Published on: 02/09/2025
When we hear the word ‘discernment’, many of us who are involved in ministry will immediately think of a particular process that we engaged with in order to get to where we are now, in our licensed/authorised/commissioned ministry in our churches. This may have involved informal chats, conversations with spiritual directors and accompaniers, application forms, written reflections and more formal panel interviews. Then once we get the rubber stamp of affirmation and we are going about the business of whatever God has led us to, we run the risk of thinking we’ve completed the discernment journey as it has accomplished what it was meant to accomplish. But it doesn’t end there!
Licensed ministers such as Lay Readers and Church Army Evangelists, Authorised ministers such as Focal Ministers, Parish Evangelists, Children’s & Youth Workers, Spiritual Accompaniers, and locally Commissioned Lay Ministers (CLMs), are all part of our Diocesan aim to mobilise the whole people of God for the whole mission of God.
In my relatively new role as Lead Lay Ministry Enabler I would love for all lay ministers in the Diocese (including myself!) to be continually discerning where Jesus is leading us, in the day-to-day decisions of ministry but also in the bigger-picture direction of our development as ministers.
So how do we do this? The simple things that we did during our initial discernment journey still apply: prayer, reflecting on scripture, conversations with trusted friends and leaders etc.
In Romans 12:2 Paul writes “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Theological reflection is a fantastic tool to help us to discern God’s leading, which helps us to see where God is at work in situations and experiences – both personally and in our ministry. I would particularly recommend a model of reflection by Laurie Green in his book ‘Lets Do Theology’. This starts by taking an Experience you’ve had, Exploring it from different angles, perhaps using Scripture, Reason and Tradition as lenses. Then you Reflect on the things you’ve explored, including prayer and discernment, and then you Respond – what will you do or change in light of what you have discovered. This process is a spiral – we continually reflect on our experiences and this is how we grow.
Another wonderful practice for discerning where God is at work is the Examen. This is a five part prayer to help you reflect and review your day and see where God was. There are different forms of Examen, but mostly it begins with being still, then being thankful, then reviewing the day and noticing God, then asking for help and looking ahead to tomorrow. Check out this app for different forms and styles of Examen prayer.
As leaders we too are being led by Christ the Good Shepherd, who promises that His sheep hear His voice (John 10:27). Let’s follow His leading. Where is He leading you today?
This week’s Blog post was written by Beth Burras, Lead Lay Ministry Enabler