Editor’s note – This piece began with a small joke about renaming an acronym and ended up somewhere weightier: what happens when the One speaking isn’t a talk-show host, but God Himself? The author walks through an ordinary week – laundry, a podcast, an old financial decision – and keeps landing on the same question: am I actually listening? We’re running it because most of us already know, in some specific area, what obedience requires, and are still stalling.
A Joke About AI Turns Into Something Bigger
I was cleaning the house today and listening to The Pat Gray Show on Blaze TV when the conversation turned to artificial intelligence.
They were discussing President Trump’s announcement that the executive branch is now supposed to use the terms “Super Intelligence” and “SI” instead of “Artificial Intelligence” and “AI.” I had to laugh while listening because one of the reactions on the show was basically, I’m not doing that. They also joked about how many people already associate the initials SI with Sports Illustrated.
I understood the reaction because AI has been AI in my mind for so long that I don’t see myself suddenly calling it SI either. In fact, I posted something similar online after hearing the discussion.
I’m still calling it AI.
But as I continued cleaning and thinking about the conversation, my mind went in a completely different direction. There are plenty of things in life someone can tell me to do, and I can decide, “No, I’m not doing that.”
But what happens when God is the One telling me something?
When Obedience Isn’t What I Want to Do
As children, most of us probably heard some version of this from our parents:
Don’t touch that.
Don’t go over there.
You need to do this.
Sometimes we listened. Sometimes we didn’t.
A parent tells a young child not to touch a hot stove because the parent knows something the child doesn’t fully understand yet. The child may see the stove and wonder why they’re being told no. But the parent knows touching it could cause pain.
As I’ve grown in my relationship with God, I’ve realized there have been plenty of times when I’ve responded to Him like that child. God’s Word tells me something clearly, but I want to do things my way. Or I’m praying about a decision and believe God is leading me in a particular direction, but another direction looks better to me.
I’ve learned that trying to get ahead of God usually doesn’t make my life easier.
My husband and I experienced that very early in our marriage. We were making a financial decision, and looking back, we both knew we didn’t have peace about moving forward.
But we moved forward anyway.
We got ahead of where we should have been, and the decision put us into a financial situation that was more difficult than it needed to be. We eventually worked through it, but the consequences took time to resolve.
That experience stayed with me.
If we had slowed down, prayed more, and listened instead of jumping ahead, I believe we would have made a different decision. First Samuel 15:22 says, “Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice.”
Obedience isn’t always exciting. Sometimes obedience means waiting when I want to move. Sometimes it means saying no to something I really want. Sometimes it means changing something about myself that I don’t particularly want to change.
And sometimes it simply means trusting that God can see something I can’t.
Editor’s note – The stove illustration works because most of us have stood on both sides of it – the child who can’t see the danger, and the adult who still resists a warning that doesn’t fit the plan already in motion. First Samuel 15:22 is hard for a reason: Saul thought a good outcome excused a disobedient shortcut.
I’m Learning to Listen More Closely
One of the biggest things God has been working on in my life lately is obedience.
I’ve always prayed about decisions, but I’m becoming much more intentional about slowing down and listening before I move forward. That includes the big decisions, but I’m also trying to pay attention in the small moments.
Maybe I’m driving somewhere and suddenly feel strongly that I should take a different route. I don’t necessarily know why. Maybe there is a practical reason I’ll never find out about, or maybe nothing unusual would have happened on the other route at all. I don’t want to turn every passing thought into a message from God.
That’s why discernment matters.
God has given us His Word, and anything we believe we’re being led to do should never contradict Scripture. We can pray, seek wisdom, and take time rather than assuming every feeling or inclination is automatically God’s voice.
But I also don’t want to become so distracted or determined to follow my own plans that I’m unwilling to listen. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” That makes obedience about more than simply following rules. It’s connected to my relationship with Him.
The more I love God, the more I want my life to reflect that love. And the more time I spend in His Word and prayer, the more I want to recognize the areas where He’s asking me to change.
Editor’s note – Discernment is the right instinct here. Not every impulse is a divine directive. What keeps the author’s approach grounded is the anchor she names: any leading that contradicts God’s Word isn’t God’s leading, no matter how strong the feeling.
Eyes Open, Ears Open
That’s where I am right now. I want my eyes open when I’m reading God’s Word. I want my ears open when I’m hearing Scripture taught. I want my heart open when something I read or hear challenges an area of my life that needs to change.
Maybe God uses a sermon. Maybe it’s something I read during my morning devotional time. Maybe it’s a conversation with my husband or someone in our small group. Maybe I’m reading a familiar passage of Scripture and suddenly realize I’ve been overlooking something in it.
I don’t want my first response to be, I’m not doing that.
There may be plenty of things in everyday life where I can laugh and say, “Nope, I’m sticking with what I’ve always called it.” AI may remain AI in my vocabulary for a while. But I don’t want that attitude when it comes to God.
When His Word clearly tells me how I’m supposed to live, I want to obey. When He exposes something in my heart that needs to change, I want to change it. When I need to wait, I want to wait. When I need to move forward, I want to have the courage to move. And when I don’t understand why obedience is necessary, I want to trust that God sees what I cannot see.
I’ve lived long enough to know that doing things my own way doesn’t protect me from consequences.
God isn’t trying to keep something good from me when He tells me no. He’s not trying to make my life difficult when He asks me to wait. His perspective is infinitely greater than mine.
I’m still growing in this.
There have been times I’ve listened, and times I haven’t. Sometimes I’ve obeyed quickly, and other times I’ve had to learn through the consequences of doing things my own way.
But that’s one of my prayers right now:
I want to know His Word well enough to recognize truth. I want to stay close enough to Him that my own desires don’t drown out what He’s teaching me. And when I know what He’s asking of me, I want my answer to be yes.
Is there something God has been speaking to your heart about lately that you’ve been reluctant to change? What might obedience look like for you in that area?
Editor’s note – It’s worth noticing what she doesn’t say – that obedience always feels good at the time. Often it doesn’t. The waiting itself can be the test, long before any outcome proves it.
A Word from the Editor
First Samuel 15:22 says obedience outranks sacrifice, and most of us would rather offer God anything else – effort, guilt, a grand gesture – before we offer Him our will. Jesus said it plainly in John 14:15: love shows up as obedience, not sentiment. If there’s an area where you already know what He’s asking, that knowledge is the invitation.
Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words
Distributed by – BCWorldview.org
Editor Comment: Your honesty about the financial decision you both rushed into is a gift to readers who need permission to slow down and listen before they act.
This article appeared on Medium and is reprinted with modifications and by permission.