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She Always Knew (Sermon Notes + Reflection)
- Jul 11
- 13 min read
Date: 05/10/2026
Church / Speaker: Bibb Mt Zion Baptist Church / Elder Brandi May
Sermon title: She Always Knew
Scripture: 1 Kings 3:16–28
Hey, beloved. I’m Nissi.
This is post 2 in my journey of searching for a church home. While I’m in the middle of that process, I don’t want to waste what God is teaching me. This series is where I’m sharing sermon notes, the parts that challenged me, and the action steps I’m taking so I can actually live it out, not just hear it.
The video for this sermon has been taken down, but I’m keeping the link here for reference. Majority of this post comes from the sermon Elder Brandi May gave. I followed up some parts with Scripture and my own input, but most of these notes are from the sermon.
Notes from watching sermon video Start at 1:16
The focus was on women and mothers, those who had a relationship with God and used godly wisdom to discern and support their families.
Mom always knows when something’s not right, if something is wrong, she knows the advice to give at the right time.
In this season, shift from acknowledging what you always knew back to what you know.
The enemy’s greatest attack is using what you already know, what God already taught you. The enemy makes you question what you already know, going for your faith and trying to keep you from the promise given.
We must shift our minds, remember the truth, refuse manipulation, stand on revelation, and maintain the faith of God under any pressure.
This message is for those who:
Question what you know in this season
Find yourself being weary and/or exhausted
Feel as if you’re overlooked, in pain, and/or misunderstood
Feel unworthy and unnoticed
Almost gave up
Smile in public and suffer in private
Faith is under attack
Come with a spirit of expectation and be encouraged. Let your fire grow.
It’s a revival of what God said, who He called us to be—of our faith, identity, strength, and discernment. We need to be reminded who we are in Christ.
We are chosen (1 Peter 2:9, Ephesians 1:4, & John 15:16)
We have a purpose (Ephesians 2:10)
We are healed and delivered (Isaiah 53:5)
WE HAVE NOT BEEN OVERLOOKED. GOD SAYS WHO WE ARE, AND WE HAVE TO BELIEVE THAT.
Hebrews 11:1: Faith is when you believe in and operate from the reality of a victory that you do not currently visibly see; faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses. At least, this is my current understanding of the verse.
We need to get our identity back (God says who we are) and our strength back (God supplies us with this and power). You are not giving up.
Learn how to shift when we’re hurting or in a trial. We can’t allow pain to cancel out our faith.
Learn how to shift your mind to know without a doubt what God says and to 100% believe in that.
Understand and know that the deeper you go into God’s word, you will receive what you need. You’ll understand:
And Jesus replied to him, It is written, Man shall not live and be sustained by (on) bread alone but by every word and expression of God. Luke 4:4 AMP or AMPC
Let your character or moral disposition be free from love of money [including greed, avarice, lust, and craving for earthly possessions] and be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] Hebrews 13:5 AMP or AMPC (other verses: Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:5)
I have been young and now am old, yet have I not seen the [uncompromisingly] righteous forsaken or their seed begging bread. Psalm 37:25 AMP or AMPC
But He said to me, My grace (My favor and loving-kindness and mercy) is enough for you [sufficient against any danger and enables you to bear the trouble manfully]; for My strength and power are made perfect (fulfilled and completed) and show themselves most effective in [your] weakness. Therefore, I will all the more gladly glory in my weaknesses and infirmities, that the strength and power of Christ (the Messiah) may rest (yes, may pitch a tent over and dwell) upon me! 2 Corinthians 12:9 AMP or AMPC
3 You will guard him and keep him in perfect and constant peace whose mind [both its inclination and its character] is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You. 4 So trust in the Lord (commit yourself to Him, lean on Him, hope confidently in Him) forever; for the Lord God is an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages]. Isaiah 26:2-4 AMP or AMPC
Context for focus verse
In Gibeon, the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night. And God said, Ask what I shall give you. Solomon asked for wisdom, and when he woke up, he was presented with a case.
Note: Don’t forget to pray for wisdom.
The case was of a woman whose life changed overnight. She went to sleep peacefully and woke up to chaos.
Has that ever happened to you, going to bed and waking up to something changed or shifted overnight?
The woman shows us what having discernment and trusting in instinct looks like. Trust the discernment and nudges from the Spirit. A child of God knows the truth, when those not of the faith can’t see it immediately. They are able to discern the truth (by the power of the Holy Spirit) and tell when someone is lying on or to them.
The mother had to keep her faith even when dealing with a lie, theft, and a confusing answer to her problem.
The enemy tries to confuse and deceive us, to put doubt in our minds. Here’s a reminder: we all have been given a promise and a purpose. The enemy doesn’t want you to know it or obtain it.
