Who Told You That?

This morning in prayer, I found myself thanking God for His Word and reflecting on how His hand has truly been upon me my entire life. Even in chaos. Even when I was unaware of Him. Even when He allowed me to play in the dark for a season, He was still protecting me. Looking back now, on the day after my birthday, the Lord began ministering to me about how He was guiding my steps even then, ensuring I never crossed a line beyond restoration.

“The steps of a man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way.” (Psalm 37:23)

There is a purity in the Word God has spoken over each of us. A purity that cannot be tainted, cannot be defiled, and cannot be touched, no matter what we walk through. Even when we do not know what that Word is. Even when we do not yet know we are called. Even when we do not realize we have been chosen. That Word still carries an obligation to keep us.

“So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth. It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please.” (Isaiah 55:11)

We are still breathing only because of what God spoke. We are only still alive because of a Word released before the foundations of the world.

“He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.” (Ephesians 1:4)

We often think it was discipline that kept us. Wisdom. Good decisions. Strength. But it was not. It was the Word God spoke. It was His mercy that endures forever. Not because we lived a good life, but because God in His mercy had already spoken a life over us.

The Safety of Remaining Within What God Has Spoken

There is a great need to remain within the safety of God’s Word, especially once we become aware of it. There is safety in obedience. Safety in alignment. Safety in remaining within the boundary of what God has revealed.

Let’s take a look at Adam and Eve. Scripture says that they were naked and not ashamed (Genesis 2:25). That was not ignorance. That was purity. They were so immersed in God, so anchored in His presence and His instruction, that they were not preoccupied with the external. They were fully alive to what God had placed within them, and what He said about them. Picture an innocent child running around without a diaper, completely unaware of self-consciousness, moving freely and unashamed. But after the serpent spoke, and they listened, and followed, Scripture says they knew they were naked, and that awareness produced fear and hiding where there had been none before (Genesis 3:7, 10).

Nothing externally changed. The garden was still there. God’s presence was still there. The Word God spoke was still true. But their perception shifted because of what they consumed. They heard God being God, and the very sound they were used to hearing now sounded like terror. Adam said he was afraid because he was naked, and he hid himself.

Adam, you were always naked.

But then God asked them, “Who told you that you were naked?”(Genesis 3:11). That question carried everything for me. Because the issue was never nakedness, the problem was authority. Someone spoke who was never assigned to speak to them, and they listened.

Who Told You?

Some of us are stuck not because God changed His mind, but because we believed a voice that never had permission. A belief system was planted. A lie was accepted. And now we are living under a narrative God never authored. God never warned Adam and Eve about the serpent. God did not expose the enemy, but He established a boundary. Their responsibility was not to identify evil. It was to remain aligned with what God had already said. Live in what God said.

So often we pray, “God, expose the enemy before he attacks,” “God, remove all my enemies from my surroundings,” or “God, show me who is against me.” But the better prayer is this: Lord, help me remain within the boundary of Your Word.

Because if Adam and Eve had remained there, if they had stayed anchored in what God spoke, they would have resisted the enemy, and he would have fled. God may never remove your enemies. They are all a part of His plan. Your responsibility is this:

“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)

A Personal Moment the Lord Brought Back to Me

The Lord reminded me of something from my teenage years. I remember walking through town one morning feeling beautiful, confident, whole. A man I did not know, someone who did not know me and had no authority in my life, said out loud, “I didn’t know that girl was that ugly.” That single sentence crushed me.

Nothing changed physically. Nothing happened externally. But everything I believed about myself that morning shifted in an instant. Every compliment I received that morning was erased because I allowed the voice of someone unauthorized to become louder than truth.

Adam and Eve were still in the garden when they felt naked and afraid. Everything God had done still existed, but they could no longer perceive it because they digested what someone else fed them.

The Voice You Listen To Becomes Your Source

God breathed life into man. “And the Lord God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7)

That life was meant to feed the soul. This is the house of the mind, the will, and the emotions. When we reject what God is saying and take instruction from outside Him, we disconnect from the true source and attach ourselves to another.

Jesus said, “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto Me.” (John 12:32)

Lifting God is not just worship with our mouths. It is also obedience in moments of choice. Adam and Eve lifted their own desire. They elevated what looked good, felt good, and promised wisdom. By lifting themselves and someone else’s word above God’s Word, they did not draw humanity to God. They birthed separation.

The Question That Restores Alignment

We are in a season where discernment is not optional. When fear rises. When inadequacy whispers. When obedience feels too costly. When the assignment feels too heavy. When we start questioning if God really meant what He said. There is one question that brings clarity.

Who told you that?

God is not the author of confusion. He does not contradict Himself. He does not speak death over what He has already called to live. If what you are believing is speaking louder than what God said, it is time to return to the safety of the Word that kept you all along.

If you find yourself here today, I am praying for you. I pray the Lord will recenter you in what He has spoken concerning you, and that His truth will always prevail over everything the serpent tries to say to you. May you always recognize the hissing of every serpent that presents itself before you, and may you always live a life driven by the purposes of God.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.