The Discernment Pathway is a spiritual invitation for churches and leadership teams to slow down, listen together, and seek the mind of Christ when facing important decisions.
Rather than offering quick answers or strategies, this pathway invites communities into shared practices of prayer, attentiveness, and trust — trusting that God is already at work and leading His people.
• A church is facing a significant decision or transition
• There is uncertainty, complexity, or disagreement
• Leaders sense that something is shifting
• The decision requires shared wisdom and prayerful listening
• Hiring or transitioning a pastor
• Beginning or ending a ministry
• Addressing a budget shortfall or financial sustainability
• Discerning a new direction for mission or community engagement
The Discernment Pathway is organized around nine discernment postures — not steps.
Each posture offers:
• A short teaching video
• Reflection and prayer resources
• Practices that help communities listen deeply together
Some teams may spend several weeks on one posture. Others may move more slowly or revisit postures as needed.
There is no correct pace.
Faithfulness matters more than efficiency.
The Toolbox is organized into nine posture sections. Each posture is presented as a card or expandable section containing:
If you are new to the Discernment Pathway, begin with the Animated Introduction and then move into the first posture.
You are encouraged to invite your Regional Associate to walk alongside your team as you begin.
Across our CBOQ family, churches are learning to listen together and respond faithfully to God’s leading.
These stories are not about outcomes or success, but about faithfulness — moments where communities slowed down, paid attention, and took a next step together.
To identify and affirm a trusted facilitator who will gently guide the discernment process. This should be someone who creates space for the Holy Spirit’s leading and for all voices to be heard.
Discernment always begins with trust, specifically, trust in God’s Spirit and in one another. Before your team begins to discuss any direction or decisions, you must entrust the process to someone who can hold space for God’s presence to be heard among you.
This person should lead from attentiveness, not authority. They should create safety, guide conversations with gentleness, and help your group stay open to God’s leading. Their strength is not in control, but in humility and spiritual depth.
In Acts 15, we see the early church practice this kind of trust. The apostles and elders gathered to discern together, guided by trusted voices who helped keep the community centered on prayer and unity. Their goal was not to win an argument, but to seek the Spirit’s direction together.
Before you begin this posture, take a few moments as a team to slow down and center yourselves in the presence of God.
Because discernment depends so deeply on trust, the person who facilitates this process matters. This role is not about authority, expertise, or being the loudest voice in the room. It is about creating a safe, spacious, prayerful environment where your team can genuinely listen for the Spirit together.
Choose someone who embodies the posture of trust and can help your team stay open and grounded in God’s presence:
1. Unbiased and Spirit-Attentive: Someone who can hold the process with openness; who is willing to listen, wait, and follow the Spirit’s leading rather than their own preferences.
2. Skilled in Listening and Making Space: A person who facilitates with gentleness, invites quieter voices forward, notices group dynamics, and helps conversations move at a prayerful pace.
3. Trusted by the Community: Someone whose character and presence naturally create a sense of safety and is an individual the team respects and can follow with peace.
These qualities help ensure the facilitator leads with the group, not over the group.
Naming these pitfalls is crucial, especially within our Baptist cultures where processes can easily be derailed by unhealthy dynamics or unhelpful assumptions:
1. Avoid someone who volunteers insistently or forcefully. A person saying, “I should lead this” or “I’m the right one,” is often a red flag. Discernment facilitation is a calling of humility, not self-assertion.
2. Avoid anyone with a declared bias or predetermined preference. If someone already knows what outcome they want, they cannot guide the group into openness and surrender.
3. Avoid choosing someone out of convenience or obligation. Do not select a facilitator simply because “there’s no one else,” or because “they will be offended if we don’t pick them.” These pressures tend to undermine trust and distort the process from the very beginning.
By naming these traits and cautions clearly, you help create the conditions for communal discernment to flourish and ensure that the environment, leadership, and expectations all support listening together for the mind of Christ.
Before naming your discernment question, prepare your hearts to listen together.
Watch the short Teaching Video: “Naming the Question” as a team. (The video explores how the early church in Acts 15 discerned together what God was doing among the Gentiles, not by rushing to decisions, but by asking the right question.)
Then, pause and reflect quietly together:
Hold onto your thoughts for now, as you will share them later in this session.
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:1–6
Read slowly, perhaps twice, inviting the Spirit to highlight what stands out.
Then reflect together:
1. What was at stake for the church in this passage?
2. How did they begin their discernment process?
3. What helps them move from conflict toward clarity?
4. What parallels do you see in your church’s current situation?
Encourage silence between each reflection question to allow space for listening.
