I finally bought it. What am I talking about? I finally bought the book that I saw several months back. Oh, you probably don’t remember me even mentioning it but I have made a few references to it. The book is written by Andy Stanley and it is titled, “The Best Question Ever.” (Andy Stanley. The Best Question Ever. Sisters, OR: Multnomah, 2004) Being a book-lover (bibliophile) I was intrigued by what could possibly be the best question ever.
He argues that asking yourself this question will help you in making decisions, avoiding financial ruin, saving your marriage, sparing yourself from painful emotional scars, help you to never get caught up in addictive sin, and guide you toward the fulfillment of your dreams. Pretty impressive claims! But could the book deliver? I finally broke down and bought the book to find out.
It took until the third chapter for Stanley to actually get to the question and it took three more chapters to develop the question to its final form. So, to save you from spending $16.99 (plus tax) I will share with you what the best question ever is. Are you ready for it? (No, that wasn’t it!) Here it is, the best question ever is, “What is the wise thing for me to do?” (32)
Huh? That’s it?!? You probably expect me to tell you that I return the book after reading that. Actually, it intrigued me and I kept reading. Not because it is so profound but because it is so obvious yet most of the time we miss it. We never ask ourselves this question when it matters most. The author looks at this question from three angles.
First, “In light of your past experience, what is the wise thing to do?” (43) He then explores our past to see what unique struggles and temptations we have. A quick point here, we are not talking about obvious moral issues. Clearly you should NEVER leave your wife and marry your mistress. But even there the question is appropriate because that would not be wise. Here we apply the question to our unique background. If we have struggled with internet pornography should we not have internet access at home? If we struggle with debt in the past should we get rid of our credit cards? Is it wrong to have a credit card? No. Is it wrong to have internet access? No, but if these things are in your past then it potentially is not wise for you.
The second angle is this, “In light of my current circumstances, what is the wise thing to do?” (47) We know that there is an ebb and flow to life. Sometimes we are up and other times we are down. It is important that we take into account our current emotional situation and state of mind when we make a decision. (47-48) Otherwise we can make rash emotional decisions that will cause ourselves and others pain. I think of some emails that I am glad I took 24 hours before sending (I can also think of the ones I didn’t wait to send and have regretted doing that).
The final angle is this, “In light of my future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing to do.” (52) The decisions we make now rob ourselves of our desired future. We may want to have children who love and adore us when they are older. However, we don’t give them the time of day right now. We want to have a happy, healthy marriage but we are unwilling to call off the friendships with others of the opposite sex. If we made our present decisions in light of our desired future many decisions would be made differently. If we want to have money in the bank and money for retirement that means we can’t always buy the newest car, the nicest house, the biggest TV nor have the most extravagant vacations. These nice things may not be wrong in themselves but if you have limited income you can’t afford filet minion on a ground beef salary.
Okay, all of this is obvious. I know, this is pretty simple stuff. But I have one question for you, why do so many people not do this? Most of us know enough about the Bible and life to know what we ought to do. But so often we do otherwise. I wish this wasn’t the case but I know that it often is. You can debate if this truly is the best question ever. However, I think it is a pretty good question to ask yourself. If you consistently apply this to your life you will avoid many pitfalls and personal pain.
10 comments:
Interesting. Now that I know the question I wonder if I should get the book anyway? Hmmmm...what would be the wise thing to do?
I and my wife are currently going through this study in our small group. The question is simple yet is an easy reference for daily decisions. Two thumbs up here.
This is a book that we are required to read at Dallas Baptist University and to be honest it is very helpful even to an 18 year old.
I picked it up of my flat mates book shelf, struck curious by the title. Read the first two chapters and got pissed at the authors style. "Stop selling me this stupid questions!" I thought to myself.
So, I ran upstairs and went to Google. Google brought me to you.
Thanks.
I really appreciate your laying it out, I think it's all I need... I'll ponder on the question and it's three tense application as I read proverbs - which has potential to be a better use of my time :)
I feel he hit on something simple and good. The reality of our walks with Christ is this, more oft than not we need to be reminded before we're taught. His book, and your summation, is a awesome reminder.
How often do we really do the wisest thing though? Surely it's better to do exactly what you feel like doing, and then learn from your mistakes?
Ultimately, we can't be perfect and doing the wisest thing isn't going to give us the most enjoyment :)
Thanks for the great synopsis of the book, "The Best Question Ever. " by Andy Stanley. Even though it seems like something simple and obvious, most of us in most of our life situations don't ask this very simple but profound question. What might this world be like if everyone asked this simple question and proceeded to make decisions based upon the heart-felt revelation from merely asking it?
As a Youth Pastor, I have decided to buy this book for all my graduating seniors this year. I can't think of any better advice that could be given to those leaving high school headed into a world that will eat them up and spit them out should they choose to make unwise decisions.
When I was going to a very difficult choice making time in my life my mother told me to read this book, it really cleared up a lot of things I couldnt figure out by myself.
It was a very challenging book and I took some really hard decisions back then (breaking up with a boyfriend, moving to another place, staying single for more than a year to clear my feelings... and so on) but then I saw how God was there with me the whole time as I was doing the right thing. Definitely a must read book
i am sorry to disagree with anyone here, but this book was painful to read...he beats around the bush and hardly gets to the point in his chapters. he drags things out much farther than he needs to. and anyone under the age of 40 probably cannot read this book because we can't relate to his referencing to 'where the time went'...that in itself is a good question, but the way he sells it is a way that makes everything seem like this...you save save save up and make great choices and in the end what do you have to show for it...well you can brag that you made good choices. but so far in my reading i have not encountered the message of balance. you live a little here and have fun, and you get serious there and do work. im sorry but the 18 year old that said "to be honest it is very helpful even to an 18 year old" you must be an insanely boring person to have the time to sit down and read this book. go have fun, read it when you're 30. and i agree with sendingbenjamin...he just beats around the bush and drags out a 8-10 chapter book. to all that enjoy this book i am happy for you and i encourage you to continue and read his books, but to those who didnt enjoy it, i sympathize with you. good day and God bless.
(ps i do not mean to offend anyone with my email address, it is simply a reference to a good movie entitled "we were soldiers.")
Stanley tends to teach like this.I haven't read the book but I've listened to the sermons that the book came from (or vice versa...not sure which was first).
I'd encourage anyone interested to find the sermons by the same title and listen to them. LIke the book he takes a while to get to his point but he's a gifted speaker. I especially think the sermon "Time Bandits" is worth the whole series. It's an especially good look at wisely using our time.
thinks for answering the question and including examples of application. after careful consideration, i may buy the book anyway, but wisdom says buy the signed version since i essentially know the question, i should email the seller first though and see if it is address to anyone, is it a printed signature or and hand penned signature from his hands, himself. thanks for posting !
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