The Importance of Using Spiritual Discernment When Taking Action

In my last blog, we looked at how to better listen to the Holy Spirit. How we can make the time and space to sit with God and learn to hear His words. However, this is just the first step. After we can see and understand the Lord’s plans, we must then take action. What is the point of listening if we don’t use our new understanding to make transformation happen?

Of course, it’s not always simple. We may know what needs to be done, but finding the right way to carry out this action can be difficult. For example, during a session with a mentee, you may sense that your mentee has experienced some past trauma. However, you are hesitant to share this sense directly with your client. What do you do? 

In these moments, we still need to rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us, speak to us, and use discernment to know what is wise and right. 

What is my action?

So, we have been given some sight here… but what is our part in this? Our role as mentors/professional supervisors is to hold up a mirror for our clients and help them reflect for themselves, not just tell them what is wrong and how to fix it.

In the case of our example, we don’t want to blurt, “I think you were abused and that trauma is impacting your current situation.” Instead, we want to help them see this for themselves, if it’s true. We should consider what stepping stone can lead them closer to understanding the connection. Before taking action, consider your relationship with the mentee; how strong is your bond? Is there good trust established? Are they withholding on purpose or because they are unaware of the trauma? Some trauma is so intense that a person can block it out. (These traumas must be dealt with carefully, and may be out of a mentor’s capabilities. See Blog: When is it time to make a referral? 

We want to guide our mentees, but it’s important to remember that there is no exact timeline for transformation and rushing the process can hinder progress. We don’t want to push them into sharing something they are not ready to share, which could cause more damage and destroy trust. It is also more empowering for the client to connect to the past trauma themselves. 

Taking Action

Even once a mentor, coach, or supervisor knows what action to take, they must still use discernment and call on the Holy Spirit for guidance. 

In this example, there are a few ways to take action wisely; the best thing is to be curious and ask questions. Questions can be stepping stones for others to arrive at their conclusions in a guided, safe and empowering way. You can ask if their situation reminds them of anything in their past… or what might inform their responses. You can even ask, “Is there a voice from the past that you hear?” This allows the mentee to explore this themselves. There is also the option to make notes of your observations and shelve them for another time when they might be more natural or safer to bring up. 

While it is always wise to be careful, if your discernment is from the Holy Spirit, you can take comfort knowing your action is part of God’s plan. Be wise about what you see and say, but also know that you have been given this understanding for a purpose, and that is to aid God’s plan for your client’s transformation. 

Paul’s Spiritual Discernment

Paul is a wonderful example of using spiritual discernment. Paul could see that the Christian leaders were making it too difficult for new converts to follow Jesus. At the time, it was required that a follower of Christ would become culturally Jewish, meaning that if they were not already of that culture, they would have to give up their own culture to be accepted as a Christian. Paul sensed this was too steep a sacrifice for many. Using his discernment, he discussed what he saw with the apostles, challenging their current practices. He changed the rules and allowed others to embrace the faith while keeping their culture, bringing many more people to Jesus. 

For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these few requirements… Acts 15:28 NLT 

Reflection Questions 

How did you go with taking action on discernment recently? 

Why could you have taken action, and yet didn’t? 

What would help you take action? 

What’s Next? 

Make time to have an honest conversation with a supervisor, coach or mentor regarding taking action based on spiritual discernment. Do you have a supervisor, coach or mentor? If not, contact us using the link to Verve. https://vervelead.com/contact/