From “What Makes You Come Alive: A Spiritual Walk with Howard Thurman” by Lerita Coleman Brown
Vital to the exercise of Inner Authority is the practice of discernment. Discernment is the spiritual practice of decision-making by which we bring decisions into prayer. Spiritual leader Rose Mary Dougherty notes, “The eye of the heart grows accustomed to recognizing, almost spontaneously, those (interior) movements that are drawing us into oneness with ourselves and all creation in God and those that tend to isolate us even from ourselves.” Discerning with Spirit operates in contrast to our contemporary inclination to just figure things out or make decisions based on accrual of wealth and status and success. Unfortunately, many people remain unaware or neglect to access this abiding Inner Wisdom.
Quaker mystic Thomas Kelly portrays discernment as a contemplative stance – a “simplification” of all the warring obligations, compulsions, and activities competing for our attention. To drop down into a holy center where we surrender to God is to know our true selves. This description mirrors Thurman’s adage of yielding one’s “nerve center” to God. Discernment facilitates self-knowledge, as it illuminates who we truly are. Kelly encourages us to release our worldly attachments or affiliations and, in Thurman’s words, “follow the grain of your own wood” or “do what makes you come alive.”
Kelly recommends we move slowly as we prune away all that does not feel our authentic selves. The more authentic we are, the stronger and more available we are to move with Inner Authority to our sacred calling. We cultivate Inner Authority by giving small or large decisions to Spirit and waiting patiently for an answer. Some practitioners of discernment ask for a clear sign or an undeniable indication of a leading.
Thurman relates how, before accepting a position at Boston University, initially he prayed but didn’t receive any guidance. Contacted several times by the then president of Boston University, Harold Case, about his decision, Thurman gently and firmly explained that he simply didn’t have an answer. He could not move until he received a “word in his heart.” In this way, he discerned a way forward by waiting for Inner Authority. The practice of discernment is not asking God for permission. It simply allows holy wisdom to permeate our babbling minds.
Thurman desired to improve the plight of his people, he wanted them to have freedom and full citizenship and longed for every human spirit to actualize their full potential. But he yearned for healing and unity as well. Thurman saw the connection between the two – personal fulfillment and community. Union with God required both.