Now it’s your turn to begin naming your discernment question.
Step 1: Gather Insights
a) As a team, write down the different questions people have been asking, whether formal or informal, about your church’s direction, ministry, or relationships.
Step 2: Identify Patterns
a) Look for themes that repeat or surface with energy or emotion.
b) Ask: “What is underneath these concerns? What is God bringing to our attention?”
Step 3: Shape the Question
a) Using prayerful conversation, begin to form one primary discernment question.
b) A strong discernment question often begins with words like:
i) “How is God inviting us to…”
ii) “What is God calling us to do about…”
iii) “Where might God be leading us in…”
Step 4: Agree and Display
a) Your team will agree on a discernment question when each of you are at peace in your hearts about the question. This contrasts with seeking 100% agreement or consensus.
b) Once you agree on your discernment question, write it clearly on a large sheet or whiteboard where it will remain visible during future gatherings.
Step 5: Bless the Question
a) End by reading your question aloud together, entrusting it to God’s care.
1. Avoid: overly broad questions (“What is God doing?”) or overly narrow operational questions (“Should we change our bulletin format?”). Both can derail deep discernment.
2. Use Time Wisely: Most teams should be able to name their question in one meeting. However, be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit to guide you in less or more time.
3. Recommendation: Don’t spend more than 60–90 minutes trying to name the question in one sitting. If you’re stuck, pause and pray, then continue at your next meeting.
Once you have the question displayed, your team should pray together and commit to holding that question in prayer, Scripture, and investigation.
Your team will learn to practice discernment as a shared spiritual community, gathering a diverse circle of voices, listening with humility, and seeking the mind of Christ together.
Discernment is rarely a solo act. God often reveals His will through the gathered body of Christ. In Acts 15, apostles, elders, and believers came together to “consider” a deeply divisive issue. It was a moment of shared humility and prayer, not a debate or vote.
While this guide is primarily designed for church leadership teams, pastors, and boards, consider inviting other voices to participate in your discernment circle. You might choose to include them in the full process or, alternatively, only invite them to contribute to specific parts where their insight and perspective would be most helpful.
Either way, your church’s discernment circle should be small enough to listen well, but broad enough to represent the church body, as well as reflect the same spirit as the church.
Think of it like a microcosm of your church family:
Oftentimes, a healthy discernment circle balances leaders who hold responsibility with members who embody the lived faith of the community.
Pause after watching, and ask:
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:4–12
Read the passage slowly. Notice the movement:
This is discernment in community: listening, testifying, pausing, and allowing the Spirit to guide.
Step 1: Form Your Discernment Circle
If you don’t have a discernment team yet, you should identify and invite a small, prayerful group to walk through this process together. Consider including the following:
– Your Regional Associate.
– Pastoral leaders (who hold responsibility).
– Lay leaders or ministry volunteers (who represent lived ministry experience).
– Newer members (fresh eyes and faith).
– Long-time members (wisdom and perspective).
Ask yourselves:
“Whose voice would we miss if they were not at the table?”
“Who demonstrates spiritual maturity and humility?”
“Who listens before speaking?”
Avoid including:
– Individuals known to dominate discussion or hold strong control tendencies.
– Those whose role might inhibit others’ honesty (e.g., close family dynamics).
Practical Tip:
– When in doubt, consult your Regional Associate to help you discern the right mix of voices. Their external perspective can keep your group healthy and balanced.
Step 2: Covenant Together
Once gathered, begin your first meeting by forming a Discernment Covenant. This is a shared agreement of posture and purpose.
Sample Discernment Covenant:
– We commit to seek the mind of Christ together.
– We will listen before we speak.
– We will pray before we decide.
– We will honour each voice but hold our own loosely.
– We will speak truth in love and maintain confidentiality.
– We will trust that the Spirit can speak through anyone.
Print and sign this covenant, or post it visibly at each gathering.
Step 3: Commission the Group
During a Sunday service or leadership meeting, publicly commission this discernment circle. This reminds the whole church that discernment is a spiritual act, not a private discussion.
Here is a sample Commissioning Prayer:
“God, we set apart this group to listen on behalf of the church. Give them ears to hear Your voice, hearts to love Your people, and courage to follow where You lead. Fill them with grace, humility, and unity. Amen.”
Step 4: Create Safe Rhythms
At the first meeting, create safety rules and boundaries so that you can practice healthy, sustainable discernment together. Here are some rhythms:
– Begin and end with prayer every time.
– Keep meetings under 90 minutes.
