The Art Of Discernment

A way to make important decisions--look at the pros and cons, consider the decision, listen to your heart, and seek the freedom to do what's best.

Based on the time-tested spiritual exercises of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, the 16th-century founder of the Jesuits who developed a systemic way of considering and making choices, this revised edition helps those who want to make fruitful choices and manage decisions with faithfulness to God.

Winner of the 2018 TGC Book Award for Christian Living “And God saw that it was good…” Look out over the world today, it seems a far cry from God’s original declaration. Pain, conflict, and uncertainty dominate the headlines. Our daily lives are noisy and chaotic—filled with too much information and too little wisdom. No wonder we often find it easier to retreat into safe spaces, hunker down in likeminded tribes, and just do our best to survive life. But what if God wants you to do more than simply survive? What if he wants you to thrive in this world, and be part of its redemption? What if you could rediscover the beauty and goodness God established in the beginning? By learning the lost art of discernment, you can. Discernment is more than simply avoiding bad things; discernment actually frees you to navigate the world with confidence and joy by teaching you how to recognize and choose good things. When you learn discernment and develop a taste for all that’s good, you will encounter God in remarkable new ways. Come, discover the God who not only made all things, but who will also make all things good once again.

Stay spiritually grounded and open to divine wisdom as you shape your life. "To make wise decisions, we need the aid of that wise and loving Spirit whose wisdom and light exceed our own. With the Spirit illuminating the complexities of our decisions, we can see and understand more about ourselves and our choices." —from the Introduction Spiritual discernment is the traditional name for listening and responding to divine guidance. In this book you will approach decision making as an active participant, a co-creator with God in shaping your life. Drawing on twenty-five years of experience as a psychologist and fifteen years as a spiritual director, Nancy L. Bieber presents three essential aspects of Spirit-led decision making: • Willingness—being open to God's wisdom and love • Attentiveness—noticing what is true, discerning the right path • Responsiveness—taking steps forward as the way becomes clear. With gentle encouragement, Bieber shows how to weave these themes together to discover the best path for you. Each chapter is enriched by practical spiritual exercises to help you understand yourself and your specific situation, as well as to strengthen spiritual discernment as a daily way of life. An appendix includes a detailed guide for using the book in group study.

We all make decisions constantly--some with careful reflection, some without much thought. But what if we understood these decisions, minor as well as major, as matters of faithful Christian living? In this helpful and encouraging book, Elizabeth Liebert introduces the practice of discernment and guides readers through the process of faithful decision making. Following the way of discernment means becoming increasingly able to notice where God is at work in the world and in one's own life--and becoming increasingly generous with one's own life in response. After briefly exploring the Christian tradition of discernment, Liebert then turns to practical steps and exercises that will help readers as they seek God's call in the midst of their decisions, allowing readers to internalize some of these practices and incorporate them into their daily lives.

Spiritual discernment is the traditional name for listening and responding to divine guidance. In this book you will approach decision making as an active participant, a co-creator with God in shaping your life. Drawing on twenty-five years of experience as a psychologist and fifteen years as a spiritual director, Nancy L. Bieber presents three essential aspects of Spirit-led decision making:

Popular opinion has become so polarized that it should be no surprise that individuals find themselves increasingly alienated from others. As a result, an increasing number of people are wondering who they are and how they should relate to others. Discernment, however, can help us discover that the “other” really is nothing more than a construct. The Lost Art of Discernment promotes the importance of such things as humility, openness, compassion, and developing a healthy critical consciousness. The book also seeks to answer questions such as: What is reality in this day of “reality” shows and conspiracy theories? How has our compass for gauging the truth devolved so quickly? Why are we so reluctant to trust anyone outside of our tribe? The author also explores topics such as abortion, Black Lives Matter, political posturing, gun control, race baiting, and more. There is so much more than thinking outside the box: We must realize that the box needs to be discarded altogether as it is only a byproduct of smoke and mirrors. Explore biases, ask the right questions, and consider the arguments of others with this book that seeks to heal divisions.

What should I do? We ask the question when we pray. We ask it when we run out of answers to our problems. We ask it when we face big decisions. We ask it when we get out of bed in the morning: How should I live this day as well as I can? We can find answers through learning the art of discernment-the wisdom that enables us to see and interpret the leading of the Holy Spirit as it is manifested in the inner lives of our hearts. The great master of this art was St. Ignatius Loyola, author of The Spiritual Exercises, who believed that the ability to discern the spirits is one of the most important skills a Christian could have. Ignatius believed that the answer to the question "What Should I Do?" is found in the shifting sea of feelings, insights, leadings, and intuitions of our affective lives. What Do You Really Want? shows us how to understand these emotions and use what we learn to make the choices that best serve God and bring his love to the people in our lives. It shows the truth of one of Ignatius's greatest insights-that when we find what we really want, we find what God wants too, because the deepest desires of our hearts were placed there by God.