So in first John chapter four, verse one, it tells us, beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirit to see whether they are from God. So we're not just supposed to assume every thought, every feeling, every impulse is from God. We're supposed to test it. And that is exactly what discernment is. And actually, before we go further, I want to clarify something I mentioned in the last episode. I said that our faith grows in trials and tribulations, and that's true biblically, but I want to make sure we understand that correctly. Trials don't automatically produce faith, trust does. What trials do is reveal what we're rooted in. Pressure exposes, obedience strengthens. And faith grows when we choose God inside of the pressure. So discernment and faith go hand in hand. Because sometimes the trial isn't the enemy. I know we like to say that all the time. Man, that ain't nothing but the devil. Sometimes it's actually refinement. Y'all ready for a story? Cause I got one. So let me take y'all back to a real life moment where I had to wrestle with this. It was, I want to say Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Earlier, back in January, of course. Um, I was at the library studying for school. Actually, this is the same day that Gospel Girlies received its name. Mm-hmm. So I didn't realize that they were closing early that day. And as I was leaving, I held the door. No, my bad. The door was held for me by this woman. At first, I didn't really think much of it. Um, you know, she had bags. Um, but then I noticed I noticed something. She was wearing sandals, no socks, and it was cold outside, y'all. And you know, again, looking at the bags, it was like that's when, you know, you know, because I carry a lot of bags, but not to that extent. And it became clear that she was homeless. Actually, I like to use unhoused instead of homeless. So now immediately this thought dropped into my mind. Give her the boots off your feet. And y'all, my first reaction was not spiritual. My first reaction in my head was Lord, my boots. First of all, the boots was was flat, so I'm like, they ain't gonna be comfortable for her, they're not comfortable for me. Um, like for real, those, they were my boots. It was cold, and although they were flat, I did like the fact that they had the little little strings on them that make noise when you walk. So I went and I sat in my car, and I didn't drive off immediately. For one, you're supposed to let your car warm up because it's cold outside. Um, had to find that good song. And for real though, the thought would not leave me. At the time I was doing a fast with the church, um, where you could either do an all-liquid diet or Daniel's fast. I chose Daniel's fast for personal reasons, um, and so I had a reusable sandwich bag that had fruit, apples, grapes, strawberries. I think that's it. So I told myself, okay, Angel, if you're not gonna give her the boobs, at least give her the fruit. Hey, that kind of rhymed a little bit, Angel, focus, anyways. So I got out of my car, walked over, and she had set up like a blanket and had all of her stuff. Um, and she was sitting there, and so I can't remember the correct sequence, but in this this time, I asked her if she wanted the bag of fruit. She smiled, thanked me, and gladly took it. And she even was like, Oh, I can reuse this, and I was like, Yeah. Um, and I went and got back in my car. And again, I didn't immediately pull off because I still felt that nudge offer her the boots, and right before I got out of the car, I noticed that I had shoes in the car because I was also freshly like still getting stuff out of the car from my move. Um, and this is where your obedience comes into play because my obedience was confirmed simply because I have shoes in my car, and it should not be like that, but that's something I'm working on, you know. So I got out again and I asked her. I said, Hey, do you have shoes? No, I asked her if she had boots, you know, because when I walked up the first time to give her the fruit, she actually did put on socks and she had taken off her sandals. Um, but I was like, um, do you have boots? Um, and she told me she had already had sneakers and boots. She just liked wearing the sandals because she felt better wearing them because her feet swelled sometimes. And in that moment, I realized something. My obedience wasn't about the outcome, it was about my willingness to obey. But here's the important part. That whole situation required discernment. I had to ask myself, was that God speaking? Was it just my emotions because I felt for her? Was it guilt because I have everything that I need? Or was it my flesh wanting to do a good deed because I know that's the right thing to do? And the only reason I even acted was because the thought was gentle, persistent, and aligned with God's character of compassion. Which leads me to a big question. How do we actually know the difference between God's voice, the enemy's voice, and our own flesh? Let's break this down practically. There are usually three voices we're trying to separate. Number one, God's voice. Number two, the enemy's voice, and lastly, our flesh and emotions. So, let's go in deeper. So God's voice is it's it's gonna bring peace, it aligns with scripture, it leaves you, not pressures you, convicts, but does not shame. Let's take it to Scripture. Colossians 315 says, Let the peace of Christ rule in your heart. So one major sign of God's leading is peace. Even if the instruction is uncomfortable, the spirit behind it is peaceful. You're not gonna be confused or unsettled. There'll be peace behind it. Okay, the next one, the enemy's voice. It sounds very different. It brings fear, confusion, shame, urgency, and discouragement. In First Corinthians fourteen thirty-three, it says, for God is not the author of confusion. So if a thought is making you spiral, panic, or feel unworthy, that's not God. And the last one, the flesh. Our flesh wants comfort. Y'all know how we feel about comfort. You know, I say it every episode. We love to be comfortable. Our flesh wants convenience. Cause again, we don't like to be inconvenienced. Our flesh wants