Episode 81: Avoid Backslash! Do’s and Don’ts When Sharing God’s Calling for Your Life (So You Don’t Get Discouraged)

February 28, 2024

Have you ever shared a vision that you believed was from God with someone only to become discouraged? 

Has anyone ever told you to come back to reality? 

Do you feel like you are a black sheep in your family or church because you have a BIG dream that you believe God put on your heart? 

What if you could make that dream a reality without sharing your vision? 

It’s possible! In this episode I share the Do’s and Don’ts of when sharing God’s Calling for your life. 

The last one will probably take you by surprise! 

Let’s do this! 

What You’ll Learn In This Episode

  • What not to Do and What to Do when embracing God’s Calling

Listen To The Full Episode:

Full Episode Transcript:

Avoid Backslash! Do’s and Don’ts When Sharing God’s Calling for Your Life (So You Don’t Get Discouraged)

Whether you know your calling or you are still searching for your calling this episode is a must listen to. 

I was a guest on another podcast last week and one of the questions I was asked after we stopped recording was “Who all did you share your Calling with?” 

Immediately I knew I had to do an episode on this topic. 

I feel like there is so much to unpack around this topic and I actually had to think about how I wanted to approach this since it has been on my heart for sometime. 

Therefore what I will do is share a Don’t and then I will follow up with a Do. That way you know what not to do and to do instead. 

Also I just want to add if you have done any of the Don’ts, it’s okay. All the Don’ts I am about to share are Don’ts that I have done. 

The first Don’t Do is Don’t run out and tell everyone. Trust me I know how exciting it can be to share the good news but not everyone will see it that way. 

Even if you are leary of what God is asking, I would still stray from telling everyone.

I know you are probably thinking “I can’t even tell my spouse? What about my best friend? Or my mom?” 

Honestly, I would not say a thing to friends or family. Here is why. 

When God puts something on your heart you need time to soak it up. You need time to understand clearly what it is God is asking you to do. 

I think way too often and I am guilty of this, we jump too soon and say things like “It was God. He wanted me to do this.” Only to find out afterwards it wasn’t God. 

Then we are the ones looking like silly little ducklings who lost their way. 

And just so I’m clear…. I do believe you should tell your spouse. However, if your spouse has a reaction that discourages you then I suggest not sharing anything else about your God Given vision with them. 

My reasoning for this is because if you become discouraged and your spouse is not supporting you, you will eventually give up to please them. 

Which means you are putting them before God. 

Instead, continue to Do what you feel God is leading you to do and in the process make sure you are supporting them through both your love language and theirs. 

For example: My top two love languages are Words of Affirmation and Acts of Service. Although my husband has never taken the quiz I believe his are Physical Touch and receiving gifts. 

I say this because he is always caressing my arm when we watch tv or constantly giving me hugs and kisses. He also loves to buy me gifts. 

I not only show my love languages but I also make sure to include my husband’s love languages as well to show that I love and support him. 

Therefore if you need your spouse to support you and be on board then give them more of what they need and you will get more of what you need in return. 

Also instead of sharing your vision with others including your unsupported spouse, show them. Actions speak louder than words. 

Alright ready for the second Don’t? 

Don’t do what others tell you to do if you feel strongly otherwise. Again I’m guilty of this. 

When I first realized coaching would be my HOW, how I would encourage, inspire, and motivate others I shared with several people how I wanted to offer coaching to single parents probono at least twice a year. 

Kind of like a scholarship or something. Which is funny that this is coming up because I just realized I could offer that in the mentorship. See how good God is? He works in such mysterious ways. 

Okay back to what I was saying, I had this vision on my heart, and I know it was from God because it was a part of my heartfelt concern and it was a very strong feeling. 

However, when I shared this vision with others who were coaching or mentoring me, they would respond with “Well that’s great! But you need to get some money coming in first.” 

I sincerely believe that by listening to them and not what I felt God was asking me to do caused my coaching business to lag in the beginning. 

