History rarely collapses from lack of momentum. It collapses from too much of it; unchecked, unexamined, and unmoored from wisdom. In our politics, our faith movements, our social revolutions, and even our personal lives, speed has become a substitute for sense. We reward velocity, virality, and volume. Yet again and again, we are reminded of an old truth articulated by philosopher George Santayana: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Momentum without discernment does not lead to progress; it accelerates failure.
The modern world confuses movement with meaning. A cause trending on social media is assumed to be a cause advancing justice. A leader speaking loudly is mistaken for one speaking wisely. But history is littered with movements that began with righteous energy and ended in moral wreckage because no one paused to ask hard questions. Martin Luther King Jr. warned of this danger when he wrote, “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” Discernment is the capacity to judge rightly, to weigh consequences, to distinguish truth from impulse; is what separates reform from ruin.
Nowhere is this clearer than in politics and public life. Revolutions powered by raw anger often replace one form of tyranny with another. Policies rushed through on waves of public outrage frequently unravel under scrutiny, harming the very people they were meant to help. Edmund Burke captured this paradox centuries ago: “Rage and frenzy will pull down more in half an hour than prudence, deliberation, and foresight can build up in a hundred years.” Momentum may topple a system, but only discernment can build a sustainable one.
Faith communities and moral movements are not exempt. Zeal without wisdom has fractured churches, silenced conscience, and justified abuse under the banner of divine urgency. Even Scripture cautions against blind speed: “He who hastens with his feet misses the way” (Proverbs 19:2). Discernment is not hesitation born of fear; it is restraint born of responsibility. It asks not only “Can we?” but “Should we?” and “At what cost?”
The same principle applies to individuals navigating a hyper-accelerated world. Careers rise quickly and collapse faster. Relationships ignite intensely and burn out completely. Ambition, when detached from discernment, becomes self-destructive. As Warren Buffett famously observed, “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.” Discernment protects momentum by giving it direction, boundaries, and purpose.
The lesson is uncomfortable but necessary: slowing down is not weakness; it is strategy. Discernment is the quiet discipline that keeps momentum from becoming reckless force. In an age addicted to speed, the most radical act may be thoughtful restraint. Because history does not reward those who move fastest; but those who move wisely.
– Inah Boniface Ocholi writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
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