Proper Discernment

[Image by Charly Gutmann from Pixabay]

How do you recognize what is true versus what is false, what is right versus what is wrong, and what aligns with God's will?

How do you decide what is truth versus what is false, what is right versus what is wrong, and what is God's will?

1. Do you rely solely on your feelings? Meaning, if you feel bad in any way, do you automatically “know” something is false and wrong? Conversely, if you feel good, do you assume something must be true and good?

2. If you think or feel in the moment that a certain thought is true, do you automatically “know” it is the truth? And if you think or feel that a certain thought is false, do you assume it must be false?

3. Do you rely only on your “God-given intellect”?

If we use only one or a combination of the above methods, we are effectively making ourselves the final authority on what is true and false, right and wrong—rather than God. In doing so, we act as though we are God.

As a result, we will believe we are always right about everything we are attracted to, everything we like or dislike, everything we want or don’t want, and everything we expect, believe, think, and feel. We will also assume that anyone who disagrees with us is wrong. This is the sin of pride—stubbornness, foolishness, and the arrogance of believing we know it all or know enough.

If this is true, then we will resist listening to those who disagree with us. We will refuse to learn truth from anyone other than ourselves. This leads to ignorance and a lack of moral understanding compared to those who remain open to learning from others. We will project our own limitations onto others and may even make the ignorant and foolish claim: “We don’t have to believe or agree with everything the canonized saints (including the Doctors of the Church) wrote and said.”

This mindset also means we fail to check ourselves Jesus Christ directly. We will fail to try to listen to Him daily, engage in proper discernment, and consult His divinely appointed Church, which has existed since Christ Himself founded it, as verified by historical fact. We will also reject the wisdom of His holy saints and Doctors of the Church.

If this is our approach, then we have no real friendship with Jesus Christ—or, at best, a poor, imaginary, or superficial one.

This also means we have embraced some form of idolatrous vice, using material distractions to escape from emotional suffering rather than turning to God daily in repentance, seeking self-awareness of our errors, and replacing them with His truth, love, and virtues.

We assume ourselves to be the final authority over truth when we fail to ask God for His truth directly, fail to listen for His answers, and fail to seek external confirmation of whether what we believe to be true comes from ourselves, an evil spirit, or God.

We assume ourselves to be the final authority over truth when we refuse to allow God to teach us through others and when we fail to discern, with His guidance, whether what people say or write is true or false.

We assume ourselves to be the final authority over truth if we reject the fact that God appointed an apostolic magisterial Church to teach us moral truth and reveal Himself to us.

And if we do not know how to listen to God, how to discern His voice, or how to determine whether something is true or false, then we are still acting as though we are our own final authority. It is our personal responsibility to ask God to teach us, to guide us toward the right people, and to seek those who can help us learn.

When we act as our own final authority:

- We struggle to recognize and accept many moral truths.

- We cannot fully know who God is.

- We cannot have a deep and authentic friendship with Jesus Christ.

- We fail to recognize many of our own sins.

- We are often morally wrong.

- We are not as loving as we believe ourselves to be.

FOR THOSE STILL REJECTING TRUTH...

4. Do you fail to repent daily for sins such as pride, selfishness, fear, worry, complaining, perfectionism, hypocrisy, rejection of reality, blaming your emotions on externals, and distrust in God? Do you ask to be filled with humility, wisdom, truth, knowledge, understanding, courage, strength of will, acceptance, gratitude, patience, justice, mercy, self-control, kindness, charity, and trust in God?

5. Do you fail to ask the Holy Spirit daily to make you aware of all your sins, repent of them, and seek understanding of how to recognize all sin?

6. Do you fail to spend quality time daily with Jesus—asking Him to help you experience His presence, feel His love, know Him, and love Him—so that your psychological / spiritual / emotional needs are met and you become more like Him?

7. Do you fail to take responsibility for your own psychological emotions and feelings, fail to allow others to take responsibility for theirs, and fail to ask Jesus to reveal which negative emotions and feelings are sinful?

8. Do you fail to ask Jesus daily to show you the idolatries you commit—whether through unhealthy coping mechanisms, distractions from self-awareness, or selfish instant gratification? Do you use material things, people, or even yourself as substitutes for spending time with Jesus to become self-aware, repent, and receive His truth, love, and virtues to heal your emotional suffering?

If you are failing in any of these areas, begin with this prayer:

"Jesus I'm sorry I don't want to [insert specific failure], please heal me, fill me with Your Graces, Virtues, Love, and Truth to replace this, show me Your Truth about this, Thank You Jesus for Your Healing, Truth, and Love."