Cultivating Discernment: Understanding Deeper Realities
Discernment
Discernment vs. shortsightedness
UNDERSTANDING THE DEEPER
REASONS WHY THINGS HAPPEN.
More definition
The quality of being able
to grasp and comprehend
what is obscure.
A power to see what is not
evident to the average
mind.
Discernment takes:
DISCRIMINATION
DISCRIMINATION
stresses the power to
stresses the power to
distinguish and select what is true.
distinguish and select what is true.
PERCEPTION
PERCEPTION
implies quick and often
implies quick and often
sympathetic discernment. The ability to
sympathetic discernment. The ability to
use feelings to perceive things that some
use feelings to perceive things that some
can’t because of the lack of feelings.
can’t because of the lack of feelings.
PENETRATION
PENETRATION
implies a searching mind
implies a searching mind
that goes beyond what is obvious or
that goes beyond what is obvious or
superficial. Breaking through the obvious.
superficial. Breaking through the obvious.
INSIGHT
INSIGHT
suggests depth of discernment
suggests depth of discernment
coupled with understanding and
coupled with understanding and
knowledge.
knowledge.
S
t
e
p
o
n
e
Pay attention
•
Keep your eyes and ears
open so you can receive
information needed to make
good decisions. Unless we
are alert to the facts around
us, we may believe a lie.
S
t
e
p
t
w
o
Stop and think:
•
Do not presume anything.
•
Do not accuse without
evidence.
•
Do not only use your personal
experience.
•
Think beyond the surface.
•
What is the reality.
S
t
e
p
t
h
r
e
e
Learn what you can:
•
Gather information so as to have
better understanding, so you can
make a better decision.
•
Process information through an
unbiased mind so the facts are not
jaded.
•
When you find a problem, look at
the facts, define what is going on,
and find best solutions.
Don’t forget the bottom line.
Our goal is to find the
deeper reasons why
things happen, without
letting the surface
issues confuse us.
Be careful
Looks
: can deceive: never go by looks.
Pain
: pain is the symptom of a deeper
problem.
Speech
: talk can lure you to believe in
the lie.
Work
: people can hide behind their
work. Stay busy as to bury the real pain,
or hurt.
Family
: the family can hide a multitude
of problems.
Questions
How do you know if someone is
telling the truth?
How do you know if your
assumption is real?
What lessons can we learn from
this.
All of these questions can be
answered with the character quality
of discernment.
Things are not as they seem!
A Family of Writers
A man was telling his friend, “I come
from a family of writers.”
What would you think?
He went on “My sister wrote books that
no one would read. My brother wrote
songs that no one would sing. My mother
wrote plays that no one would see, and
my father wrote checks that no one
would cash.”
Look from a different angle.
C. S. Lewis
What you see and hear
depends a good deal on
where you are standing;
it also depends on what
sort of person you are
.
The truth can be seen in a positive
way or a negative way.
Ziggy
You can complain because
roses have thorns, or you
can rejoice because thorns
have roses.
Both are true but one serves a better
way of thinking.
That which happens in life is not as
important as how you accept it.
Things will always happen
around us, but how we
discern these things will
determine how we respond
to the things that come
against us. Look for good
in all things.
Filter system
Allow time for information to process
before reacting.
Think about the answer before giving one.
Ask yourself how your experience can
influence the situation in a positive or
negative way. (
example: if you were beat
as a child, does that effect your ability to
discern through a similar situation that
may or may not be true?)
More filters
Never assume what the other person is
thinking. Always ask the right questions to
get the facts. Questions can filter a lot of
the untruth out.
Read between the lines, most people
won’t just spell it out.
Observe what people say, and then watch
what they do. Many times you can discern
the real problem by doing this.
The painting
What we see when we look at things is the big
picture. But the big picture is made up of little
strokes of different colors, sizes, and shapes.
Most will not look at the way the painting came
together, they just look at the final canvas.
In order to change the final outcome, we have
to go back in and change the strokes.