Instead of listening to others opinions, do what you feel God is asking you to do. Even if it goes against the grain. 

For example, if you’re a coach and everyone keeps telling you to meet people and make offers but you feel strongly about starting a podcast and creating lead magnets for Pinterest. Do it. 

If you are in sales and your integrity is being challenged and you feel God asking you to leave even though you don’t have another job lined up. Do it anyway. 

Disclaimer: Do not quit your job and say Shauna told me to. I would only encourage someone to leave their job if they knew that is what God is asking them to do so.

Alright, the third Don’t is don’t ask for permission from people at your church or even your pastor. 

I know someone listening to this probably just gasped for air. 

If that was you, hear me out. 

Okay, I believe somewhere in the Bible it mentions to seek guidance from elders in the church. 

However, I have never actually read that anywhere. Not that I remember anyway. I’m currently reading through the Bible and I’m now in Acts and I don’t remember reading it yet anyway. 

When I went to google to look it up the verses I read seem to say the same thing over and over. 

Which is to trust God, go to God for guidance, be led by God, He is your guiding light, And when you think about all the people in the Bible like Abraham, Noah, Moses, even the disciples… none of them went to someone else such as a Pastor or an elder looking for permission. 

Now if it is in the Bible that we are to seek guidance from elders in the church that is fine we need to do what the Bible says. 

However, this is just from my experience, seeking guidance from your pastor or an elder in the church isn’t always the best option and just like all those verses I read we are to first go to God. 

Also God isn’t sharing His calling for your life with your pastor and elders in the church. 

So if you go and ask for guidance from other humans you are going to get a human opinion rather than guidance. It’s just a fact. 

Just like Joseph shared God’s vision for him with his brothers and became the black sheep of the family, you too could easily become the black sheep of your church. 

I’m not saying to never seek wise counsel. Because I do believe there are times in our life when we do need to seek out wise counsel such as a Pastor or an elder. 

I just don’t believe seeking permission or advice to move forward with your Calling is one of those times. Unless you are being called into Missionary, becoming a Pastor, or something specific with-in the church. 

Fun fact. 89% of Christians lack clarity around their calling. Therefore, they never even try to step out in faith to embrace that dream God put on their heart. 

Therefore what do you think will happen when you show up and share your dream? 

They are going to shoot it down and cause you to become discouraged to the point that you too won’t move forward. 

See, when someone else refuses God’s Calling for their life they will subconsciously and sometimes consciously try and defeat you out of their own regret. 

“Who does she think she is to be a speaker?” or “How dare he think God is asking him to go into office.” 

If we’re being honest which you know me I’m pretty honest. I bet you have had similar thoughts. I say that because I’ve had these thoughts myself when someone shared their Calling with me. 

Of course this was years ago before I became a coach when I was not living a Christian life and was in a very bad place. 

The point is we have all doubted someone’s Calling at one point or another. And just to make things a little more clear….. Our pastors have enough on their plate. 

Their job is to show up on Sunday and teach us the word of God. Tell us what’s wrong and what’s right so that we stay on the right path. 

They are not your guiding light. They are human just like me and you. They have opinions and they hear from God the exact same way you do. 

Believe it or not they don’t know everything. Unfortunately, God isn’t telling Pastors the Calling He has for everyone in their congregation. 

Sometimes I wish He would but He doesn’t and I’m sure there is a reason for that. 

Instead find a community of believers, like the Unique Calling Mentorship, where you are surrounded with like-minded Christians. 

A place where you get coached around your Calling not talked out of it, encouragement not discouragement. Clarity not more confusion, and the conviction in your ability to represent your values and principles not condemned. 

As always I will leave you with something to think about: Proverbs 29:25 It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the Lord, you are safe. 

APPLE PODCAST | SPOTIFY | GOOGLE PODCAST

Before you go, be sure to take the Quiz!

Discover If You Are in Alignment with Your Calling

Discover if you’re on the path to fulfilling your true calling with this insightful quiz. Learn what might be holding you back and how to move forward.

Enjoy the Show?