The babies here represent the promise. The babies are infants in their beginning stage, and whenever something is in the beginning stage, it is vulnerable, just like an infant. Just like a baby, the promise needs nourishment, protection, attention, and care. God has placed it in our care, and it will start off small, from a seed, from a beginning stage. Trust the process!
Allow the promise to fully develop. The enemy loves to attack things early, but the promise will be reached if you follow the proper steps.
One of the women mishandled her baby (promise) that was hers because she laid on her baby. Then she covered it up and tried to steal what belonged to somebody else.
The enemy wants to do just that and take what belongs to you. The enemy desires to deceive you in the middle of the night. The woman switched them in the middle of the night, and the other woman knew it wasn’t hers.
Faith is proven when your world is shaken and you refuse to let go of what God promised you.
If you are new to the faith, know that God has a purpose and a plan for you.
The first thing she knew is that the attack on her promise came at night.
The attack on our promise can come at night
God wants you to discern in your night season, so that you can:
Recognize what belongs to you from Him.
Reject what the enemy has substituted.
The enemy tried to make her doubt what she already knew. She knew this was not her baby. We need to know what belongs to us.
She didn’t panic when she awoke to the dead child in her arms. What do you do when something shifts in the night? What do you do when something challenges you?
This is what you do: you allow God to work on your vision!
We need to get back to what we know. Jesus is the light, that’s what helps our night vision. All who put trust in Him will no longer remain in the dark.
The enemy stole that baby, but the theft was not the dangerous part. It was the attempt to make her accept a dead replacement.
The enemy works at night because the enemy hopes that you won’t notice the switch.
The enemy hopes that you would just accept the failure, the loss, and defeat. The enemy hopes that you accept whatever it is done to destroy you.
Stop allowing the enemy to drop things, to drop feelings, emotions, guilt, and shame into your arms, that do not belong to you. Stop allowing the enemy to replace the truth with a lie.
You don’t need to do drugs to feel better. You don’t need to do something strange for a piece of change. You don’t need to cheat. You don’t need to lie. You are not lonely enough to take someone sexual or allow someone in when you know it’s not good for you. NO MORE DEAD REPLACEMENTS.
You have to protect your faith from lies, fear, anxiety, offense, and an emotional collapse.
Just because the enemy switched something in the night doesn’t mean you have to accept it in the morning.
When you’re not looking, the enemy will always try to steal your purpose, your peace, your joy, your identity, and your promise. The enemy will try to steal your confidence, your passion, your mind, and your family unity. WE CANNOT ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN.
The enemy just wants us to accept things that do not belong to us. We’ve spent too long accepting things that do not belong to us.
Have you been in a night season when you just couldn’t see your way through it? You didn’t know when it happened or how?
When you didn’t know how your marriage got like this.
When you didn’t know how your child got the way they are.
But God says we have to use our night vision! Our night vision is:
Discernment - Understanding what you need to do before or after something goes wrong. Helps to identify the next step or actions needed.
Prayer - Gives vision when life goes dark. It lets you place things into God’s hands.
Faith - Helps you to see the promise when circumstances show only problems.
The Word of God - It is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path Psalm 119:105
The Holy Spirit - He guides you into all the truth.
Many of us are survivors. We have been here before. It almost broke us, but it didn’t.
Get connected with the Body of Christ; have fellowship with other believers. Unless God has called you into a season of isolation, don’t be left alone. Get involved with the Body of Christ.
Don’t listen to the lies that, as a woman, you don’t like other women, or that, as a man, you can’t get together or be vulnerable with other men.
Don’t allow the enemy to keep you from communion and fellowship with other believers. Don’t let the enemy play with your mind.
Fellowship with other believers will help strengthen and encourage you on your walk with Christ. It will strengthen your vision and get you closer to your promise.
Where no wise guidance is, the people fall, but in the multitude of counselors there is safety. Proverbs 11:14 AMP or AMPC
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens [and influences] another [through discussion] Proverbs 27:17 AMP
The wise will hear and increase their learning, and the person of understanding will acquire wise counsel and the skill [to steer his course wisely and lead others to the truth] Proverbs 1:5 AMP
Night seasons do not last forever. It may have confused you, but the morning will clarify everything for you. Because what the enemy switched at night, God will uncover in the morning. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Psalm 30:5 AMP
God will give you vision even in your dark seasons, and we have to learn to switch from panic to discernment. Learn to stop accepting dead things that do not belong to what God predestined for us.
The enemy may have stolen something or could have switched something, but we know the God that we serve, and we know the promises He spoke to us (as a nation) or to us (individually). It won’t be stolen or switched for good, for we fight from Christ’s victory and with His authority.
Don’t stop fighting. Look again.
Look again and see that what you’re holding is not yours; it doesn’t belong to you.
God exposes what darkness tries to hide. Take a look again:
You are not worthless.
God loves you.
You will recover it all.