– Appoint a facilitator (previous Posture 1) and a secretary/recorder (to document insights).
– Begin with a short check-in round: “Where have you sensed God this week?”
These small rhythms form a spiritual environment for the process.
Your team will learn to release control and open your hearts to God’s will through prayers of indifference, trust, and wisdom, preparing yourselves for true discernment.
Before any conversation begins, your team must come before God with open hands. The early church didn’t start with argument, rather they began with humility.
Peter, Paul, and the elders sought God’s guidance through dependence, not dominance. Their unity flowed from surrender.
To practice discernment, your hearts must be softened and aligned with the Spirit’s gentle leading. Surrender is not about weakness; it is about trusting that God’s way is better than our own understanding.
At this stage, the goal is not to decide anything. Your goal is simply to create a collective posture of openness and a heart that says: “Lord, not my will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)
Pause after watching, and ask yourself silently:
Video Summary Prompts (to display on screen):
– Prayer of Indifference: “Lord, make us indifferent to everything but Your will.”
– Prayer of Trust: “We release control and trust Your leading.”
– Prayer of Wisdom: “Give us the wisdom that is pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit.” (from James 3:17)
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:6–12 and James 3:13–18
Read these passages slowly, with pauses between verses.
Reflection Questions:
Step 1: Set the Space
Begin your first discernment meeting in stillness.
Then read aloud together:
“We release our preferences, our fears, and our need to control. Lord, make us indifferent to everything but Your will.”
Pause for silence.
Then pray aloud:
“God, we ask for wisdom that comes from above. Wisdom that is pure, peace-loving, considerate, and sincere. (James 3:17) Lead us by Your Spirit. Amen.”
Step 2: Individual Reflection
Invite each member to spend 5–10 minutes journaling quietly using the prompts below:
– What am I hoping God will say?
– What am I afraid God might say?
– What personal preference might I need to release?
– What does it mean for me to be indifferent to anything but God’s will?
– What does trusting God look like in this decision?
After journaling, allow each person (only if comfortable) to share one line aloud. This does not need to be an explanation, just a statement. For example:
– “I am letting go of my fear of losing control.”
– “I am trusting God to provide what I can’t see yet.”
Step 3: Group Reflection – The Heart of Each Member
Once everyone has shared, pause for silence again. Then invite the group to reflect together:
Encourage the secretary/recorder to capture phrases or words that seem to echo across the group (e.g., “trust,” “letting go,” “faithfulness,” “fear”). These words will often become signposts for the discernment journey ahead.
Step 4: Create a “Prayer of the Team”
Using the shared words, the facilitator or team member can write a short collective prayer for your team. This does not need to be a long prayer, but simply a few sentences that reflect what God is shaping in your hearts.
Example:
“Lord, we release control and our need to know. Teach us to wait on Your wisdom. Unite us in love, courage, and faith. We trust that You are already preparing the way. Amen.”
Print or write this prayer on a card or page that can be read aloud at the beginning of every future meeting.
Your team will learn to listen deeply to God, to one another, and to the wider church, as well as discerning God’s voice through Scripture, silence, and attentive conversation, while honoring the variety of ways people connect with God.
Discernment requires attentiveness to God’s Spirit and to the collective wisdom of others. In Acts 15, the assembly became silent to truly hear Barnabas and Paul. The Spirit spoke through multiple voices. Some of these voices were bold, while some were reflective. Your discernment team must do the same.
With the insight of Sacred Pathways, we learn that people experience God differently. Some experience God through acts of service, others through nature, words, music, celebration, solitude, relationships, or physical movement. Being attentive means honoring these differences, listening not only for what resonates with you, but for what God is saying to others in their pathway.
During discussion, acknowledge differences in expression: “I hear that God may be speaking through you in a way I don’t usually notice. Help me understand.”
Reflection Prompts After the Video:
This ‘Read and Reflect’ section is connected to the ‘Practice Together’ section below.
Scripture Practice: Dwelling in the Word (Lectio Divina Style)
This posture’s ‘Practice Together’ section is connected to the ‘Read and Reflect’ section above.
Step 1: Listen First
– Each person shares their word or insight from Scripture, honoring differences in spiritual pathways.
– The facilitator records themes, phrases, or repeated ideas on a flipchart.
Step 2: Reflect on the Discernment Question
– Consider the discernment question: Where is God inviting us next through these insights?
– Discuss insights without rushing to solutions, noticing how God may speak differently through each person’s pathway.
Step 3: Capture Key Insights
– Write down recurring themes, phrases, or impressions.
