Discernment in the Bible: How True Spiritual Insight Shapes Christian Life, Reveals Good and Evil, and Transforms Even Our Worst Mistakes

Discernment might seem rare in a noisy world, but Scripture shows it’s as central to faith today as it was for early believers. The Bible doesn’t just mention discernment; it raises it up as essential for knowing what’s true, what leads to life, and what, quietly, pulls us away from God. Real discernment means more than intuition or a gut feeling—it’s the steady, Holy Spirit given ability to see good and evil for what they really are.

Throughout history, God’s people have moved ahead when someone heard the quiet warning inside and turned back from disaster, or when a leader saw beyond a clever mask and held fast to what was right. When discernment failed, the outcome was often heartbreak or chaos—but even then, God showed mercy and turned painful consequences into lessons for His people. This gift marks the difference between obeying a living God and following our own worn-out ideas. It’s not something we manufacture; true spiritual discernment is a gift, woven deep by the Holy Spirit within those who belong to Christ, as explored in the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

It’s tempting to confuse common sense or worldly wisdom with what the Spirit gives. Biblical discernment isn’t the same as being skeptical, clever, or even just moral. It’s a supernatural knowing that roots us in truth, especially when conscience grows numb, when hearts become stubborn, or when the mind willingly rejects God’s ways. Real discernment is a light in the fog—a way to love what’s good, run from what’s evil, and let even our hardest moments drive us closer to God.

What Is Discernment According to the Bible?

Discernment is one of those words you hear a lot in church circles, but out in the real world, it rarely gets explained with any depth. In Scripture, discernment isn’t just a fancy way to say “good judgment.” It’s about having clear eyes and a listening heart for what’s true, what’s false, and what God is actually saying in each moment.

When we talk about Biblical discernment, we’re describing a skill—and truly, a gift—that lets believers spot the difference between God’s way and every other path. The ancients asked for it, Jesus displayed it, and Paul called it essential. So what is it, really, at its root? And why does it matter so much for the life of a Christian?

Discernment: Original Language and Biblical Usage

The Bible’s words for discernment go deep, way past surface-level “sense.” In Hebrew, we often see bin—which means to separate, understand, or distinguish (like sorting wheat from chaff)—and yada, which is used for knowing by experience, not just in the head but deep down in the soul. When Solomon asked God for “an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and bad” (1 Kings 3:9), he literally asked for bin, an ability to cut through confusion and see what’s right.

In the New Testament, the main Greek word for discernment is diakrisis. It’s found in verses like Hebrews 5:14, where mature believers are described as those who have “their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” Here, diakrisis means separating things that look the same on the outside, but aren’t. It’s the difference between tasting salt and sugar when both are white powders. Paul calls for this gift in 1 Corinthians 12:10—it’s right there among the Gifts of the Spirit: the “distinguishing of spirits,” that sharp, Spirit-driven understanding that cuts past disguise and pretense.

So, in Biblical usage, discernment is much more than intuition or a gut feeling. It’s about learning to listen to God’s Spirit, who helps us see what’s really happening behind every thought, action, or teaching. Real wisdom starts here.

Why Discernment Is Central to the Christian Walk

Discernment isn’t just a side feature of faith. It’s right at the core of what it means to live as a follower of Jesus. Why? Because there are always voices—outside and inside—that will try to pull us away from truth. The Bible warns about false prophets, tricky teachers, and even our own self-deception. Without discernment, it’s easy to mistake a mirage for an oasis.

Here’s why discernment matters every day:

• Guards against deception: Jesus Himself warns, “See to it that no one misleads you” (Matthew 24:4). Discernment keeps us alert so we aren’t “carried about by every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14).
• Illuminates God’s will: Sometimes, we stand at a crossroads, unsure of which way is right. In Romans 12:2, Paul urges believers to “be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God.” Discernment makes space for God’s voice amid the noise.
• Enables wise, practical living: Discernment isn’t just for big spiritual battles. Proverbs is packed with advice about daily choices, warning that “the simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps” (Proverbs 14:15). Every wise step starts with seeing honestly—about God, others, and ourselves.

Those who walk in discernment guard their hearts and help guide others. It’s a steadying gift in a world where good and evil, truth and lie, are often disguised. Sometimes, God reveals hidden things in powerful ways—just look at how Jesus operated in the Word of Knowledge through the Holy Spirit.

