by Khalilah Jones

Stop Asking for Permission to Be Who God Called You to Be

Listen this is for the saints and ain’ts alike. Let me say this plainly: God did not create you to live a life that requires group chat approval.

Somewhere along the way, too many of us picked up the habit of asking for permission to walk in a calling that was hand-delivered to us by Heaven. We ask our friends. Our family. Our coworkers. Our followers. We poll people who don’t pray for us. We pause for people who don’t pay our bills. We shrink in rooms we were born to shift.

And I’m here to gather you in love and lay you at the foot of the cross when I say: Stop. That. Today.

The reason people don’t understand your passion, your vision, your drive is simple …God didn’t give it to them. He gave it to you. They’re not confused; they’re just not the recipient.

Habakkuk 2:2 says, “Write the vision and make it plain…” It doesn’t say form a committee. It doesn’t say schedule a focus group. It says you write it, because it was given to you.

People don’t have to see it. They didn’t hear the conversation God had with you at 3:17 in the morning… and let’s be clear, that moment was definitely God and not just another perimenopausal plot twist. They weren’t there when the idea wouldn’t leave you alone. They weren’t there when you cried because it felt too big, too wild, too audacious. You want who? To do what? I mean, are you sure God?

But mark my words…when it comes to fruition, they will be front row and center, with their mouths open like “Dang…she actually did that.” Yes. Yes, I did. Thank you for your earlier doubt; it added a little razzle dazzle to my testimony.

And while we’re on the subject of doubt …let’s talk about the loudest critic in the room.

It isn’t your coworker.

It isn’t your cousin.

It isn’t that random person on social media with the private profile and public opinion.

It’s the voice in your head that asks:

Who do you think you are?

What makes you so special?

What if you fail?

Negative self-talk is dangerous because it amplifies the noise around you. But here’s the remedy: Drown it out with productivity.

When your mind starts spiraling, your hands need to start moving. Research. Study. Learn. Ask questions. Build. Write. Try. Fail. Try again. Motion is medicine, baby.

Faith without works is dead (James 2:17). So when the doubt creeps in, don’t argue with it…outwork it.

Even David had doubters. “Who is this little shepherd boy?” they whispered. And then he casually took down Goliath with a rock and a prayer (1 Samuel 17). Don’t you love when God uses the most underestimated person in the room? I do. Every single time.

As the great Madam C.J. Walker (the first self-made female millionaire in America) essentially taught us… success didn’t come to her by accident; she got up and made it knock on her door. And as Serena Williams reminds the world every time she steps on the court… people will doubt your power until you make it undeniable.

 You don’t need permission to be powerful.

You don’t need permission to be creative.

You don’t need permission to be the first.

You don’t need permission to outgrow rooms that no longer fit your calling.

You don’t need permission to be more than what anyone has ever seen you as.

If God called you, He qualified you. Period.

Now, I’m not saying you won’t get a few side-eyes. You will. You may even get some holy shade in church parking lots. (Yes, I said it.) People will call you “too much” as if abundance is a flaw. They will say you’re “doing the most” as if excellence is a crime. They will try to label your obedience as arrogance.

Smile. Pray. Proceed.

Because here’s the truth they don’t teach enough:

The moment you stop asking for permission is the moment your life gets loud…in all the right ways.

Romans 8:31 puts it best: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Read that again. Slowly. With your chest.

You are not behind. You are not late. You are not lost. You are simply becoming. And becoming doesn’t require approval …it requires obedience.

So today, I challenge you:

Stop asking.

Start moving.

Trust the vision.

Honor the call.

And for the love of everything holy… take up space while you do it.