One Little Question that Helps (Big) Discernments

Don't get stuck in overwhelm

Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash

Sometimes in life we face some pretty big discernments: things that carry a lot of weight, or have consequences for others beyond just ourselves, or are actually life-altering. Maybe we’re discerning which career path to go down, or whether to move our families to a new country, or if we should pursue adoption. These are not small questions.

But I do have a small question to offer you, when you’re facing a big discernment.

“What reality am I discerning right now?”

There are two key aspects which make this question so helpful.

Discerning Reality

The first is that word, “reality.” It’s not possible to discern something that is purely hypothetical. God is real, we are real, time and space are real. Discernment is about the reality in front of us. 

Sometimes we pose big questions to ourselves, like: “should I become a doctor?” or “should we move to Italy?” or “should we adopt a child?” And while these may be the overarching questions on our mind, they actually aren’t…