Without discernment, we’re just guessing. With it, we walk in the light that God gives, step by step.

How Discernment Helped Advance the Kingdom of God Throughout the Bible

Discernment wasn’t a bonus skill for a few standout saints; it’s woven through the whole history of Scripture, shaping the fate of nations and the outcome of daily life. Sometimes, it looked like bold wisdom that cut through uncertainty. Other times, the failure to discern brought real pain, but God’s mercy still worked, drawing good out of evil. Let’s see how these big and small moments of discernment changed everything—and what they mean for us now.

Old Testament Examples of Discernment at Work

Think of the Old Testament and true stories of discernment jump off the page. Solomon’s wisdom is a classic. When God gave him the chance to ask for anything, he wanted “an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and bad” (1 Kings 3:9). When two women brought a single child, both claiming to be the mother, Solomon’s clever test didn’t just reveal the truth—it kept justice alive for Israel. His discernment was peace in disguise, not just for one family but for a whole nation.

Then, there’s Joseph—a man who endured betrayal by his brothers, slavery, and prison, yet kept a heart tuned to God. In Pharaoh’s court, when no one else could make sense of troubling dreams, Joseph spoke with Spirit-given clarity. He saw famine before it arrived, saved two whole nations, and reminded everyone that discernment brings hope even in the darkest pits (Genesis 41).

What about Daniel? Torn from his home and dumped in Babylon, he chose not to defile himself, even in the little things like food. When King Nebuchadnezzar’s vision threatened all the wise men with death, Daniel received understanding because he and his friends prayed. Their discernment didn’t just uncover secrets; it preserved lives and set the stage for God’s fame in a foreign land (Daniel 2).

Notice the pattern: Discernment brought wisdom when confusion threatened to wreck people’s futures. It meant the difference between destruction and redemption, not just for individuals, but for whole communities.

Discernment in the Life and Ministry of Jesus

Jesus made discernment look almost effortless. He saw through masks, listened past words, and never missed what was happening underneath.

When the Pharisees tried trapping Him with “gotcha” questions, Jesus saw their motives as plain as day. He told parables that exposed religious hypocrisy, challenged power, and never took the bait of flattery or fear. His words to the Pharisees—in public and private—always cut straight to the heart.

Jesus didn’t stop with people; He discerned spirits too. Over and over, He called out unclean spirits that nobody else noticed, freeing people who’d been trapped for years. His authority scared demons, not because He shouted, but because He saw who they really were and what they were up to.

Maybe the most personal glimpse of Jesus’ discernment comes in His encounter with the Samaritan woman by the well (John 4). He revealed her past without cruelty, spoke to her deepest thirst, and pointed her toward true worship. Instead of judgment, His discernment offered an invitation—leaving her changed and ready to tell her village about the Messiah.

Discernment with Jesus wasn’t just about “knowing stuff.” It was always about freedom, truth, and new life breaking in.

The Early Church and Discernment in Acts

After Jesus ascended, the need for discernment didn’t fade. In the book of Acts, everyday believers had to decide if Spirit-filled moments were real, if teachers could be trusted, and when to expose deception, all while the church was just getting started.

Take Paul’s experience in Philippi (Acts 16). A slave girl, controlled by a spirit of divination, followed Paul and Silas, shouting truths in a distracting way. It sounded good—she recognized them as servants of the Most High God—but something was off. Paul discerned what others missed: the spirit behind her words wasn’t from God. A simple command breaks its power, and the Gospel advances with new freedom for the girl and the city.

The apostles faced false teachers too. They needed the Spirit’s gift to keep the church safe from lies. This wasn’t just good management; it was life or death. Their discernment kept the foundation pure, as shared in lessons from Charismatic Miracles Explained where spiritual gifts, including discernment, protected early Christians from counterfeits and empowered true ministry.

Discernment was never for “super Christians.” It was always a shared gift meant to guard, guide, and build up the whole body—then and now.

Throughout the whole arc of Scripture, moments of Spirit-given discernment helped ordinary people see with God’s eyes and changed the story for entire generations. Sometimes, discernment was the only thing that stood between a future full of hope or a dead-end of regret. The same remains true today.

