A third core value of the Powerful Question discernment process involves validation. Not only is this a self-directed process, it is also self-validating. When the Powerful Question arrives it will always be accompanied by a physical and/or emotional response that is unmistakable. That happens because our body reacts to this Question, this moment of clarity and truth, the same way it does when a doctor taps our knee with a small hammer. There is an involuntary response. It can, and does arrive in many surprising ways. Some experience shortness of breath, others experience giggling sensations or goosebumps. Headaches can happen, so can a churning in our stomach. Bottom line: You will know it, and it will be all the validation you need.

The fourth core value of the Powerful Question approach to discernment is: That it is a prayerful approach to truth and God who is truth. Discernment that seeks to know truth, also seeks to know God who is truth. As such it is the very definition of prayer. Could an evil person like Hitler find a Powerful Question? No, because a person like that does not desire truth.

There are certain “Core Values” that underpin the Powerful Question approach to discernment. These are values we want to hold ourselves accountable to and expect others to judge us by.

The first of these is that it is intentional. This affirms that we are engaged in a serious, committed effort to find our purpose and our role in God’s plan. We do not want to count on falling off a horse, going blind and having an epiphany (Like St. Paul). We believe our intentional pursuit of a Powerful Question will reveal our truth, and God who is truth.