I either have a secret tracking device or a tattoo across my forehead that says ‘easy target.’ I’m a freakish magnet for freakishly complicated people and their “can-I-just-ask-you-a-quick-question?” predicaments. I might as well be Ask Eloise with less gray hair and a nonexistent pearl necklace collection. And ALL the southern women gasped.
- If my second toe is longer than my big toe, does that really mean I’m bossy?
- Can you try this on? My granddaughter is about your size. She’s twelve.
- I think my friend is stealing money from work. What should I do?
- If telling the truth will hurt them and lying will hurt them, can I just do nothing?
- What color underwear should I wear on a date? What style?
- Should I marry him?
- Should I follow my dreams or should I go to college?
In most situations the advice seeker boils their gobs and gobs of gory details down to this singular question: “What’s the right thing for me to do?”
Uh. Could there be a more horrific question?
This is the moment where I muster up something that makes me sound as spiritual as they perceive I am; “Have you prayed about it?” followed by an arduous monologue about right and wrong. Sure, there are plenty of things the Bible tells us are right. Of course we can rattle off the Fruit of the Spirit, can’t we? Yes, there are lots of things the Bible speaks specifically against. Have you seen Charlton Heston in all of his Ten Commandments glory?
Most of the time we meander our way into a Biblically sound solution. But sometimes there isn’t a black and white ‘God-wants-you-to-do-this’ fix. So friends, can we just go ahead and address the fact that sometimes things are still kind of really, really gray? I mean, life’s messy and the perfectly ‘right’ answer seems as attainable as closeups of Big Foot.
And that’s when I launch my most sincere inquiry to date:
“What Would Jesus Do?”
C’mon, people. No. I threw away my navy WWJD bracelet the summer between seventh and eighth grades. Right after kids started inserting other J words: junipers, Jews, jaguars, Judge Judy, and jerky.
Absolutely. You know, “What Would Jerky Do?” really does have a nice ring to it.
No, my go-to question has become this: “What’s the wise thing for you to do?” Because somehow ‘wise’ splits the right or wrong argument like a river gorge. Wisdom soothes and heals as it seeps into broken, messed-up situations. Wisdom brings clarity. And it’s accessible.
If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him.
James 1:5
So instead of asking, “Is this right or wrong?” let’s ask “What’s the wise thing to do?” And while we’re at it, let’s ask for wisdom. Heaps of it. Because I’ve got to find a way to tell my retired neighbor that his bird feeder obsession is the reason I keep finding sunflower seeds in my bedroom carpet. It’s driving me cray-cray.
love, allison 