Someone needs to look at the deeper things so
change can be made. (
discern where the
picture went bad
)
Test your discernment
Pick a person in the group that has
recent problems. Have them tell their
story.
The rest of the group converse
together and discern what the
deeper issue is, and what to do.
Where did the problem start?
This is not a counseling session, just
a discerning session.
Cultivate the quality of discernment to grasp obscure truths, go beyond superficiality, and make informed decisions. Pay attention, stop and think, gather unbiased information, and seek deeper reasons behind superficial issues. Discernment helps in distinguishing truth, perceiving beyond the obvious, and gaining insight. Be cautious of deceptive appearances in looks, pain, speech, work, and family dynamics. Discernment aids in knowing truth, validating assumptions, and extracting lessons from experiences.
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Presentation Transcript
Discernment Discernment vs. shortsightedness UNDERSTANDING THE DEEPER REASONS WHY THINGS HAPPEN.
More definition The quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure. A power to see what is not evident to the average mind.
Discernment takes: DISCRIMINATION stresses the power to distinguish and select what is true. PERCEPTION implies quick and often sympathetic discernment. The ability to use feelings to perceive things that some can t because of the lack of feelings. PENETRATION implies a searching mind that goes beyond what is obvious or superficial. Breaking through the obvious. INSIGHT suggests depth of discernment coupled with understanding and knowledge.
Step one Pay attention Keep your eyes and ears open so you can receive information needed to make good decisions. Unless we are alert to the facts around us, we may believe a lie.
Step two Stop and think: Do not presume anything. Do not accuse without evidence. Do not only use your personal experience. Think beyond the surface. What is the reality.
Step three Learn what you can: Gather information so as to have better understanding, so you can make a better decision. Process information through an unbiased mind so the facts are not jaded. When you find a problem, look at the facts, define what is going on, and find best solutions.
Dont forget the bottom line. Our goal is to find the deeper reasons why things happen, without letting the surface issues confuse us.
Be careful Looks: can deceive: never go by looks. Pain: pain is the symptom of a deeper problem. Speech: talk can lure you to believe in the lie. Work: people can hide behind their work. Stay busy as to bury the real pain, or hurt. Family: the family can hide a multitude of problems.
Questions How do you know if someone is telling the truth? How do you know if your assumption is real? What lessons can we learn from this. All of these questions can be answered with the character quality of discernment.
Things are not as they seem! A Family of Writers A man was telling his friend, I come from a family of writers. What would you think? He went on My sister wrote books that no one would read. My brother wrote songs that no one would sing. My mother wrote plays that no one would see, and my father wrote checks that no one would cash.
Look from a different angle. C. S. Lewis What you see and hear depends a good deal on where you are standing; it also depends on what sort of person you are.
The truth can be seen in a positive way or a negative way. Ziggy You can complain because roses have thorns, or you can rejoice because thorns have roses. Both are true but one serves a better way of thinking.
That which happens in life is not as important as how you accept it. Things will always happen around us, but how we discern these things will determine how we respond to the things that come against us. Look for good in all things.
Filter system Allow time for information to process before reacting. Think about the answer before giving one. Ask yourself how your experience can influence the situation in a positive or negative way. (example: if you were beat as a child, does that effect your ability to discern through a similar situation that may or may not be true?)
More filters Never assume what the other person is thinking. Always ask the right questions to get the facts. Questions can filter a lot of the untruth out. Read between the lines, most people won t just spell it out. Observe what people say, and then watch what they do. Many times you can discern the real problem by doing this.
The painting What we see when we look at things is the big picture. But the big picture is made up of little strokes of different colors, sizes, and shapes. Most will not look at the way the painting came together, they just look at the final canvas. In order to change the final outcome, we have to go back in and change the strokes. Someone needs to look at the deeper things so change can be made. (discern where the picture went bad)
Test your discernment Pick a person in the group that has recent problems. Have them tell their story. The rest of the group converse together and discern what the deeper issue is, and what to do. Where did the problem start? This is not a counseling session, just a discerning session.