Consequences of a Lack of Discernment: Biblical Warnings and Redemption

Discernment isn’t just nice to have for a Christian—it’s often the difference between a life steered by God’s wisdom and one thrown off course by deception. When discernment fails, Scripture shows us the fallout with raw honesty: lives unravel, communities suffer, and even those with noble intentions stumble into dark places. Yet even after the worst mistakes, the Bible reveals a hope that doesn’t give up. God has a way of lighting up the mess, pulling good from what looks hopeless. Let’s look at how a lack of discernment led to trouble, and how God’s redemptive hand still brought blessing from failure.

Tragic Outcomes from Lack of Discernment

Sometimes it takes only one moment of blurred vision to let in disaster. The Bible holds up these stories not to shame, but to wake us up—helping us see what’s really at stake when we drift from God’s leading. Here are a few moments where discernment went missing and the results were painful:

• Eve in the Garden (Genesis 3): Eve stood in paradise, lacking nothing, yet the serpent’s twisted words slipped past her guard. She listened, doubted God’s goodness, and reached for what looked appealing. The result? Loss, fear, and a broken world. Since discernment is seeing truth, Eve’s story is a warning about how easy it is to trade that vision for a convincing lie.
• Saul Consulting a Medium (1 Samuel 28): King Saul started well, but pride and anxiety blinded his discernment over time. When God felt far, instead of humbling himself, Saul turned to a forbidden medium—desperate for a word, any word, except the one God already gave. His lack of spiritual clarity brought humiliation and confirmed his downfall.
• The Corinthian Church’s Moral Confusion (1 Corinthians 5): Early believers in Corinth had spiritual gifts pouring out, but without discernment, chaos crept in. They tolerated blatant sin and called it grace, losing the ability to know good from evil. Paul had to urge them to deal honestly with sin, reminding them that true spiritual life is never about ignoring what’s wrong.

Lack of discernment can feel like putting scissors in an electrical socket—danger comes not just from bad intent, but from blindness, distraction, or ignoring the quiet warnings we sense deep down.

How God Redeems Evil Outcomes for Good

The failures in these true stories are hard to miss, but they aren’t where things end. The Bible always circles back to this wild hope: God can mend any story, even when we’ve lost our way.

• Joseph’s Betrayal (Genesis 37-50): Joseph’s brothers sold him out of jealousy—a dark moment born from hardened hearts and total lack of discernment. Yet years later, standing as a ruler in Egypt, Joseph tells them, “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” Through suffering and confusion, God raised up a savior not just for one family, but for nations. Joseph’s journey is proof that human failure never writes the last line.
• David’s Repentance (2 Samuel 11-12): King David fell hard into sin—forgetting discernment, abusing power, and spiraling after Bathsheba. Instead of hiding him forever, God sent Nathan to confront him. David’s response wasn’t perfect action but honest repentance. Out of failure came songs of confession, new trust in God’s mercy, and an enduring example of how brokenness can be met with grace.
• Church Renewal in Corinth: Even when a church lost its grip, God sent strong correction through Paul to pull them back. What started as a mess became a chance for honest growth, stronger love, and a renewed commitment to living in the light.

Discernment is often learned in the tough places—when we see the results of going our own way and receive God’s restoration. God uses these struggles to shape deeper wisdom and more tender hearts.

If you’re longing for practical steps to grow in wisdom and avoid spiritual blindness, the Spiritual Accountability Guide offers a step-by-step path for staying rooted in truth and finding hope after failure.

The thread running through all these true stories? God’s faithfulness. Even when discernment is missing and outcomes seem ruined, He’s never done shaping a heart that turns back to Him.

The Source of Discernment: Gift of the Spirit or Human Attainment?

People talk about discernment like it’s a hidden superpower, something you find if you look hard enough or get wise with age. But when we open our Bibles, we find something much different. Real discernment comes as a gift, not a reward. Yes, anyone can make choices, size up a situation, or call out what feels off. But the Bible draws a line between what we can do on our own and the clear-sighted wisdom that only the Holy Spirit gives. We’re talking about the difference between flashlight wisdom and a sunrise that lights up everything in the room. Only one comes from outside yourself.

Let’s untangle where real discernment comes from—and who gets to walk in it.

