Good Morning Gorgeous,

It’s a brand new day. A fresh new start. A new day to rise and move ahead. A new day to put your feet on the ground and move in the earth as an anointed and chosen child of the living God.

As you rise and go forth today, be mindful of the voice you choose to listen to. The Lord has things He wants to say to you. He has plans He wants to share with you. He has words of love to speak into you. He even sings over you! His voice is loving, supporting, uplifting, and kind. He does correct His children, but He does so in love.

So, when you hear words that are counter to God’s love. When you hear words that attack who you are, you can be sure that’s not God. He won’t shame you, belittle you, speak words against your design, or remind you of all your failures.

Sometimes, when thoughts run through my mind, I really struggle with discernment. Which thoughts are from God, which are my own, and which are lies from the enemy.

Jesus said really clearly, “My sheep know my voice and they follow me.”

This verse is comforting to me, and yet the enemy has even suggested to me that if the Lord’s sheep know His voice, why do you struggle discerning the thoughts?

Notice I said the enemy suggested to me. That’s all he really has the power to do. The power of suggestion. It’s his age old weapon. The very weapon he used to tempt Eve. He takes a little bit of truth and distorts it with lies so that unless you are rooted and grounded in the TRUTH of what God says, it can be really hard to tell the truth from the lie.

So how do you tell the difference between the voices in your head? How do you dismiss the enemy’s lies?

Study the truth like your life and sanity depends on it. You learn to decipher God’s voice by reading your Bible and talking to God. The more time you spend with Jesus, the easier it becomes to spot the counterfeit voices.

I was explaining this to my husband yesterday because first thing in the morning I heard, “There you go failing again.” I knew it was a lie straight from the enemy.

But a few years ago, I would have boarded that train of thought and allowed myself to indulge in that type of thinking for as long as the assault went on. It could be 5 minutes. It could be all day. Not anymore, I’ve come to recognize the nasty voice and can rebuke it pretty quickly with the truth of God’s Word and what He has to say about me.

I was telling my husband how far I’ve grown and I said to him, “It’s from spending time with Jesus. You might think that the more you hear the enemy’s voice, the more you recognize it, BUT it’s the exact opposite, the MORE I hear Jesus’s voice and study His Word, the more I recognize the lie right when it comes.”

My husband explained that’s exactly how people are trained to spot counterfeit money. They don’t study all the counterfeit bills. They study the authentic ones. From studying the truth about what the bill looks like, they can spot the fake. From knowing the real deal’s every feature, every line, every inscription, they can spot the fake even when it appears to look real.

Friends, we can too! Take every thought captive. The bible even tells us to do this! We do not have to passively accept every lie the enemy or the world spews at us. We are redeemed daughters and sons of God. We were bought at a high price. The Lord sacrificed Himself so that we could be connected to Him directly and we can speak to Him at any time. We can learn to His voice by spending time in His sweet Presence. The more we know Him, the more we will be able to quickly and easily spot any thought that is counter to God’s character.

Dear Heavenly Father, Guide us into all truth. Help us to stay grounded in the truth of Your Word and what You have to say. Let us recognize Your voice above every other voice. In Jesus’s name, Amen.