One of the strangest things about human beings is that we can detect the smell of burnt toast from three rooms away, but cannot detect an obvious lie sitting right in front of us wearing a suit and tie.
“Use discernment!” people say, and immediately somebody imagines a suspicious old grandfather peeping through curtains and distrusting everybody from milkmen to grandchildren. But discernment is not suspicion. Suspicion sees ghosts everywhere. Discernment sees truth clearly.
There is a difference.
A suspicious man or woman thinks everybody is cheating him. A discerning person quietly observes, listens, thinks, and then decides.
I have noticed something fascinating about people who lie. They usually tell on themselves. Not because they want to, but because lies are hard work. Truth walks naturally.
Lies limp.
Lies sweat.
Lies over explain.
Lies contradict themselves.
And the easiest way to uncover them is not by shouting, accusing, or behaving like a television anchor.
No.
Relax the person.
Make him comfortable.
Allow him to speak freely.
Most people reveal themselves when they think you have accepted everything they say. Suddenly the words start wobbling. The timelines change. The emotions do not match the story. The details become too polished. And then comes the greatest giveaway of all, patterns.
Patterns never lie.
A man who cheats once may have slipped. A man who cheats repeatedly has become a lifestyle artist.
But discernment also requires something far more difficult than spotting another person’s lies. It requires spotting our own desires.
That is where many intelligent people fail.
We want to believe certain things because they suit us emotionally. We ignore warning bells because we are excited. We trust flattery because it massages our ego. We accept promises because they feed our greed. Quite often the lie succeeds not because the liar is brilliant, but because we are eager customers.
That is why discernment requires humility.
And finally comes the greatest source of discernment of all, a connection with God.
King Solomon was known for wisdom. People travelled from distant lands just to hear him speak. Imagine that. No YouTube. No podcast. No Instagram reels. Yet crowds came because wisdom attracts people more powerfully than noise.
But Solomon lost something along the way. He slowly disconnected himself from the very source of his wisdom. And once disconnected from God, even the wisest man begins making foolish decisions.
Which tells us something important.
Discernment is not merely intelligence.
It is spiritual alignment.
And perhaps that is why some simple old grandmother praying quietly in a corner often understands people far better than a room full of experts with management degrees and PowerPoint presentations. Because a true spiritual connection is the finest protection against the deception and cheating of man..!
The Author conducts an online, eight session Writers and Speakers Course. If you’d like to join, do send a thumbs-up to WhatsApp number 9892572883 or send a message to bobsbanter@gmail.com
