Latest / Voices Of Life / Living With Spiritual Discernment

Transcript

Living With Spiritual Discernment · Voices Of Life

• 0:05
  Welcome to the Voices of Life, the official podcast
• 0:08
  of the Church for Life. I'm Pastor David, and
• 0:11
  I'm grateful you're here as we step into week
• 0:14
  six of our 12 -week journey, Living with Purpose,
• 0:18
  a God -Centered Life. This week, we're talking
• 0:23
  about something every believer needs, something
• 0:26
  that shapes your decisions, your relationships,
• 0:28
  the direction you go, your peace. your protection
• 0:34
  and your spiritual maturity this week is about
• 0:39
  living with spiritual discernment discernment
• 0:44
  is the ability to recognize what is from god
• 0:47
  and what is not discernment is the ability to
• 0:53
  sense god's leading in the middle of life's noises
• 0:59
  Discernment is the ability to see beneath the
• 1:02
  surface and understand what is really happening
• 1:05
  in the spiritual realm. Discernment is not suspicion.
• 1:11
  Discernment is not fear. And don't try to overthink
• 1:15
  it. Discernment is clarity. It's wisdom. It's
• 1:20
  spiritual insight. So wherever you are, settling
• 1:24
  into a quiet moment, driving, walking, or listening
• 1:28
  at home, Take a slow breath. Let your heart open.
• 1:33
  Let your mind focus. Let God sharpen your spiritual
• 1:37
  senses as we begin. Spiritual discernment is
• 1:44
  the ability to recognize God's voice above other
• 1:47
  voices. It is the ability to sense his direction
• 1:51
  when choices are unclear. It is the ability to
• 1:57
  identify or rather identify the truth in a world
• 2:01
  full of noise. Discernment is not natural, it's
• 2:05
  spiritual. It's not something you can learn through
• 2:08
  information. It's developed through intimacy
• 2:12
  with God. Discernment is the fruit of walking
• 2:18
  closely with the Holy Spirit. Discernment helps
• 2:23
  you. It helps you recognize God's leading. It
• 2:29
  identifies spiritual attack. It helps you avoid
• 2:34
  deception. It helps you make wise decisions.
• 2:38
  It protects your peace, strengthens your faith,
• 2:41
  and you stay aligned with God's will. Discernment
• 2:49
  is not about knowing everything. It's about knowing
• 2:52
  God deeply enough to sense his movement. Discernment
• 3:00
  matters because not everything that looks good
• 3:03
  is from God. Not every open door is a God door.
• 3:09
  Not every opportunity is a God opportunity. And
• 3:13
  not every voice is a God voice. It's sometimes
• 3:18
  not even the feeling that God is leading. Discernment
• 3:22
  protects you from being misled. It does this
• 3:28
  by emotion, pressure, fear, or confusion. Discernment
• 3:37
  helps you avoid relationships that drain you,
• 3:40
  decisions that derail you, and paths that distract
• 3:45
  you. Discernment is God's way of guiding you
• 3:49
  through a world that is spiritually complex.
• 3:53
  Discernment is not optional, it's essential.
• 3:59
  Discernment doesn't begin with trying harder.
• 4:04
  It begins with being closer. The closer you are
• 4:10
  to God, the clearer his voice becomes. The more
• 4:17
  time you spend in his presence, the more familiar
• 4:22
  his leading feels. Discernment grows in stillness,
• 4:28
  in prayer, worship, scripture, even in surrender.
• 4:31
  But discernment is not about figuring things
• 4:34
  out. Discernment is about staying connected to
• 4:38
  the one who knows all things. When your heart
• 4:43
  is aligned with God's heart, discernment flows
• 4:47
  naturally. Discernment is not a moment, it is
• 4:54
  a rhythm. It is a daily practice of inviting
• 4:56
  God into your thoughts. Inviting him into your
• 4:59
  decisions, your relationships, emotions, your
• 5:02
  plans. Discernment grows when you pause and ask
• 5:08
  yourself, Lord, what are you saying here? What
• 5:16
  is really happening beneath the surface? What
• 5:18
  is your will in this moment? Discernment is not
• 5:24
  dramatic, it is consistent. As we move to explore
• 5:29
  the habits of postures and spiritual practices
• 5:35
  that sharpen discernment in daily life, we will
• 5:41
  figure out that discernment begins with stillness,
• 5:48
  not activity. away from the noise something you're
• 5:56
  not striving for stillness creates space for
• 6:00
  the holy spirit to speak clearly when your mind
• 6:05
  is racing discernment becomes cloudy when your
• 6:09
  heart is hurried discernment becomes distorted
• 6:11
  stillness is the practice of quieting your soul
• 6:17
  and quieting it long enough to hear what god's
• 6:21
  whisper is saying lord i'm here speak to me stillness
• 6:32
  is not inactivity stillness is intentional presence
• 6:36
  and discernment grows in presence discernment
• 6:44
  is shaped by scripture the more familiar you
• 6:47
  are with god's word the easier it becomes to
• 6:50
  recognize his voice scripture is that anchor
• 6:53
  that keeps you grounded when emotions rise when
• 6:57
  opinions swirl when confusion comes scripture
• 7:02
  is the filter that helps you separate truth from
• 7:05
  deception wisdom from impulse god's leading from
• 7:09
  your own desires discernment is not guessing
• 7:14
  discernment is aligning aligning your thoughts
• 7:17
  with god's truth Aligning your decisions with
• 7:23
  God's wisdom. Aligning your heart with God's
• 7:30
  character. The word sharpens discernment. The
• 7:38
  Holy Spirit is your guide. He nudges, he whispers,
• 7:41
  he warns, he comforts, directs, reveals. Discernment
• 7:47
  is learning to recognize the subtle movements
• 7:50
  of the spirit. Sometimes he gives peace. Sometimes
• 7:57
  he gives caution. Hopefully he gives clarity.