Holy Spirit: The Giver of True Discernment

True discernment isn’t handed out as a prize for good behavior. It starts and ends with the Holy Spirit. When someone is born again, God gives them His own Spirit, who shines light on what’s true and what’s a trap. It’s not a feeling or a hunch. It’s the deep sense—the Spirit-to-spirit knowing—that something’s either in line with God or running against Him.

Paul lays it out in 1 Corinthians 12:10, where he mentions the “distinguishing of spirits” as a specific gift given to some believers for the building up of the whole church. Hebrews 5:14 pushes it further by describing mature Christians as those “who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” Both passages make it clear: the Holy Spirit is the source, not personality or past experience.

When hearts are surrendered, the Spirit gives eyes that see beyond the surface. He helps us spot what looks almost right, but misses God’s heart. The difference between spiritual discernment and mere suspicion? One flows out of peace and light. The other churns up fear or pride.

To unpack the full list of ways the Spirit gifts believers, spend time with How Miracles and Charismatic Gifts Fuel the Spread of Christianity Worldwide. You’ll see that discernment is never meant for isolation or self-importance, but so the entire church can walk in the light.

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Can Anyone Possess Discernment?

Anyone can make careful choices or weigh pros and cons. That’s natural discernment—using reason, experience, and even a healthy dose of skepticism to spot trouble or choose wisely. The world prizes this kind of insight. People call it “gut instinct” or “emotional intelligence.” But Biblical discernment is different. It’s not about smarts or street sense. It’s knowing God’s voice, feeling His nudges, and picking up on what’s hidden beneath the obvious.

Without the Holy Spirit, even the sharpest mind can miss spiritual danger. Scripture says that the “natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). This isn’t an insult—it’s a reminder that only God gives the kind of discernment that brings life and truth.

When someone is Baptized in the Holy Spirit, God opens their heart to a stream of wisdom that isn’t available anywhere else. It’s like listening in on a frequency that only the Spirit can tune. If you’re curious about what this really means, Baptized in the Holy Spirit offers histories and teaching that show how this experience changes everything about how you see, choose, and live.

Here’s how the two compare:

• Natural discernment: Relies on observation, learning, and reflection. Anyone can have it, but it stops at what’s visible.
• Spiritual discernment: Comes from the Holy Spirit working in a heart surrendered to Jesus. It sees beyond motives, hears God’s voice, and tells good fruit from bad—even when they look the same.

The gift isn’t about pride or feeling “chosen.” It’s about God’s mercy meeting us where we are, helping us stay rooted in Him when the world spins shady stories and blurry truths. Without the Spirit, we guess. With Him, we see.

Biblical Discernment vs. Secular Discernment

Discernment is a word that pops up in all sorts of circles—church, philosophy, even self-help corners of the world. But it’s not always the same. There’s a real dividing line between the kind of spiritual discernment the Bible describes and the common sense, logic, or intuition that people trust in everyday decisions. This difference goes to the core of what truth is, who gets to define it, and how we sort out good from evil in a world that gets more confusing by the day. If you’re wrestling with what sets Biblical discernment apart and how it actually plays out in daily life, this is where clear answers begin.

What Sets Biblical Discernment Apart

Biblical discernment isn’t just a better version of human insight; it’s a completely different starting point. At its core, it’s rooted in God’s Word and inspired by the Holy Spirit. It’s not guesswork, intuition, or a skill you get from reading a lot of books or surviving tough situations.

• Objective and Absolute: The biggest difference? Biblical discernment stands on an unchanging standard—God’s truth doesn’t shift with mood, trends, or cultural changes. The wisdom of the world is always adapting, but the Bible offers an anchor that holds steady, even when everything else is in motion.
• Rooted in the Spirit: Where secular discernment relies on logic, experience, or gut instinct, Biblical discernment listens for the Spirit’s voice. The Holy Spirit makes real what is only theory for the rest of the world. This is why spiritual discernment can diagnose what’s really going on, even when everything looks normal on the surface.
• Beyond Surface-Level Goodness: Secular wisdom might value things like honesty, hard work, or empathy—all good—but without the Spirit, it still misses the mark of what God calls good or evil. God sees beneath the mask.
• Immune to a Seared Conscience: The Bible warns that without God’s truth, people can develop a “seared conscience”—a spiritual numbness where wrong feels right and right feels suspicious (1 Timothy 4:2). This is a danger even for the smartest minds. Discernment that isn’t anchored in God’s Word gets twisted and blown off course by pride or self-interest.

