How do you know if you’re hearing God’s voice—or simply hearing your own thoughts? How can you discern God’s voice, recognize the Holy Spirit’s leading, and know when something is actually confirmation from God rather than coincidence?

In this episode of Java with Jen, Dr. David Chotka shares practical, biblical ways to hear God more clearly and recognize the surprisingly personal ways He may already be speaking to you.

David tells an incredible story of following what seemed like a simple inner prompting that led him to a complete stranger’s home—and shows why hearing God often looks far less dramatic than Christians expect.

We unpack some of the biggest questions believers wrestle with around hearing God:

• How can you tell the difference between God’s voice and your own thoughts?
• What does the peace of God have to do with discernment?
• Can conviction actually be one of the ways you recognize God speaking?
• Does God use repetition, patterns and confirmation to get our attention?
• How do you know when something is a sign from God versus coincidence?
• What does David mean when he says God will sometimes “speak you to you”?
• Can your own desires make it harder to discern God’s will?
• And can we become so afraid of “missing God” that discernment actually turns into paralysis?

One of my favorite parts of this conversation is David’s explanation of Colossians 3:15 and the idea of allowing the peace of Christ to act like a referee when we’re trying to discern God’s leading. We also talk about the beautifully personal ways God communicates—using things that carry meaning specifically to you—and why learning His voice is less about finding a magic formula and more about growing in relationship with Him.

If you’ve ever prayed, “God, I just wish I knew if this was You,” this episode will give you practical tools to test what you’re sensing without becoming fearful or obsessive about getting it perfectly right.

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If you know someone who loves God but constantly second-guesses whether they’re actually hearing Him, send this episode their way.

About Dr. David Chotka:

Dr. David Chotka is the founder and director of SpiritEquip Ministries and served for more than 20 years as chair of the Alliance Church in Canada’s national prayer-equipping team. An author, pastor and international conference speaker, David has spent decades equipping Christians in hearing God’s voice, prayer and healing ministry.

GET HIS BOOK: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1777678137?ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cp_ud_dp_TAQ4CQRDZF5DKA1P3QX0&bestFormat=true

In this episode: hearing God’s voice, how to hear God, discerning God’s voice, Christian discernment, Holy Spirit, knowing God’s will, recognizing God’s voice, God or my thoughts, confirmation from God, signs from God, hearing the Holy Spirit, biblical discernment, prayer, spiritual discernment.

So… if you’ve been wondering why there haven’t been new episodes for the last couple of weeks, it’s because I had to hit PAUSE on the podcast while I spent nearly three weeks filming a movie. 😳🎬

Yeah. That was definitely not on my 2026 bingo card.

In this episode, I’m taking you behind the scenes of how I unexpectedly ended up playing Marilyn Cross in the feature film Giant Killer—and honestly, the story started long before I ever knew a movie was coming.

About 18 months ago, God gave me a dream that one week later was interpreted by Kris Vallotton from the stage at UPPERROOM Church in Dallas. At the time, I had no idea what it meant or how literally parts of it would eventually play out.

I’m sharing:

• the bizarre story of how this opportunity happened,
• the little ways God showed up throughout the process,
• what it was like walking onto a movie set for the first time,
• my favorite scene to film,
• and some of the things I learned while doing something that felt completely outside my normal world.

More than anything, I wanted to give you a peek into my own wild ride of following Jesus when obedience takes you somewhere unexpected, scary, and very different from what you thought your life was going to look like.

And hopefully, my story encourages you to pay attention to the things God may be preparing you for—even when you don’t understand them yet.

I hope you enjoy this little glimpse behind the scenes. ❤️

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Tired of waiting on God's promises? If your hope feels deferred and your heart is getting sick, this episode is for you. In this conversation, we walk through the process to the promise — that hard, hidden middle where God feels silent but is actually at work.

In this episode you'll discover:

•Why waiting on God's promises hurts, and what Proverbs 13:12 teaches about guarding your heart in the process.

• How years in the pit and the prison prepared Joseph for the palace, and what that means for your own delay.

• Trusting God's promises when the fulfillment looks impossible and the timeline makes no sense.

• Why the long way is often the faithful way, and what God was building in Israelites before the promised land.

• Practical ways to keep your faith strong and your perspective right while you wait for God's promises to come to pass.

If you're weary in the wait, this is your reminder: the process is not punishment. It's preparation.

☕️ Grab your coffee and let's chat about hearing God's voice in the waiting.

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