Activity: Noticing the Signs

Objective(s): to give the students instruction in discernment through practice

Time: This depends on how many “signs” you want to model. Perhaps 10 minutes for presentation, 15 minutes per sign for reflection, and another 10 minutes for debrief.

Materials: none

The best way to learn discernment is to do it, and the easiest way to do it is through practice with real material. Instruct the students to think of some discernment issue in their own life. It could be a decision about their future, a question about an experience, an opinion about a trend or a relationship—any area where they might have a question about the presence or will of God or some issue of wisdom.

When students have thought of their situation, lead them through an exercise of exploring areas where the Holy Spirit might lead (see the earlier sections of the book for this, or see also Elizabeth Liebert, The Way of Discernment). Help them to examine their feelings—for example, taking note of the kinds of feelings that have been associated with the Spirit's work in their own past and then seeing what kinds of feelings are present when they reflect on their “discernment issue.” You can also have them review their communication with others (respected or not) and see what might be signs of the Spirit. There are lots of options here (again, see Liebert’s guide). The point is to give them a tangible experience of noticing the indications of the leading of the Spirit, both in terms of what they have generally known to be true and in the context of a concrete situation in front of them.

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Assignment Set 1

1. God Hunt (and Your God Hunt Journal)

I learned about the God Hunt from Chapel of the Air, a radio show led by David and Karen Mains that I used to enjoy long ago. Ultimately Karen wrote a book (and a blog post) about it. She writes, “A God Hunt begins when you teach yourself to look for God’s hand at work in the everyday occurrences of your life.” Her blog periodically recounts “God Hunt Sightings.” My point is this: we move from contemplative seeing and listening to prayerful discernment when we positively identify our sightings, or hearings, as God noticings. This is when we say with Simeon, “You may now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:29–30, a passage, by the way, that is regularly read at night prayer).

So here is the assignment. Take five minutes each day (or as best you can) and review your day. This exercise is usually done at night, just before bed, but a few people find that they can do it better at some other time. Then ask yourself one single question: Where did I notice God today? This is not a self-examination exercise, where you “rummage for God” by reviewing your feelings. It is a more general review of any signs of the presence or activity of God anywhere—yes, in your feelings, but also perhaps in nature, another person, or a passage of Scripture. Just look back and identify anywhere that you can say, “That was God.” Then briefly record it in a journal.

And here is the point: you are not to fuss about times or events that you thought MIGHT be from God. Just note those moments where you can pretty confidently say, “Yes, that was God.” If, after five minutes of reflection, you haven’t noticed anything for that day, fine. Just leave that day blank or write down “nothing today.”

My conviction is that this is the best way to learn discernment. After a few years of doing this for five minutes every day, your sense of discernment will have improved dramatically.

Do this every day (or as best you can) and keep a journal. By the end of our first week you should have submitted a first sample of your God Hunt noticings. I will share a few of these here and there, revising when necessary in order to honor confidentiality. Then later in the course you will submit a final God Hunt journal as a way of summarizing your experience in this class.

2. Discernment Virtues Reflection

Now is the time to think of yourself as a discerner. Remember, quality discernment is not so much the fruit of good discernment process as it is the fruit of good discerners. This is a matter of cultivating valuable discernment virtues over a long time. And to become good discerners, we must make a commitment to foster virtues such as freedom in faith, obedience, shared concerns with God, listening, humility, prayer, wisdom, love, and others as we mature in Christ.

So now is the time to begin examining yourself as a discerner and to review your own strengths and weaknesses with regard to discernment virtues. Examine the list of virtues found in A Guide to Christian Spiritual Formation (p. 218; for more detail, see The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality, pp. 384–85). As you look at this list (or others) and think of your own discernment practice, ask: Which are my strongest virtues? Which are my weakest? How might my strengths and weaknesses affect my discernment practice either in the past or in the present? What should I do to address these strengths and weaknesses in order to improve my discernment in the future?

Your assignment is simply to write your own reflections regarding these questions. Draw from your resources for the week and in the course more generally. How might fostering particular discernment virtues also foster your formation into discernment generally (and into intimacy and conformity with the gospel of Christ)?

3. Discernment Conversation Exercise

This exercise is designed to move you ever so slightly from exploring discernment personally to helping others discern. And the exercise is simply this: have a conversation with someone (an individual or a group) about a discernment that they have made or are making. It doesn’t matter what type of discernment it is. They may have had a crazy dream and want to know if it is from God. They may be making a decision. It’s all OK. Furthermore (and this is really important), you don’t need to do any spiritual direction or helping or anything. Just spend some time talking and listening to someone about their discernment. That’s it.

Then, when the conversation is over, write up a small summary of the event and what you learned. See if you can integrate any of the insights you have had in the class so far (texts, videos, discussions, etc.) into your summary. See if you can summarize how you see the place of discernment fitting into the Christian life generally and the task of formation more specifically.

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Assignment Set 2

You have now surveyed both the elements of Christian spiritual formation and the chief areas within which we are formed (relationship with God, others, self, and world). We will now begin to direct all this to an understanding of the ministry of Christian spiritual formation. The first step is to understand discernment. All throughout the class we have been talking about the “appropriate” next step. What is appropriate for me, us, them? That is the discerning question of spiritual formation. You will read about discernment. You will explore the history of discernment—both the history of the church and your own personal history of discernment. You will have an opportunity to practice discernment in your own life. By the end of the week you should have a sense of how discernment and formation work together.

1. Academic—The Church History of Discernment

I did not cover the history of discernment a great deal in this chapter (though I did a bit more in the Brazos Introduction). But it is a topic well worth exploring. There is so much to discover. I can’t begin to direct you to all the classics on discernment. But here is a link to Ignatius of Loyola’s “Rules for the Discernment of Spirits” and a link to Jonathan Edwards’s “Religious Affections.” This last document is long (181 pages), and you won’t be able to read it all. Skim the titles, browse the document, and get a sense of where Edwards is going. You might also want to google “history of Christian discernment” and see what you find. Your assignment is simply to read and summarize what you see as the principle insights about Christian discernment that have been passed on through the centuries, at least through the material you have read.

2. Personal—My Own History of Discernment

By now you know what to do. Reflect on the history of your own relationship with God, and in light of the resources for this week see if you can summarize when you have experienced discernment and how it happened. Who was involved? What did you experience? What situations triggered discernment? What happened when it was all over? See if you can link your story to the categories outlined in this book. How have you been formed into discernment? How have you discerned your own formation?

3. Spiritual Practice—Imagination’s Insights

I can do no better than to suggest that you read a sample from Elizabeth Leibert’s wonderful The Way of Discernment. Her chapters cover memory, intuition, body, reason, emotion, nature, and more. The chapter on “Imagination’s Insights” is especially good, with lots of practical examples.

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