– These notes become the foundation for the next stages of discernment.
Your team will learn to gather information prayerfully and thoughtfully, paying attention to church realities, community context, cultural patterns, and Scripture to inform discernment.
God often speaks not only through our hearts and prayers but also through the world around us. Therefore, discernment involves curiosity that intentionally explores our surrounding reality, listens to context, and gathers information from multiple streams.
Curiosity in discernment means seeking to understand rather than judge. In Acts 15, the apostles and elders carefully considered the reports from Paul and Barnabas, listened to stories, and evaluated the context before issuing guidance. They combined insight from experience, observation, and Scripture to discern the Spirit’s direction. Your church team will do the same by exploring multiple “listening streams” for insight.
Reflection Prompts:
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:22–29; Proverbs 18:13; James 1:19
Read slowly and ask:
– How did the early church gather and weigh information?
– What patterns of listening and observation do we see in Scripture?
Reflection Question:
– “Where might God be speaking through the data, patterns, or trends we observe?”
Step 1: Gather Data Across Four Listening Streams
This is the stage where your team begins gathering the information that will help you understand what is truly needed in this season. Be prepared that this step often takes the longest (sometimes several weeks or even months), depending on your discernment question.
During this phase, you will seek insight from four key listening streams. Each stream offers a different kind of wisdom, and all four are essential. What you collect in each area will vary based on the question you are discerning, but together these streams provide a fuller, prayerful picture of your church’s reality.
Scripture:
a) Look to Scripture for what it says about the topic you are addressing. What passages are relevant? What has God said in His word about this?
b) Ask: “What patterns or principles emerge that could speak to our situation?” Again, don’t just look for passages, but ask what that passage says about your situation.
c) If relevant to your question, study passages on mission, renewal, and leadership. Some examples include:
i. Matthew 28:18–20 (The Great Commission)
ii. Acts 13:1–3 (The Church at Antioch Sends Paul and Barnabas)
iii. Nehemiah 1:1–11 (Nehemiah’s Prayer for Renewal)
iv. Romans 12:1–8 (A Transformed and Servant-Minded Community)
v. John 15:1–8 (Abiding in the Vine)
Church:
a) Complete the VRPM self-assessment or ministry health survey.
b) Build a story map of the church: key moments of joys, struggles, turning points, and growth moments.
c) Review financial trends, attendance, volunteer engagement (not for judgment but to understand your reality)
Community:
a) Conduct demographic research: Statistics Canada, local municipal reports, Wycliffe Community Report, neighbourhood data, etc.,
b) Take prayer walks or engage in conversations with neighbors.
c) Ask: “Who are our neighbours? What are their hopes, hurts, and aspirations?”
Culture:
a) Reflect on current realities: post-pandemic fatigue, shifting generational expectations, societal trends, current & historical community & neighbourhood transitions, etc.,
b) Ask: “What opportunities or challenges shape ministry today?”
Step 2: Visualize and Discuss
Your team will learn to create intentional stillness, allowing God’s Spirit to surface insights, impressions, and direction without distraction or debate.
Stillness is an active listening posture. It requires intention and discipline such as:
Acts 15 models this: the assembly paused in silence before James spoke, allowing wisdom to emerge clearly and communally.
Silence can feel uncomfortable at first. Encourage the group that God often moves in the quiet, even when nothing seems to happen outwardly.
Reflection Prompt Before Entering Silence:
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:13–18; Psalm 46:10 (“Be still, and know that I am God.”)
Read slowly aloud, inviting the group to listen deeply.
Reflection Questions:
– What surfaces in my heart when I am still before God?
– What does it mean to trust God’s timing and presence?
– How might the Spirit be speaking to our church through this stillness?
Optional Prompt During Silence:
– “Lord, what are You saying to us as a church?”
– “What am I noticing or feeling drawn toward?”
Step 1: Enter Silence
a)Encourage team members to find a comfortable place to practice silence. It can be in the same room as the others, on a bench outside, or in another place.
b) Invite everyone to sit comfortably with eyes closed.
c) Begin and end with a soft bell, chime, or brief music.
d) Sit in silence for 5–10 minutes.
e) Encourage deep breathing and inward focus on God’s presence.
Step 2: Notice and Record
a) After silence, allow 3–5 minutes for journaling:
i. What word, phrase, image, emotion, memory, or insight surfaced?
ii. What patterns or feelings are emerging?
iii. How does this affect my discernment process?
Step 3: Share Briefly
Invite members to share one word, phrase, or image from their reflection.
