BOOK: Group Discernment Bootcamp (PDF)

To risk a claim like "God is inviting us to do X" requires two things: noticing what God is doing, and situating that act within the history of God.  This means deciders need to develop two different skill sets: the ability to recognize an invitation to mission when it comes, and the ability to know what that invitation means.  We need both skills of noticing and skills of interpreting.

The good news is that these are skills and not talents, which means that they improve dramatically with practice! The bad news is that that’s the only way they improve.  You have engage in the practice of them in order to get better at the skills.

This book is a collection of eleven practices that, when engaged with commitment, reliably form these two skill sets.  You can use them to train your discernment team and to keep you learning and growing. It is ideal for for training a group of elders, a mission committee, or a nominating committee, and it is an indispensable resource for transitional ministers.