Nike says, “Just do it.” While spontaneous decisions work well at some points in life, there are other choices that require a depth of thought and consideration that won’t allow you to ‘just do it.’ Maybe something doesn’t feel right, or maybe it feels completely right…how will you know? This is where discernment comes in to play.

To discern means to judge, evaluate, and distinguish. Some people come by this naturally, while others must develop it, yet those who are gifted with discernment are often seen as judgmental, critical, and unloving. However, we live in an age when ideas are spread globally within an amazingly short period of time, and discernment is the only way to cut through the noise and find the important, and correct, information.

A good discerner understands falsifiability and knows the difference between an argument and an assertion. What should you know?

Argument – a claim supported by reason or logic
Assertion – an unsupported claim, often an opinion
Falsifiability – capacity for an argument or hypothesis to be proven wrong
Did you know – Facts can be both true AND false!!
Nice and charming do not equal honest. Often when someone is accused of teaching something false, someone else will defend them by saying “But they are such a nice person.”

Decision-Making

In decision-making, the three steps of the discernment process are awareness, understanding and action. All three are important — if you make a good decision, but fail to act, you’ve ultimately made a poor decision. If you fail to apply consideration, and act hastily, you’ve not chosen well. Therefore, it is important to go through the process completely.

Some decisions will be personal, such as where (or if) to attend college, where to move to, or whether to take that job. Other decisions will be more general, yet no less important, such as who to vote for or how you feel about a particular issue of national / world importance.

Awareness

Know yourself. This includes your hopes and dreams, likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. How do you perform under stress? What is your ideal career / future plan / {insert decision here}? How do others see you?

Start at the beginning. What do you already know about the decision ahead of you? What are the pros and cons, or the various factors? What kind of support do you have? Are there multiple perspectives involved?

Understanding

Give it time. Not all decisions will have the luxury, but if you have the time to wait, do more investigating, and ruminate upon your decision, you may find that you do better. No one is impervious to this process — folks familiar with scripture will remember that even Jesus agonized in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Spend Time in Thought / Meditation / Prayer. After making a decision, but before action, you should feel a sense of inner peace with your decision. This is a feeling of tranquility about the next steps, and not just relief that you’ve finally made a decision.

Action

Get going. Whether this means applying to college, putting a down payment on a house, accepting that job, going into the voting booth, advocating for a group or issue, or however else your decision manifests itself…now is the time to act.

Evaluate. Every action has a reaction, a consequence. There are both good and bad consequences, external and internal. Internally, how do you feel now that you’ve acted? Do you still have that peace? How have others reacted to your decision? Do you need to reevaluate and course correct?

It is worth remembering that you can’t please all of the people all of the time. Ultimately, you are the one who has to live with yourself, and so it is important to focus on the internal response. (Obviously, if your decision was to commit a felony, there will still be an external response you need to heed….)

Developing Discernment

Practice through Literature

These books can be difficult for students to plow through at times, but the online unit studies help break down their components, allowing students to practice predicting and analyzing, both of which lead to stronger discernment.

Farenheit 451 Online Unit
Crime & Punishment Online Unit
Tuttle Twins series (appropriate for all ages – learn more here)

Parents can use these books to teach kids to ask meaningful questions, recognize bias, and stand up for themselves…

Learn about Worldviews

In a world that is constantly struggling for peace, having a better understanding of belief systems and values can help us to understand different people and cultures…which may lay the foundation for a thoughtful progression amid a multitude of complex cultures. These courses provide that background.

Be a Detective

Research & notebook about great leaders. What made them memorable?
Become a time-travelling sleuth
Use small clues to solve a big mystery

Develop Supportive Skills

Logic

Read (or Watch) the News

Remember to look at sources from both left-leaning and right-leaning media. How do the stories compare in tone and coverage? Try to find one topic and look at the stories on each side.