Pick Your Priorities

Divorce, separation, family breakup, heartache, looking back on life with much regret.  These are a few of the things Andy Stanley is hoping to save today’s families from.

Basically the author points out what we all know:  there are only so many hours in the day.  Unfortunately, a lot of us would like to squeeze at least 36 hours of life into those 24 hours.  Since that won’t work, something is always going to be shortchanged.  Andy Stanley’s basic premise is:  if something is shortchanged while trying to accomplish more than there is time for, the family should not be picked for the sacrifice.

Stanley asserts that no matter how supportive and understanding a family is about being constantly shortchanged, resentments will start to fester.  Given time, even if logically the mind’s of the people in the family know that they are being given the short-end-of-the-stick for an ultimate good, the heart of the family will start to break.  Hurt feelings, anger, feelings of abandonment, and other negative aspects will start tearing apart the heart’s of the family members.  And if it goes on very long, the damage may not be undone.

Stanley gives us some interesting examples from his own life.  He also includes some true-life stories of people who have found themselves on the brink of, or even already breaking their families up–and what became of them.  Stanley offers some concrete suggestions for making the craziness of life stop, based on Daniel of the Old Testament.   Daniel had some formidable situations in his own life–such as a king who renamed him after an idol, and insisted Daniel eat the food that was sacrificed to that same idol.  Stanley makes some impressive parallels from Daniel’s story of old, and our problems of today.

If your life seems to be overwhelming you, pick this up for some pointers on changing.  This book is one that is easy and quick to read, which in my opinion is the perfect type of self-help tool.  You can quickly get to the main points, and try to put them into action in your own life.  I enjoyed reading it.

The publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book through WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for the purpose of review. All opinions expressed are my own, and I have not been compensated in any other manner.