Discernment and Decision Making

About this Episode

If we are trying to love and serve the Lord, and interested in growing in holiness, we always want to make sure to make decisions according to the will of God. However, it is not always easy for us to make decisions. We can be tempted to become anxious and fearful when faced with making an important decision. In this episode Kara and Fred share some thoughts from the treasury of the Church’s teaching as well as their own experience in striving to follow the will of God in their own lives.  

Small Group Discussion Questions:

1. What is your current process of discerning the Lord’s will for your life? In what ways has it worked for you?
2. What is one thing you learned about yourself through your journey of discernment?
3. What is one way your relationship with the Lord changed/grew/struggled in moments of decision-making?
4. Look back on an important decision in your life. How can you see connections to that choice and how God worked in it to bring you here? How might things be different had you chosen the different path?
5. How did Christ draw you closer to him through this episode?

 

St Ignatius of Loyola’s key to making a good decision:

“To make a good choice our intentions ought to be simple: only looking at what we were created for; namely the praise of God, our Lord, and the salvation of our souls. So, I ought to choose, in whatever I may do, that which may help me fulfill that end for which I am created.”

 

Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 1:

"God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Savior. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life."

 

Recommended questions to consider when making decisions, especially those of greater importance:

“How am I called to serve God?”

“How am I to most fully, and faithfully, live according to my state in life?”

“What does it look like for me to know him, love him, and serve him in my daily life?”

“How does this help me get to heaven?”

“How does it help to get others to heaven?”

 

Past Episodes Mentioned in the Show:

Four People You Need in Your Life: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/4-people-you-need-in-your-life/id1536166779?i=1000507731144

 

Why Are You Catholic?: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/why-are-you-catholic/id1536166779?i=1000501933075

 

The Invisible World – Spiritual Warfare: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-invisible-world-spiritual-warfare/id1536166779?i=1000496584028

 

The Invisible World – Angels Part 2: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-invisible-world-angels-part-2/id1536166779?i=1000495880373

 

Recommended Reading from This Episode:

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis: https://www.amazon.com/Great-Divorce-C-S-Lewis/dp/0060652950/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=The+Great+Divorce+by+C.S.+Lewis&qid=1614749091&sr=8-1

 

A Method for Making Decisions from St. Ignatius of Loyola:

1. Place problem before us (especially before the Blessed Sacrament)
2. Keep in mind that we are created for glory of God and the salvation of our soul.
3. Pray for God to move your will and make it clear what HE wants!
4. Weigh the pros and cons; advantages and disadvantages, particularly in light of the purpose for which we were created.
5. Choose according to the greater inclination of REASON.
6. Place choice before God in prayer and ask him to affirm it if it’s for his glory

4 Helpful Rules for Discernment by Fr Mike Schmitz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ne8n-1ATd1s

• If God has not said clearly, do this or don’t do that, you have to ask yourselves four questions:
  • Is this a good door?
  • Is this an open door?
  • Is this a wise door? Knowing who I am, where I’ve been and who I want to be, is this a wise decision?
  • Is this a door that I want? If its all those things… Do you want to go through this door?

 

Song Mentioned in This Episode: Scars by I Am They: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqjGT9BSyJA

Draw Near intro/outro music © Fred Shellabarger & Kara Kardell

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