How do you make the best choice? If you’re choosing between pizza and burgers, it’s hard to go wrong. Both are delicious and can fully cater to your preferences. What about the bigger choices like where to live, what job you want, or who should be your friends. For all these there can be multiple correct answers that lead to a blessed life.
This is where we meet discernment. Discernment is a Christian skill that is easy to understand but is difficult to master. Unlike a normal choice between right and wrong—if your choice is cheat or not cheat it’s obvious which is wrong—discernment is choosing between what is right and almost right. Our days are filled with decisions and each one could range from zero consequence to long-lasting, life-altering consequences.
This could easily lead to decision paralysis. “There are so many things to do, WHAT’S NEXT?” Instead of getting stuck, just ask yourself, “what is the next right thing I can do?”
Paul, in the beginning of his letter to the Philippians (1:9-10) says, “9 And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
As we act in love, we learn and grow. We won’t make perfect decisions every time, but we will always have the opportunity to learn more. When we are only looking for the next right thing, we can find ourselves on a path that takes us closer to God. We turn away from worthless things because we have God’s law in our hearts. We can follow Jesus and discern the best path for our lives and that helps us make a lot more right choices.