Listen & Obey God’s Commands

When I was a little girl, I didn’t listen to my mom and dad like many of us did when we were younger. But after many years of maturing and growing up, I found out that it was better to listen to my parents than not to. This isn’t something that just happens. It takes time and years and years of learning to listen to wise counsel.

This is how God often views us. We are defiant, wanting to do things our way. We eventually realize that God’s way was the best way all along. We rush to come up with a plan, we get excited to start something new, and we often leave out God in the process. Then we think back to if we would have listened to God, we wouldn’t have had to go through what we went through.

That is the beauty in God. Although we are at times unwilling to listen and obey His commands, He doesn’t condemn us for it. He still loves us, cares for us, and nurtures us back onto the right path. Will God allow us to go through trials and tribulations due to disobedience? Yes, He will. But, it’s all in the name of love. He allows us to see some things and experience some things on our own so that it leads us back to Him.

Listening to and Obeying God doesn’t have to be difficult. We usually make it more difficult because we’re being led by our own minds. God gives us guidance when we listen. He gives us His wisdom and knowledge to do what is right and what is noble. It also helps us stay out of unnecessary trouble, keeps us safe from danger, and gives us peace and reassurance. There are benefits to listening to God and also obeying His commands.

When We Listen to and Obey God’s Commands:

1. It glorifies God- 1 Peter 2:12

2. It shows God that we have full faith in His plans- 1 John 2:3-6

3. It shows how much we truly love God- John 5:2-3

And this list is short, but there are so many benefits for us when we listen to and obey God. We may not understand why God is instructing us to do certain things but we can always trust God and His plan. He hasn’t ever failed us nor led us down the wrong path. He loves us too much to hurt us.

There are of course consequences to not listening and obeying God. The list of consequences have much more weight. The weight of disobeying is heavy and often leads to more destruction on our end. We can’t blame God for our disobedience. We have to learn to listen to God always.

Consequences for not Listening to God and being Disobedient:

1. Not listening to God and being disobedient can lead to sin which leads to death- Romans 6:23

2. It is much better to obey than to offer sacrifices- 1 Samuel 15:22

3. Being disobedient can cause a loss of direction and guidance- Jeremiah 7:23-24

The best thing that we can ever do as children of God is to listen and obey God. His ways are always best. Everything works out well when we choose to listen to God. It is all about our choices and whose voice we choose to listen to. Our voice or God’s voice determines the paths we take, the choices we make, and the outcome of those choices. If you ever feel as though you haven’t heard from God, check your heart and limit your distractions. God often speaks to us in the quiet and still whispers in our everyday moments.

Thank you for taking time to read and soak in this article. God bless you!