Wisdom In Questions
I have noticed over the years that the best ministers are not those who provide the best answers but ask the best questions. Over and over again, a young minister, like myself, as this has happened to me over and over again, will give the best answers to situations or dilemmas. The young dude will wax on some topic with his great wisdom. He will give all of the answers and thoughts that he has on the issue. And you sit back and listen. But those who are the best in minister realize that wisdom is found in asking the right questions instead. An answer is easy, a question is mature. This is why the best coaches in ministry are those who ask the congregation the right stuff, or the elders the right stuff. It is easy to give an answer, but much of ministry is done with a complexity that really a quick answer is not good enough. A question helps people to contextualize the situation for themselves, but an answer might be good in one congregational setting but not in another. You will have a different leadership dynamic, you are a different leader, there is so much that weights in on the choice that someone just giving you an answer never really is going to hit the nail on the head. So the next time someone asks you for your advice, stop and ask some questions first. Help them to process the situation themselves, for wisdom is asking the right question more than providing the right answer.
Related posts:
- Read “Preaching Biblical Wisdom in a Self-Help Society”
- Wrong Questions
- Proverbs, Wisdom, and the Wicked Woman
- Reflection on Wisdom and Moral Formation and Tennessee Football
- Read “Troubling Questions for Calvinists”
About The Author
1. How would this play out in an auditorium class setting?
2. How might this work into a sermon?
3. What weaknesses do you find in using questions?
Great points by the way.
Thanks Matthew, good points. During my radio/tv news years I learned that one of the best questions is “How do you know?” Applied to teaching it causes us to examine our own knowledge base and see how it aligns with God.
One question: Who supplies the answers and from where do we get those answers?
Bryant
Thanks for the comments guys. I feel like I should ask a question tough, hope you see the humor in that. Scott, 1. Before I answer, I like to make sure I ask the person first what they are thinking. Often there is a motivation underneath the question, I want to know the motivation first. 2. Through induction preaching, it holds the worshiper longer, and the truth that is discovered is internalized. An answer is something that people accept or reject, but a question causes the person to process it themselves. 3. Somethings are right and wrong, and those who never come to an conclusion are just being to open minded. If someone asks, Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, I say yes, but I would also like to know why they are asking me this.
Bryant. I like your question. And to answer you, if you are talking about a religious context, I will be happy to say “The Bible”. Also, answers come from experience, and education, mostly you try to pull from all of life, and this creates better questions.
Thanks for the thoughts guys.