You are healed in Jesus’ name.
You are not broken, and will not stay broken.
Anxiety is not your identity.
Despair is not your destiny.
The darkness will not define you.
When she looked again and recognized the lie, she took it to the king.
She did and said what she needed to, and then took it to the king.
She didn’t sit and pretend like everything was okay.
She didn’t cuss or fuss at anyone.
This mother teaches us that when lies surround you, take it to our King.
When confusion tries to overwhelm you, take it to God.
When your mind is under attack, take it to God.
Allow God to expose every lie. We don’t have to force vindication, because the truth still lives.
Faith starts when you surrender everything to God.
Faith starts when we carry our battles and take them to the Lord.
God wants us to prosper and come out of darkness and into the marvelous light.
Stop exhausting yourself trying to prove yourself to people who have already chosen confusion.
Stop pleading your case to people who know the truth because they created the lie.
Some battles are too heavy for our flesh; we need divine intervention.
Do not be anxious or worried about anything, but in everything [every circumstance and situation] by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, continue to make your [specific] requests known to God. Philippians 4:6 AMP
When you hear or see something you don’t agree with, say out loud, “I don’t accept it.”
Be bold enough to tell people you don’t agree, and you don’t accept things that God did not say or send Himself. We are not accepting anything that doesn’t belong to us.
She didn’t become a judge herself; she brought the issue to the King.
Everything doesn’t need a response; you don’t have to address everything.
Stop fighting every rumor and arguing with every critic.
Stop defending yourself to people who are just committed to misunderstanding you.
She knew love would be the answer. She knew God sees what other people cannot. She knew to get wisdom higher than herself.
Going back to the verse, Solomon said, “Cut the baby in half and give each half to a mother.” But the mother whose baby it was said no; the mother who stole her child could have the baby so that the child wouldn’t die.
The solution the king gave sounded cruel and confusing. The answer sounded worse than the problem.
But this is where many believers lose faith, because sometimes God allows moments to happen that, to us, don’t make sense.
The answer may not have matched your expectations.
The door closed.
The situation may have felt like it got worse before you received a breakthrough.
The healing is slow.
The instructions were uncomfortable.
The process was/is painful.
But can you keep the faith when heaven’s response does not match your expectations? Can you still trust God when His response feels uncomfortable?
Solomon gave the order as a test. The strange instructions revealed who the real mother was by their responses.
Sometimes when things don’t go our way, and it doesn’t make sense, and it’s not what we thought, God is looking for our response, because the pressure will expose who you really are and what’s really in your heart.
Sometimes God will use uncomfortable pressure to expose authentic faith.
Faith shifts when you become more concerned about the promise surviving than your ego surviving. One wanted destruction, and the other preservation.
A mature believer goes from wanting revenge to restoration—from bitterness to compassion—from proving a point to preserving the purpose/promise.
Love protects life.
She knew the real issue was not the possession, but the preservation.
Solomon asked for the sword:
For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as the division of the soul and spirit [t he completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing* and* judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12 AMP
When the enemy tries to replace what God promised, supernatural faith helps you recognize the truth in the dark, fight for it in the morning, and let love be the answer.
You may not know every verse in the Bible, but use what you do know. You know something has to change. We know:
God has chosen us.
God loves us.
We know the King of kings, who sees good and evil.
We know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. Romans 8:28 AMP
Get up and strengthen your brethren. Luke 22:30-32
The enemy keeps trying to tell you and disqualify you, but you are not your past.
Here’s What “pricked my heart” the most (conviction)
This whole sermon pricked my heart and was actually one of the messages that gave me the nudge and push I needed. If i have to narrow it down:
What stood out: Don’t agree with or accept what doesn’t belong to you
Why it hit me: I think this hit me because the mind is such a battle field, and it’s easy to do this. But it’s a reminder to keep our eyes, ears, mind, and heart on Yahweh at all times. Only agreeing with and accepting things He says/gives.
What stood out: God’s answer and solution may not be what we except sometimes.
Why it hit me: This hit me because it’s so true, and it is very helpful to know Who He is and His character.
Pay attention to what pricks your heart, that gentle (or strong) conviction from the Holy Spirit that points to something God wants to heal, change, or grow in you. Don’t try to do everything at once, choose one action step and take it seriously this week.
Remember, my convictions may not be yours, and the same can be said for your friends. Our walk may look a bit different, and that’s okay. Don’t measure your growth by someone else’s struggle, and don’t feel pressured to copy another person’s exact action steps. Ask the Lord what your next step is in this season, even if it feels small, because small, sincere obedience adds up over time. If you’re talking with a friend about what stood out to you, do it with humility and love: share what God is correcting in you, and make space for what He may be doing in them. Just be honest with yourself, stay teachable, and accept the Holy Spirit’s nudges to change.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Peace be to you!
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