• 8:04
  He gives restraint and boldness. The spirit leading
• 8:09
  is gentle but unmistakable. Discernment grows
• 8:14
  when you pause and ask, Holy Spirit, what are
• 8:18
  you saying right now? And then listen, not with
• 8:23
  pressure, not with fear, but with openness. And
• 8:29
  that leads us to humility. Humility is essential
• 8:36
  for discernment. Pride clouds discernment. Pride
• 8:41
  assumes It already knows. Pride rushes ahead
• 8:46
  without listening. But humility creates space
• 8:51
  for God to speak. Humility says, Lord, I don't
• 8:57
  know everything. I need your wisdom. Humility
• 9:03
  keeps your heart teachable. Humility keeps your
• 9:07
  spirit open. Keeps your motives pure. So discernment
• 9:16
  is not about being right. It's being aligned
• 9:22
  with God. That's what it's about. And when we
• 9:30
  think of discernment in our relationships, decisions,
• 9:34
  and spiritual battles, we have to understand
• 9:40
  with relationships first. Discernment is essential
• 9:44
  in relationship. Not every person is meant to
• 9:48
  have access to your heart. Not every voice is
• 9:52
  meant to shape your decisions. Not every influence
• 9:56
  is meant to guide your direction. Discernment
• 10:00
  helps you see who strengthens your spirit, who
• 10:05
  drains your peace, who speaks the truth. Who
• 10:10
  manipulates your emotion? Who is aligned with
• 10:14
  your calling? And who distracts you from God's
• 10:19
  will? Discernment does not judge people. Discernment
• 10:26
  protects the heart. It helps you recognize who
• 10:31
  is safe, who is wise, who is trustworthy, and
• 10:35
  who needs boundaries. Discernment keeps your
• 10:41
  relationships healthy and your spirit guarded.
• 10:49
  Discernment is crucial when making decisions.
• 10:52
  Some decisions are obvious. Some are very difficult.
• 10:59
  Some decisions are spiritually significant. Discernment
• 11:05
  helps you ask Is this God's timing? Is this God's
• 11:11
  direction? Is this God's opportunity? Is this
• 11:17
  God's wisdom? And is this God's peace? Discernment
• 11:21
  is not about choosing what looks easiest or most
• 11:25
  appealing. On the contrary, discernment is about
• 11:30
  choosing what aligns with God's heart. Sometimes
• 11:33
  discernment will lead you forward. And sometimes
• 11:37
  discernment will tell you to wait. Have patience.
• 11:44
  And sometimes discernment will tell you, walk
• 11:47
  away. I say sometimes run. Discernment is the
• 11:54
  spiritual compass that keeps your life aligned
• 11:57
  with God's will. When we talk about your spiritual
• 12:06
  battles, discernment is the vital part of working
• 12:14
  with these spiritual battles and working them
• 12:16
  through. Not every struggle is emotional. And
• 12:20
  not every conflict is relational. Certainly,
• 12:25
  not every pressure is circumstantial. But some
• 12:30
  battles are spiritual. The sermon helps you see
• 12:34
  what is happening beneath the surface. The sermon
• 12:38
  helps you recognize when the enemy is attacking
• 12:41
  your peace, your identity, your purpose, your
• 12:45
  relationships, confidence, your calling. Your
• 12:49
  calling, that's a powerful one. The sermon helps
• 12:55
  you respond, not with fear and not with frustration,
• 12:58
  but with the spiritual authority. Discernment
• 13:04
  says this is not just stress. This is spiritual
• 13:09
  pressure. This is not just conflict. This is
• 13:14
  spiritual resistance. This is not just discouragement.
