The Best Question Ever: A Book Review

Pastor Andy Stanley’s book, The Best Question Ever, teaches a common sense approach to life decisions, mostly involving relationships, marriage, career and finance. He measures all decisions against a measure of wisdom. His advice is certainly not bad if your goal is to avoid trouble.

But I find the approach to be problematic if it is applied too broadly. Many of the best decisions in the world would never have passed his test. The decisions in life that lead to innovation and progress and much-needed reforms often appear to be unwise in every way, shape and form.

He sites the Bible’s poster child for wisdom, Solomon. But there are pages of the Bible filled with tales of the foolish. Was Noah wise when he hammered the first peg into the ark? Was Solomon’s father wise when he pulled out his slingshot and headed toward the Philistine camp? Was the widow wise when she put that last penny in the temple coffer?

This book is filled with lots of good advice for eliminating unnecessary trouble from your life by getting into the habit of asking more questions before taking actions which commonly lead to heartbreak. From the standpoint of a counselor, it is solid. The benefits of his approach are intended to ease personal discomfort and give direction in life — desirable outcomes, for sure. A great deal of pain in the world could be avoided by following his advice.

But moving beyond the counseling session and the questions of personal values and lifestyle, the question he asks us to pose is just as likely to lead to inaction. The Godly answer might sound to the world like a fool’s errand.

If you are looking for answers to change the circumstances of your life — to learn to make better personal decisions — The Best Question Ever is a good starting point.

However, if the disciples would have asked The Best Question Ever, they might have run for the Galilean hills. Then, where would we be today?

But that’s the nature of the Bible. Sometimes it teaches us wisdom; sometimes it praises the foolhardy.

Andy Stanley is teaching wisdom.