Discerning Voices

It’s late at night. You had a decent day before, nothing to worry too much about. But suddenly, it hits you. That one phrase that came out too fast, that one awkward moment, that one cause for slight concern.

And it haunts you for the rest of the night, maybe even trickling into the days that follow.

I thought of the idea for this post around 5 a.m. last night, as I lay awake in bed thinking about when I overshared during a meeting yesterday. At least, I thought I overshared. Nothing really indicated that I did, apart from one slight twinge of fear during the meeting. But the rest of the meeting was encouraging, uplifting, and hopeful.

So why focus on that one moment?

Well…that’s a good question that we all ask ourselves when we feel like we’re spiraling. Should we listen to the voice that tells us we aren’t good enough, or that we’re just an embarrassment? Is that the voice of God?

One of the hardest things about listening to God is knowing what God’s voice even sounds like. There are too many voices in our heads to discern sometimes. Even when we know a voice doesn’t sound like God, the words linger in our minds, affecting our actions and images of ourselves.

So what can we do about this? Live forever in fear of listening to the wrong voice? Allow negative voices to keep us from living to our fullest potential?

I think not!

Instead, we need to be prepared for the next time we hear something. We need to know what God would and wouldn’t say.

Based on what we know to be true of God’s character, here are a few things I think about when trying to decide whether or not the voice I hear is God’s.

God’s Voice Will Always:

• Affirm God’s love for you, even if He’s helping you grow or learn from a mistake
• Ask you to trust Him rather than fear
• Focus on what can be done, rather than something out of your control
• Remind you that you are God’s creation, precious and sacred in His eyes
• Make you feel motivated to become who you are meant to be, even if that change is hard
• Show you that you are not alone

God’s Voice Will Never:

• Make you feel worthless
• Deny a biblical principal, especially Jesus’ example or sacrifice
• Put something before God or His love for you
• Make you feel ashamed
• Refuse a second chance for forgiveness or a fresh start
• Tell you to hurt someone else or do something that God wouldn’t do
• Affirm something in you that goes against God’s will or ways
• Make you feel like anything about you cannot be redeemed through God’s grace

I’m sure you could look through your Bible and think of even more examples–in fact, I encourage you to do so! The best way to know what God wants for us is to figure out what the Bible says about God’s character.

I believe that we both can stand up against the lies of the enemy. The lies that want to bring us down can be used by God to strengthen us instead.

You are needed. You are loved. You are more than any mistake, any embarrassing moment, any moment of guilt. God will take who you are at this very moment and transform you into the person you are meant to be. All you need to do is let Him.

Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.

John 5:25