• 13:20
  This is spiritual warfare. Discernment reveals
• 13:25
  the battle so you can fight with the right weapons.
• 13:34
  As we put the relationships and the spiritual
• 13:37
  together, now we have to look at our pace of
• 13:41
  life and how discernment helps us with that.
• 13:48
  Discernment is also needed in the pace of life
• 13:50
  because sometimes God says, slow down. Rest.
• 13:56
  Wait. Not yet. Discernment helps you recognize
• 14:03
  when you're moving too fast too hard being distracted
• 14:09
  or being pressured for the wrong reasons discernment
• 14:15
  helps you sense when your soul needs space discernment
• 14:20
  helps you know when to pause when to breathe
• 14:28
  when to reset yourself It's something that a
• 14:33
  lot of people have a hard time doing is when
• 14:35
  to listen and hear what's being said. Discernment
• 14:42
  is not only about direction. Discernment is about
• 14:44
  rhythm. So let's talk about guidance in this
• 14:56
  area. How do we find the guidance that we need?
• 15:04
  So let me guide you through a simple practice
• 15:07
  that strengthens your ability to hear God clearly.
• 15:12
  Find a comfortable posture. Let your breathing
• 15:14
  slow. Let your mind quiet. Let your heart soften.
• 15:22
  Lord, I am listening. Now ask yourself gently,
• 15:30
  what is God highlighting? in my spirit today
• 15:35
  don't force it don't rush it don't overthink
• 15:41
  it just listen maybe he brings a person to mind
• 15:48
  maybe he brings a scripture to mind maybe he
• 15:56
  brings a feeling of peace maybe he brings a gentle
• 16:02
  caution But maybe he brings clarity to something
• 16:08
  you've been carrying. Discernment begins with
• 16:15
  listening. Now let's practice testing what you
• 16:21
  sense. Scripture teaches us to test the spirits.
• 16:27
  That means you don't accept every thought, every
• 16:31
  feeling, every impression as God's voice. You
• 16:35
  test it. Ask yourself, does this align with God's
• 16:43
  word? Does this reflect God's character? Does
• 16:50
  this lead me toward peace? Does this draw me
• 16:56
  closer to God? And most importantly, does this
• 17:02
  strengthen my faith? If the answer is yes, you
• 17:08
  can trust that God is speaking. If the answer
• 17:12
  is no, however, you can release it without fear.
• 17:18
  Discernment is not guessing. Discernment is filtering.
• 17:26
  Now let's turn to the spiritual atmosphere. Discernment
• 17:33
  Helps you sense what is happening beneath the
• 17:36
  surface Sometimes you walk into a room and you
• 17:41
  feel peace Sometimes you feel heaviness Sometimes
• 17:50
  there's obvious tension Sometimes it's clarity
• 17:58
  and other times it's confusion Discernment helps
• 18:06
  you recognize what is spiritual and what is emotional.
• 18:12
  Say quietly, Holy Spirit, help me sense what
• 18:19
  is happening here. And let him show you whether
• 18:25
  the atmosphere needs prayer, peace, boundaries,
• 18:31
  or does it need wisdom? Discernment is not about
• 18:37
  fear. Discernment is about awareness. You have
• 18:41
  to be aware of your surroundings in everything
• 18:43
  you do. Let's close week six with a prayer for
• 18:52
  clarity, wisdom, and spiritual insight. Heavenly
• 19:00
  Father, Thank you for sharpening our discernment
• 19:04
  today. Thank you for teaching us to listen, to
• 19:10
  test, to filter, to sense, and to follow your
• 19:17
  leading. Lord, give us eyes to see what you are
• 19:22
  doing. Give us ears to hear your voice. Give
• 19:28
  us wisdom to recognize the truth. Give us the
• 19:34
  courage to walk in obedience. Give us the peace
• 19:40
  that confirms your presence. Strengthen our discernment
• 19:45
  in relationships, in our decisions, in our spiritual
• 19:49
  battles, and in our pace of life. Let our hearts
• 19:56
  stay aligned with yours. In Jesus' name, amen.
• 20:05
  Thank you for joining us today in Voices of Life.
• 20:08
  I'm Pastor David, and it's been an honor to walk
• 20:11
  with you through week six. Next week, we step
• 20:15
  into a powerful theme for week seven, Living
• 20:18
  with a Renewed Mind. We also will have a special
• 20:24
  Abraham Lincoln birthday. Thank Valentine's Day.
• 20:31
  and Susan B. Anthony Day podcasts to discuss
• 20:37
  their lives and how they had an effect on our
• 20:41
  lives. Until then, walk wisely, walk attentively,
• 20:48
  walk with God, and may his clarity and his presence
• 20:54
  go with you.