If you’ve ever wondered why some people seem blind to what’s right in front of them, it’s often because their conscience has been dulled by drifting from God’s standard. The Spirit alone keeps our hearts soft and able to tell light from darkness. For more on how this becomes possible, consider exploring the Transformative Power of the Spirit, which unpacks how the Spirit frees and sharpens our inner sight.

Everyday Life: Applying Biblical Discernment Today

Discernment isn’t just for the pastors, the prophets, or the “super spiritual.” It’s for everyday Christians—students, parents, business owners, retirees—anyone trying to follow Jesus in a world buzzing with voices and choices. So, how do we use Biblical discernment now, when the stakes feel overwhelming and the answers aren’t always obvious?

Here’s what daily, Spirit-led discernment looks like:

• Decisions Big and Small: Whether it’s taking a new job, entering a relationship, or choosing what entertainment you let into your home, Spirit-driven discernment means pausing, praying, and weighing everything against God’s Word. Does it reflect His character? Would it make sense if Jesus was standing right beside you?
• Relationships: Not every connection is healthy or holy. Discernment lets you see past words or appearances—spotting manipulation, deception, or even the gentle nudges of God steering you toward people who build your faith, not drain it.
• Ministry and Service: Not every need is your assignment and not every opportunity is God’s open door. Discernment can help you recognize the difference between a good idea and a God idea.
• Cultural Issues: The world is a flood of opinions, but only one standard can help you distinguish truth from error. When news stories, social movements, or new philosophies come into play, discernment helps you test everything by Scripture, not personal preference.

Here are a few ways to practice discernment daily:

1. Ask God for wisdom before you make decisions.
2. Check what you hear and feel against Scripture—not just what’s popular.
3. Invite trusted believers to pray and counsel with you, since discernment is strengthened in community.
4. Stay sensitive to the Spirit’s gentle warnings—often He speaks through unease, peace, or that small, persistent “pause.”

If you want to dig further into how the Spirit’s gifts show up in everyday moments, the section on Spirituality Insights explores a whole range of stories and truths that will ground your practice of discernment—right in the mess and beauty of real life.

There’s nothing abstract about discernment when God is the source. When you let the Spirit do the guiding, you don’t just get “better at life”—you get eyes to see the way God sees, in both the ordinary and the unseen. Let truth cut through the shadows.

Obstacles to Discernment: Seared Conscience, Hardened Heart, and the Reprobate Mind

Some blocks to discernment run deeper than confusion or lack of knowledge—they are matters of the heart and soul. The Bible draws three sharp warnings: a seared conscience, a hardened heart, and a reprobate mind. Each one represents a deeper loss of spiritual sensitivity, a drifting away from God’s truth, and a shrinking capacity to know right from wrong. When discernment breaks down, it usually isn’t overnight. It’s slow: choices add up, pride settles in, and even the clearest truths start to fade like words written in the sand.

Before going forward, it helps to pause and ask: Do I see myself growing numb to what used to stir my conscience? Am I letting stubbornness creep in, or trading the light for shadows in any area of my life? This section is for anyone who needs a wake-up call—or a hope-filled reminder that God can restore what feels lost.

Seared Conscience: Meaning and Impact

Paul paints a tough picture in 1 Timothy 4:2: people whose consciences are “seared as with a hot iron.” The original Greek word here is kauteriazo—it’s where we get the word “cauterize.” It suggests something burned, scarred, or made insensitive. The conscience, which should function like nerves alerting us to pain, gets so desensitized by repeated sin and stubborn self-justification that warning signals no longer register.

What does this look like in Scripture and real life?

• Persistent dishonesty that no longer triggers guilt.
• Small compromises piling into major blind spots.
• Repeated sin explains itself away until it feels normal.

Paul warns that a seared conscience isn’t just ignorance or mistake—it’s rooted in pride and ongoing resistance to truth. This is the spiritual equivalent of scar tissue: sensitivity replaced by numbness.

Biblical examples include leaders who ignored Godly counsel time and time again. Saul, after years of pride and self-protection, stopped hearing God’s voice, leading him to disaster. Modern life offers plenty of parallels when people call evil good and good evil, justifying choices that grieve the Holy Spirit.

