Good, Better, Best is a concept we learned to teach our children when we were taking and leading a parenting Bible study when our kids were young. It was a way we taught our children not only the expectations we had for them, but the ones God had for them as well.
For example, good was represented by them speaking to someone when the person walked into the room. Better involved them rising from their seat and speaking to the visitor. Best meant they rose from their seat, spoke, walked over to the person and either shook their hand or offered them something to drink, especially if the person was visiting our home.
As they grew up…they quickly learned and strived for the “Best” in situations. It was a great way, and just one of the many ways, that Growing Kids God’s Way curriculum helped us convey important principles to our kids.
I still apply this concept today, but more to myself since we have young adult kids. The one thing I can say for absolute certain on the Back 9 is that “Best” is not always the easiest or the most convenient but “Best” is what God calls us to do.
Best is the action or the course that can separate our behavior as Christians…it can speak loudly of our obedience to Christ and allow us to live a sacrificial life. For example, a best for me on a daily basis might be letting someone go in front of me in the grocery line when I have a cart full and the person behind me has 2 items. Maybe when someone is waiting to pull out in traffic, I let them pull in front of me. It could mean walking out of a movie that I paid for but after watching for a few minutes, I find it was not what I thought and was inappropriate.
A challenging best could be when a conversation turns to gossip….I either speak up or walk away instead of remaining silent which would still make me a listening participant. Another challenging best could involve my/our checkbook and calendar not just tithing, but giving generously of my/our time and money to ministry or people in need.
Each of these examples could be described as doing something wholeheartedly meaning with all your heart. We usually say someone did something “half-heartedly”. They didn’t put all of their heart into it–reluctant to give their best. Joshua is a good example from the Old Testament of someone who followed God wholeheartedly. Moses tell us in Joshua 14:9, “And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly [some translations use wholeheartedly] followed the Lord my God.’”
What is my best? Best for me represents getting up early and giving God the first part of my day. Making sure that nothing and no one gets Sherry before God. This best has altered and provided the right mindset, the right heart, the right intention and the sharp ear and eye for the remaining part of my day for God’s voice and direction. It has given me the best opportunity to give God the best of me. I desire for Psalm 119:80 to be my prayer, “May I wholeheartedly follow your decrees, that I may not be put to shame.”
Even though I fall short…I can honestly say…this best has enabled me to end my day with more assurance, peace and confidence of knowing that God has led me. The continual affirmation of the best has been nothing short of “walking on water”. It has allowed me to have the Best that God has for me and enjoy my day to a degree that you cannot experience unless you do it.
I encourage you to use the “Good, Better, BEST” principle in your own lives not just in the lives of your children. Seek to give the Best, then you can receive and live God’s BEST for you. “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people” (Ephesians 6:7).
“I judge all things only by the price they shall gain in eternity.” ~John Wesley