Four Questions to Discern God’s Voice

When we need to make difficult decisions in life, it can be challenging to know if we are hearing God’s voice or our own. How we hear from God can be unique to our relationship with Him. However, there are some key questions we can ask ourselves to discern that we heard Him correctly. Here are four questions I often ask myself to determine God’s will for me, especially when it comes to making big decisions.

Last month, I shared my story about how the Lord called me to give up my top leadership role in a successful business I had built for the previous seven years.

Isn’t it so amazing that God invites us into a personal relationship with Him? It is such a blessing because by having a personal, active relationship with Him, He gives us the ability to discern His will. What I wasn’t able to share in that extended blog post about my story of surrendering my career was HOW I discerned what God was telling me to do. 

Questioning the voice of God

Has the Lord ever spoken to you so clearly about something, yet, you question if it was indeed from Him?

This is what happened to me a few months ago. I was sitting in my favorite grey POÄNG chair from IKEA in the corner of my bedroom. I was asking the Lord to give me the vision I so desperately needed and had been missing in my business for the previous 18 months. 

Sometimes God speaks to me by giving me images in my mind. On this particular day, He spoke clear as day by giving me an image of a calendar. The calendar said “August” at the top. I immediately knew what this meant in my spirit. I discerned this as a command to surrender my top leadership position (ranking in the top 1%) of a globally renowned direct sales company.

Many asked me, “How did you really know this was God’s will for you and your business?” I understand their concern. It was a big decision that seemed crazy from the outside looking in. I was essentially giving up a large income-producing business that I had worked for years to build. I was also surrendering a career car that was a blessing to our family and also work that I truly loved.

Here’s the thing.

Sometimes we question if we are hearing our own desires or if we are genuinely hearing from the Lord.

Have you ever felt like God is speaking to you, yet you feel like you need to confirm if it is REALLY from Him? What happens when we are discerning between two really good decisions— both of which seem to have come from God? How do we know what to do?

Because here’s the thing. I had two really good options at play. I loved the work I was doing as a leader in my direct sales business. And I also was excited about the new dreams God was placing on my heart about Legacy Roots, Co.

For years, Christian and I had been learning what it means to live a deeply rooted life in Christ, and we felt so compelled to share about that. We just didn’t know that the Lord would one day ask us to start a company that would give us a platform to share this.

As I reflected on the months leading up to God’s command to give up my business, I realized that I asked myself four questions to truly discern God’s will. These four questions supported me as I was discerning God’s will for my business.

When you feel confused about whether you are hearing God’s voice in your life, I would encourage you to pause. Take time to reflect, journal, and ask yourself the following questions to seek clarity.

I want to offer you these four questions today. Use these questions as filters as you discern what you are hearing from God. 

Four Questions to Help You Discern God’s voice when making a big decision

1. How rooted is your relationship with the Lord?

The truth is, you can’t know God’s will unless you know God. Just like spending time with a loved one, the only way you get to know God’s voice is by spending time with Him.

The reason I start with this question is that sometimes our emotions can get the best of us. When we are going through challenging moments, our emotions are high, and our logic is low. 

This question will make some of you squirm, while others- this will bring peace to your soul.  

When your relationship with the Lord is rooted, healthy, alive, and active, you will know His voice well even when your emotions are high. The thing is, when our emotions are high, our logic will be low. And vice versa. So when your emotions are high about situations in your life, the Lord needs to become your source of logic.

When your relationship with God is not deeply rooted, it can be tough to know if God is speaking to you. You may make “emotion-led” decisions that you think are from the Lord- when all actuality- they are just your heart’s desires.

My encouragement: Spend quality time with Him every single day.

Take time to read the Bible. Spend regular time in silence (i.e. no music, no phone, no distractions). Talk to God through prayer. Every day you abide in Him, you will begin to understand what His voice sounds like. 

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. “

John 10:27

Spend significant and deep time with the Lord and in His Word. The Bible is the main way to get to know God’s voice better. What would it look like for you to prioritize listening to Him and spending time with Him today? 

Want to spend time with God but not sure where to start?

Click here to download the Read Scripture App and begin your journey of reading and studying scripture, along with videos that will support you in understanding what you are reading!

Click here to download a One-Year Bible Reading Plan.

I have also created a FREE resource just for you! Click the button below to download my ritual of spending time with Jesus daily, along with a daily journal. You can use this resource as a reference, or you can print it out and write on it during your quiet time with Jesus.

2. Does your decision align with Scripture and God’s character?

The only way to know God’s character is to know God through His Word.

By intentionally focusing on who He is through scripture, you will see if what you are hearing is from the Lord.  What you believe you are hearing from God should align with His Word.

First, make a list of all the character traits that you know to be true about our Heavenly Father. What does scripture say about who He is? By identifying His character, you will better understand what God would and wouldn’t ask you to do. 

Here are some character traits to get your list started:

• God’s character is faithful, loyal, and loving. (Exodus 34:6)
• He is a God of order and peace and not of anxiety or confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33)
• He is a God who is ALWAYS good and always is for us, even in times of trouble. (Nahum 1:7)
• God always provides (Philippians 4:19)

3. Do I have peace about what I believe God is asking me to do?

We serve a God of PEACE!

God promises His peace that surpasses all understanding. This means that you will ultimately have assurance and confidence around the decision you believe God is asking you to make. 

When you are sensing that God is giving you direction on what to do next, take time to evaluate. This may take minutes, days, or a few weeks! If you are facing a fork in the road in which both of the decisions are excellent ones, you may want to take time to think about both scenarios. As you pray and contemplate, see which one gives you the most peace. 

When you think about living with this decision for the long haul, pay close attention to your body’s response. How are your mind, body, and soul reacting? Do you feel peaceful? Or do you have anxiety or fear?

(PLEASE NOTE: Fear will typically arise during a decision-making process. The enemy uses fear as a strong tactic. The Lord does not. Therefore, lean INTO the fear by praying through it and not accepting it as a reason to make a decision.

Fear could be a good indicator of where the enemy is working overtime to keep you from fulfilling your God-given mission.

There may be something in your heart that needs to be uprooted and given over to God. However, I’m all about calculated risks, so you will want to ask more questions to ensure this is a wise decision.)

4. Have others confirmed this, or do my trusted mentors, friends, and wise counsel give me their blessings about this?

It is so important to have trusted friends within the body of Christ! When you are faced with a big decision and need to know the will of God, you must have brothers and sisters in Christ that can support you with this decision. They will be able to pray alongside you and hopefully help confirm God’s movement in the decision. 

One of the ways that God speaks is through other people, and it will take intentionality on your part to seek out wise counsel from those around you. This step takes a lot of humility because you may not always be happy with what God confirms through others. 

Even after answering these four questions, there will still be times that you are still unsure. In that case, the Lord trusts you to make the best decision based on what you know (this is why He has given us free will). It is not in His character to stand above you with a hammer, just waiting to punish you if you make the wrong decision. He is a loving God who is also an equipping God. And He gives us this beautiful free-will life to make decisions.  

Dear friend, I want you to hear this today. Ultimately, if you seek God’s heart during a big decision, He is proud of you regardless of whether or not you make the “right” or “wrong” choice.

“The fact that we are trying to please God actually pleases God more than the decision itself.”

Ruth Haley Barton from the book “Sacred Rhythms”

So find encouragement today. If your heart is truly for God’s will to be done “on earth as it is in heaven,” then you can rest knowing that you discerned and made a decision that He was proud of.

After we discern God’s will for us, the next step is to be obedient. It’s saying, “Yes, God!” And “Here I am, Lord, send me!”