Discernment

When we think God might be asking us to do something, it's a good idea for us to consider some basic questions to help determine which of the three possible types of influence - godly, worldly, or evil - is really at work.

• Do I want to do this thing?  If so, it might be my own desires rather than any leading from the Holy Spirit.
• Will I take pride from this thing?  Here I'm talking about more than feeling good about an important work. Rather, could my reason for being drawn to this be that people will think highly of me? It isn't wrong for people to think well of me, but it isn't good for that to be my motivation for choosing what I do. But this also carries a trap: I should not specifically choose (or not choose) to do a thing because I think it will provide evidence of my humility.
• Is there any possible conflict of interest that might bring benefit to me or give the perception to others that I might be benefiting in some material way from this ministry?
• Will this thing take away from things that I should be doing instead?  Here's a trap I fell into "early and often" - as they joke about how one should vote in a corrupt democracy - in my faith journey. I threw myself into ministry opportunities without much consideration of how they would affect my family. Particularly, I must sincerely seek to know:
• How does my bride feel about this, and why? It isn't that I should never do anything that she doesn't agree with, but in a marriage that is equally yoked, one's spouse's dissension should be a major red flag to take a much closer look for unmistakable evidence of God's direction and to reach true consensus before moving forward. Also, my partner will often have insights into what I am really up to that I might be hiding from myself.
• Is where I am spiritually consistent with this thing I'm being asked to do? We cannot fake our  spiritual standing for very long, and attempting to do so merely provides us with great opportunities to scandalize the Lord.
• Do the people who are asking me to minister in this way know what they need to about me?  Have I kept anything from them that might affect their impression that I am the right person for the role they have asked me to fill?
• Are there any clear signs that I should, or should not, serve the Lord in this way?  

So after I check in with my beloved one more time, after putting before the Lord the one area in which I believe I might otherwise remain spiritually vulnerable (and how timely this article is in that regard), after verifying that the other members of the leadership team have considered my background (of which they were already aware), it looks as if I am going to be accepting an invitation to serve on the leadership board of CREDO.  

I do not want to do this. But I believe that I should.