Emphasize: no discussion or debate, only acknowledgment.
Optional Extended Practice
Teams may schedule a half-day silence retreat using the self-guided resource.
Encourage members to notice where God’s voice surfaces repeatedly or resonates with the group.
Your team will learn to test a discerned direction by observing signs of peace (consolation) or restlessness (desolation) and reflect prayerfully on God’s guidance before taking final action.
After sensing God’s direction, you now enter a season of testing and confirmation. Discernment is not only about making a decision but also about walking with it prayerfully, waiting and noticing how God affirms or redirects the choice over time.
Walking around the choice is a practical confirmation stage:
Acts 15 shows this implicitly: the apostles and elders sent a decision to the wider church, but the Spirit’s guidance had been confirmed through prayerful reflection and communal consultation.
After watching the videos, reflect on the following:
Scripture Reading: Ruth 1:16–17; Philippians 4:6–7
Read slowly and reflect on:
– How do God’s people respond when they are confident in His direction?
– What signs of peace or alignment with God’s will can we observe in our hearts and team?
Reflection Questions:
– Do I sense peace (consolation) or restlessness (desolation) with our direction?
– Does this direction deepen love for God and people?
– Does it align with God’s character and mission for our church?
Step 1: Walk Around With the Choice
a) For 1–2 weeks, invite each team member to:
b) Pray daily over the discerned direction.
c) Journal feelings, impressions, or insights as they reflect on the choice.
Step 2: Observe and Record
Use prompts such as:
i. “What brings peace and clarity?”
ii. “What creates anxiety, resistance, or confusion?”
iii. “How does this choice affect my love for God and others?”
Step 3: Gather and Share
a) Meet after the designated period and allow each person to share observations.
b) Facilitator records patterns, noting areas of consensus and concern.
Step 4: Confirm or Adjust
a) If consistent peace and unity are evident → move forward.
b) If desolation predominates → pause, revisit earlier stages, or adjust the direction.
Your team will learn to translate discernment into faithful action, creating a clear plan, communicating it effectively, and celebrating God’s guidance with the congregation.
After walking with the discerned direction and observing God’s confirmation, you now move from discernment to faithful action. This posture emphasizes clarity, communication, and celebration as the church takes practical steps to follow God’s leading. This Posture of Faithfulness is obedience in action. It is the natural continuation of discernment. Here you will begin:
Acts 15 demonstrates this: the apostles sent delegates with clear instructions, communicated the discernment to the church, and encouraged the community in unity and joy.
After watching the videos, reflect on the following:
Scripture Reading: Acts 15:30–32; Colossians 3:17
Read slowly and reflect on:
– How did the early church move from discernment to action?
– How did clear communication and encouragement support obedience?
Reflection Questions:
– How can we embody faithfulness as a team?
– How do we ensure our actions honor God and include the congregation in understanding and celebration?
Step 1: Write a Statement of Faithfulness
a) As a team, complete the sentence:
i. “We believe God is leading us to…”
ii. Keep it clear, concise, and rooted in Scripture and prayerful discernment.
Step 2: Identify First 2–3 Next Steps
a) Determine Who is responsible, What will be done, When it will happen, and How progress will be reviewed.
b) Example: | Step | Who | When | How to Review |
c) Example: | Launch a new youth ministry program | Youth Pastor & volunteers | Sept 15 | Monthly check-in meetings |
Step 3: Communicate Clearly
a) Share the discernment outcome with the congregation and relevant stakeholders: CBOQ, Association, wider church community.
b) Options: Sunday service announcement, letter, or short video message.
c) Invite questions and provide space for prayerful engagement.
d) Suggested opening words: “As we’ve prayed and listened together, we believe the Holy Spirit is leading us to…”
Step 4: Commission and Celebrate
a) Commission the teams or individuals carrying out the steps.
b) Offer words of encouragement, thanksgiving, and prayer.
c) Celebrate the unity, insight, and obedience that God has fostered during the discernment process.
Discernment does not end with a single decision. It is a way of living, a posture of continual listening, waiting, and responding to the Spirit.
As new questions, challenges, and opportunities arise, return to this process. Revisit the postures, pause in stillness, gather your team, and ask again: “What is the mind of Christ in this matter?”
Remember, the goal is not merely to find answers or solve problems, but to cultivate attentiveness to the voice of Jesus, the true Shepherd of His Church.
May this journey of discernment shape your leadership, deepen your love for God and one another, and guide your church faithfully into the work God has prepared for you.
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” – John 10:27
© 2025 Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec