This book is an immensely valuable treasure-trove of guidance and inspiration in seeking discernment in all areas of life. One might thus expect to pick it up and find very specific recommendations about how to make decisions in matters of Christian distinctives, career choices, education, relationships, and other areas. This book distinguishes itself, however, by approaching discernment first as a topic of theological exposition and then as a matter of application, distinguishing itself from similar books and websites that "offer lists of what to do and not to do" without losing its practicality. Challies begins by calling the reader to discernment as a spiritual discipline that everyone must practice in order to move forward, rather than backward, in their Christian walk. He then distinguishes between wisdom and discernment, defining the latter in a more specific way and demonstrating its relationship to Biblical truth.

Challies addresses the area of coming to terms with distinctives in worship, which he would not call "non-essentials" as some Christians do, but matters of different degrees of priority. This discussion is aimed primarily at the average Christian who sometimes finds himself with a choice to make in terms of which church to go to out of two or three with similar theologies, but different worship styles, for example; it is not aimed at pastors and others with the responsibility to direct choices in matters of congregational worship. This section might have been strengthened by addressing more clearly when and how a Christian might decide to worship in a place where he does not agree with all of the distinctives, though Challies does make it explicit that it is very rare that a Christian's best option is to refrain from joining any church at all.

The end of the book offers more guidance on when a Christian is free to make his own determinations, such as in matters of career changes; Challies provides a brief example of how he counseled someone in making such a decision, but wisely refrains from delving into too-explicit lists of prescriptions and proscriptions for what to choose in a variety of circumstances. The book closes instead with a chapter suggesting a process to work through in applying discernment to one's searching of the Word for guidance on any issue of interest, which Challies illustrates with a sample theological question. The level of detail provided about how to go through such a process is generous without being daunting.

All in all, Challies manages to bridge a gap between theology and application in a way that does not gloss over the importance of either, but does not go overboard in either, remaining accessible to a wide audience of readers at any stage in their spiritual development. Inspiring and thought-provoking illustrations punctuate a well-researched and clearly argued philosophy on discernment that readers should benefit from revisiting again and again. ( )

In the flooded market of Christian book publishing, it is indeed rare for a book to truly break new ground. Rarer still is a book that breaks new ground in a clear and practical way on a topic that is important to the life of every follower of Christ.

And yet that is exactly what Tim Challies has done in this debut book. While we have multitudes of books on prayer, love, humility, obedience, and other aspects of our walk with Christ, there have been few that specifically and comprehensively deal with this other crucial aspect of Christian living: discernment.

Challies first calls us to the importance of discernment in our lives, as a mark of spiritual maturity and as a guard of the gospel. He next takes time to review the significant challenges to living a life of discernment in this culture, dealing specifically with internal, spiritual, and cultural influences.

From there he spends a chapter building a specific definition of spiritual discernment based on its use in the Bible. He defines discernment as “the skill of understanding and applying God’s Word with the purpose of separating truth from error and right from wrong.”

There is a chapter on discerning and judgement, which compares things which the Bible instructs us not to judge (”motives or the righteousness of other believers”) vs. things the Bible commands us to judge (such as doctrine). From explaining that discernment is primarily concerned with the truth of God, he next moves onto a helpful chapter devoted to an overview of discernment as it applies to the will of God.

Chapter seven of the book looks at discernment as a spiritual gift, while chapter eight is devoted to the dangers of discernment when used improperly. Lastly, Challies describes the spiritual disciplines that equip us to develop discernment, and goes through a detailed practical example of discernment in action.

The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment really is a book for every believer, that lays out a solid foundation and a useful guide to becoming a more discerning Christian. I was personally challenged in reading this book to apply discernment as a more serious and systematic discipline in my own life. Highly recommended. ( )