Hardened Heart: Biblical Definition and Results

A hardened heart is one of Scripture’s most sobering warnings, especially captured by the true story of Pharaoh in Exodus. The Greek term sklerokardia translates literally as “hard-heartedness.” It’s a combination of skleros (hard, stubborn) and kardia (heart, the center of will and emotion). A hardened heart isn’t just about being “mean”—it’s about spiritual blindness, a willful refusal to be moved by God’s Word or presence.

Consider:

• Pharaoh in Exodus: His repeated refusal to release the Israelites wasn’t just stubbornness—it was deeper, a spiritual numbness that ignored miracle after miracle.
• The Israelites in the wilderness: Despite God’s faithfulness, their hearts were hardened by complaint, fear, and ingratitude (Hebrews 3:7-13).

A hardened heart:

• Ignores correction and doubles down instead of turning.
• Loses the ability to respond to God’s Spirit.
• Grows cold to the needs or hurts of others.

When the heart becomes stone, discernment fades. You can hear truth over and over, but when you won’t let it sink in, you stop recognizing the difference between God’s leading and your own stubborn agenda.

Reprobate Mind: The New Testament Warning

Romans 1 contains one of the most chilling warnings about what happens when truth is consistently rejected. Paul writes that God “gave them over to a reprobate mind” (Romans 1:28). The Greek here is adokimos—meaning disqualified, not passing the test, unapproved for use. This is a mind that, by ongoing resistance to truth, flips its judgment upside down, losing the power to discern altogether.

A reprobate mind results from:

• Continually suppressing the truth.
• Refusing to repent even when conviction is clear.
• Embracing practices and beliefs in open rebellion to God’s design.

Romans 1 details the downward spiral—knowing God but refusing to honor Him, trading truth for lies, and celebrating what once would have caused shame. The reprobate mind calls darkness light and feels no need for correction. It’s a spiritual death spiral.

This isn’t about a single failure or weakness. It’s the end result of choosing independence from God again and again, until discernment is gone and self-deception takes over.

The Relationship Between Repentance and Discernment

If a numb conscience, hardened heart, or reprobate mind feels like your story, the Bible doesn’t end with bad news. The doorway back is always repentance. Repentance cracks the shell around the heart, restores sensitivity, and renews spiritual vision.

Repentance isn’t just feeling sorry or making promises to do better. The core Hebrew word, teshuva, means turning—away from self, back toward God. In Greek, metanoia means a change in mind and direction. Every time someone repents, the Spirit begins to restore discernment like glasses refitted to tired eyes.

This restoration looks like:

• Conviction returning where there was numbness.
• Joy in hearing God’s Word, not just guilt at missing the mark.
• Fresh filters for truth and lies, good and evil.

Persistent repentance keeps the heart tender and the conscience alive. Discernment grows in hearts that respond quickly to correction—not perfectly, but honestly.

Discernment doesn’t vanish all at once—it dulls slowly when we resist God’s voice. But when we turn back, even from the worst spots, He brings light, warmth, and clarity where everything once felt numb and dark.

Conclusion

Discernment is more than spotting a lie or making a good decision—it’s letting the Holy Spirit carve out clarity in the middle of chaos and confusion. Every true advance in faith, from ancient prophets to Jesus Himself, came when someone leaned hard into Spirit-led discernment and let God define what was real, what was holy, and what was worth following. Every story of failure, pride, or spiritual blindness found a turning point when someone turned back—when repentance reignited the spark of discernment lost to numbness, stubbornness, or self-will.

Anyone can ask for the Holy Spirit’s help. Discernment grows when we stay teachable, practice repentance, and let Scripture shape our thinking instead of just going with the flow. If you want to know God’s heart and not just guess your way through life, keep pressing in with prayer, honest community, and a hunger for the truth that sets you free.

Nothing builds a steady heart like walking with the Spirit each day. Start by learning more about who the Holy Spirit is, or take a fresh look at the gifts of the Holy Spirit to see all the ways God meets us in our weakness with wisdom and power.

Let your longing to discern well drive you right back to God—the only source of real understanding and lasting peace. Where are you seeking discernment today? Invite the Holy Spirit to open your eyes and keep your heart soft—He loves to give clarity for the next step.