Recollection on communal discernment

Grace to pray for: “Lord God, I beg of you the grace and the courage to discern your will in my
life so that I may be an instrument of your life in my community and in the world.”
Scripture passages and points for reflection
1. I meditate on Rom 12:1-8, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the
renewal of your mind.”
o How do I respond to the invitation to have a transformed mind? How is this important
for me in seeking and doing the will of God? What prevents me from seeking this
transformed mind?
o How do I feel about this call to live as a member of the body of Christ? How do I resist
the temptation to individualism in my choices and attitudes? How have my actions
affected me and the community? I bring these to prayer.
2. I meditate on Lk 4:16-30, “There were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah.”
o What is the image of God that I get from this passage? How do I relate with this
passage? How does this image affect the way that I approach discernment? How open
am to what God may be offering to me at each moment?
o What do I feel seeing the attitude of the Nazarenes in this passage? When have I found
myself acting in a similar way towards Jesus? I beg for the grace to be completely open
to whatever God my be inspiring in my life at each moment.
3. I meditate on Deut 30:11-20, “Choose life that you and your descendants may live.”
o I reflect on the times that I have not done proper discernment. How did my choices
impact me then? How am I responding to God’s invitation to choose life through good
discernment? How do I tend to make choices without proper discernment?
o How has my choices been life-giving to my community? How did I feel when I became a
channel for life in community? Can I bring this memory to prayer?
4. I meditate on Mt 5:1-12, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.”
o As I pray through these beatitudes, which of them speaks to me at this point? How do I
exhibit these attitudes in the choices that I make? How do I tend to ignore them?
o What are the effects of these beatitudes in the choices that I make daily? Which of them
do I need more in the choices that I make?
o In my discernment, how am I experiencing the fruits of the Spirit in Gal 5:22, “But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control.”

How do I engage in personal and communal discernment

 Time
o How do I resist the temptation to get an instant choice without due discernment?
o How do find myself making decisions when pressured, anxious or worried?
o How do I find myself postponing decisions or letting other people to decide for me?

1
 Head
o When do I make decisions impulsively and what were the results?
o How carefully do I reflect on the pros and cons of each of the choices before me?
 Heart
o How seriously do I consult the desires of my heart in the decisions that I make?
o How do I tend to ignore the way that I feel deeply about the choices before me?
o How aware of my own unconscious motivations in my choices?
 Values
o What are my most important and cherished values? Where do those values come from?
o Do I have a hierarchy in my values and how do I respect those values in my choices?
o How do those values flow from my faith in God and His love for me? How do I safeguard
my values by my choices today?
o How do I bring my relationship with God and His will for me into all my decisions and
choices?
 “Choose life” principle
o How do I find myself making decisions that are life-giving for me and for others? Which
of my choices in the past has led to “death”?
o Why do some of my choices today seem to be “enlivening” or “stifling”?