ease. We want it to run smoothly with no hiccups. And the biggest one, our flesh wants control. Flesh loves to control something. Ready for that scripture? All right. Galatians five talks about the works of the flesh versus the fruit of the spirit. So sometimes a no to obedience isn't spiritual warfare. It's just us not wanting to be what's our word? Uncomfortable. Guess what? Y'all get another story out of me. So y'all may remember I mentioned briefly um in the last episode how my mic glitched when I tried to re-record. Today, I want to slow that moment down because that's where discernment meets obedience. So briefly, like I said, when I went to attempt to give episode two another chance to see what I produce, after getting some feedback, I kept getting error messages. I got it three times. And at that second time, I was like, all right, you know, and then the third time came, and y'all know, like I said, I'm a three times and I'm out type of girl. So after that third error, I literally paused and thought, okay, God, is this you telling me not to touch the episode? Because when we're trying to obey, sometimes the smallest obstacle can feel spiritual. But I had to slow down and ask, is this conviction? Is this confusion? Or is this just technology being technology? And when I ran it through scripture in peace, I realized there was no fear, there was no panic, there was no shame, no contradiction to what God had already placed in my heart. Just our other favorite word, inconvenience. And inconvenience is not a spiritual sign. So guess what I did? I kept going. And the episode turned out better because I didn't let confusion talk me out of obedience. So here are five questions I want to give you real tools you can use in your life. And I'm probably preaching to myself as well. When you're trying to discern something, number one, ask, does this align with scripture? If it contradicts God's word, it is not God. Let me apply scripture to that. Second Timothy 316 reminds us that scripture is our God. Sometimes we be like, Man, I need a sign, I need this, I need that, and baby, all you gotta do is go to that word, and it's gonna give you the outline and the layout. And if you need some extra assistance, reach out to somebody. Number two is does this bring peace or panic? In Philippians chapter four, verses six through seven, it talks about the peace of God guarding our hearts. Okay, and before I say this, go grab your phone, even though you're probably already listening. So swipe up, open that notes app, go grab a sticky note, or a piece of napkin. Write this down. You ready? God leads, the enemy pushes. Yeah. The third question is: Does it produce fruit? Galatians five twenty two says the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness. If a decision produces those things, that's a good sign. The fourth one is is this consistent with what God has already been saying? And if you have that intimate relationship with God, then you will know if it aligns. God is not unstable. He doesn't change his mind every five minutes like we do. Y'all know how we do, especially putting on an outfit. You probably change four or five times before you leave the house. Okay. James 117 says, He does not change like shifting shadows. And number five, does wise counsel confirm it? Proverbs 1114 says, In the multitude of counselors, there is safety. Sometimes discernment happens in community. So like I said, go talk to somebody. Talk to somebody that got some sense now. Don't be, you know, going to somebody that, you know, gonna co-sign if it ain't the right thing to do. Okay. So let's bring all of that together. Between the boot story and the microphone story, I learned something huge. Obedience requires action, but discernment requires wisdom. And you need both. Okay, ladies, you need both, all right? Um God will tell you to move immediately, and sometimes He'll tell you to wait, and other times He's simply teaching you how to recognize his voice. So if you're in a season right now where you're trying to figure out, is this God? Give yourself peace. No, not peace. Give yourself grace, okay? Because discernment is the skill you build, and I'm right there in the thick of it with y'all. I am learning, I am learning, I am learning how to discern the voice of God. And every act of obedience helps you recognize Him more clearly next time. So each time you obey God, no matter how you feel about that obedience or that situation, it's going to help you recognize when he's talking to you more clearly the next time. But you have to continue to obey God, you have to continue to build that intimate relationship with him. You have to trust him and mean it. So yeah. Before we close today, I just want to say something important. This will be the final episode of season one. I know, I know. Season one was about choosing obedience even when the role doesn't make sense. But in season two, we're going deeper. We're stepping into scripture study. And we're starting with the book of James. And season two is the James series from heat to harvest, learning to live what we say we believe. Because it's one thing to say we trust God, and it's a whole nother ballpark to live like we do. James is practical. James is pressure for sure. James is faith in motion. So next season, we're not just talking about obedience. We're living it. We're walking through how faith is refined, matured, and lived out in real time. And I could wait to grow through it with you all. So thanks so much for listening to today's episode. Y'all know it always means a lot to me that you chose to spend your time with me instead of doing whatever else. So, if this episode connected with you, please leave a review and let me know how it resonated with your real life. And don't forget to follow the podcast and follow us on Instagram at gospel girlies for daily encouragement and updates. As always, adventure and faith begin today. Remember to walk boldly, live faithfully, and step into God's plan for you because it is greater than anything you could ever imagine. I'll see you on the next episode of Gospel Girlies Wednesday at eight PM Eastern Standard Time. Bye.