Discerning as a Team

Many Christian leaders know how to discern God’s will as an individual, but how to you do it as a team? What if team members 

Several factors are worth exploring as a team:

1. How does each member hear from God? There can be multiple ways that God speaks to each member of the team. For some, hearing God’s voice may come through scriptures. For others, it may be prayer, wise counsel, dreams, open and closed doors, and more. Identify what the pattern of hearing from God has been for you, share with the team, and recognize and respect that God may have different ways of speaking to different people. 
   

2. What is each member’s understanding of God’s will? There’s a spectrum in the church. At one end, there is one right path  to be on in each decision, and it’s up to the believer to discern and submit to it. At the other end of the spectrum, there may be multiple good choices, and it’s the believer’s responsibility to choose wisely based on scripture and reason. Finally, many people find themselves in the middle of the spectrum, with some decisions having multiple good options that will please God and other decisions having one particular door to enter. Clarifying each team member’s understanding of God’s will can help avoid unnecessary conflicts and expedite team discernment. 
   

3. What pace does each team member discern at? For some people, discernment comes quickly. For others, it can take time. Conflict can erupt if there isn’t understanding about different discernment paces Quick discerners can feel like the slower discerners are dragging their feet or out of touch with the Spirit. Slow discerners can feel pressured or rushed by the quick discerners. In some instances, both types will arrive at the same conclusions, so conflict over pacing can derail what might have been alignment for moving forward. 

Once you discuss the above factors, there are multiple strategies for team discernment available:

1.  Ruth Haley Barton has had a spiritual development coaching program for leaders for years and is highly respected. Here’s an article about group discernment with specific steps, including:

   1. Ask the right question

   2. Involve the right people

   3. Establish guiding values and principles

   4. Pray without ceasing

   5. Listen

   6. Select an option that seems consistent with what God is doing among you
      

2. Here’s a list of steps that integrate good decision making in general, with an 8 step worksheet.
   

3. MBA professor Kent Miller’s research paper on “Discernment in Management and Organizations” (Journal of Management, Spirituality and Religion, 2020, VOL. 17, NO. 5, 373–402) summarizes several approaches, including the Ignatian method:

   1. First, define finality or the ultimate end sought. The finality for any decision is a core presupposition that encompasses one’s particular identity and vision for life.

   2. Second, formulate the question in terms of binary alternatives oriented toward this finality. Questions can be formulated as choices between alternatives (option 1 or option 2) or choices to act on a single option or not.

   3. Third, deliberate on the internal and external implications of the choice. Deliberation encompasses both intrapersonal feelings and contextual evidence pertaining to the choice.

   4. Fourth, adopt the option that emerges as favored based on rational and spiritual considerations. A choice should grow out of personal conviction that builds momentum toward a particular course of action.

   5. Fifth, confirm the choice internally and externally before acting on it. Consistent with the third step (deliberation), both personal feelings and affirmations from relevant evidence and advisors contribute toward confirming a choice
      

4.  A process that can involve art or scripture called Attune has been growing in popularity in recent years. See https://attunetogrow.org/.

Here’s a good article on more general discernment practices. Business leader and mentor Terry Looper’s discernment practices are captured in an Faith Driven Video.

You may find this article on love as a guiding principle from the Theology of Work Project helpful as well.

Finally, whether it’s individual or group discernment, it is always prudent to test it. Anything that contradicts scripture, seems to harm someone else, or isn’t aligned with what God has already revealed (e.g., your company mission, your specific identity, etc.), should be questioned. It may be advisable to ask God for double confirmation in more important decisions. Of course, a spiritual advisor can help guide the discernment process and support your hearing God’s will.