Doing your BEST

BEST (Believe, Exercise, Study, Test). A model for making decisions and judging outcomes.

Posted by Modern Day Discipleship on December 29, 2017

Believe Exercise Study Test

Using scripture as a guide, we created the BEST (Believe, Exercise, Study, Test) decision-making model.

We invite you to try the BEST model and gauge the outcomes for yourself.

Do your BEST!


Table Of Contents

Believe

Exercise

Study

Test

How to use the BEST model

Examples


Believe

Believe in God, in Christ, and scripture. Refine beliefs using scripture, knowledge, and wisdom.

John 3:16 (ESV)
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 (ESV)
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Romans 12:2 (ESV)
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 10:17 (ESV)
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Proverbs 4:7 (ESV)
7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.

James 1:5 (ESV)
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

Proverbs‬ ‭8:12‬ ‭(ESV)
8 I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.”

‭‭ James 3:17 (ESV)
17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

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Exercise

Belief (Faith) without action (works) dies. Exercise your belief. Take action.

James 2:17 (ESV)
17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Matthew 7:7-8 (ESV)
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.

1 Corinthians 6:12 (ESV)
12 “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything.

1 Corinthians 9:25,27 (ESV)
25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 
27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.


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Study

Observe and study the results of exercising beliefs.

Proverbs 23:26 (ESV)
26 My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways.

Psalm 106:3 (ESV)
3 Blessed are they who observe justice, who do righteousness at all times!

Proverbs 21:12 (ESV)
12 The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked; he throws the wicked down to ruin.

Proverbs 23:1 (ESV)
1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler, observe carefully what is before you,

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (ESV)
4 He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap

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Test

Test the results of exercised belief.

1 Thessalonians 5:21 (ESV)
21 but test everything; hold fast what is good.

1 John 4:1 (ESV)
4 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Romans 12:2 (ESV)
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.


Am I Doing It Right?


You Will Know By The Fruits

Matthew 7:16-17,20 (ESV)
16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.
20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 (ESV)
12 I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live;
13 also that everyone should eat and drink and take pleasure in all his toil—this is God's gift to man.

Life-Giving Fruit

Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Destructive Fruit

Galatians 5:19-21 (ESV)
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,
20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,
 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

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How to use the BEST Model

Believe

Identify the belief you want to gauge the outcome for.

Identifying an underlying belief can be harder than you think, at first... Over time, with practice, being able to tease out what you believe becomes faster and easier.

Once you have identified a belief you want to gauge the outcome for, validate the belief against a source of truth, we prefer to use scripture to validate the belief.


Exercise

Once you have a belief you want to test, exercise it! All this means is to take action toward the belief. This could be as simple as talking about your belief with people, or something more involved like taking a trip to another country.

The actual action you take is not what is important; taking action is what is important.


Study

Once you have taken action, study the results.

Observe how exercising your belief impacts yourself and the environment around you, including the people around you.


Test

Once you have observed the impacts acting on your belief has made, test the results against your source of truth (we use scripture).

What kind of fruit/result did exercising the belief produce?

Was the fruit/result life-giving or destructive?

If the results were life-giving, keep exercising the belief as is.

If the results were destructive or could be improved, start the BEST process over looking to refine the belief with your source of truth (scripture). Rinse and repeat!


Table Of Contents


Examples


Believe
Refine belief
 Exercise
Take action
 Study
What was the result/fruit?
 Test
Was the result/fruit life-giving or destructive?

Belief: I should love everyone

Scripture

1 John 3:11 (ESV)
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
Take action towards understanding what love is and how to love the unlovable.
I feel and understand love.

The unlovable feel love.
Results = love = Life-Giving Fruit


Believe
Refine belief
 Exercise
Take action
 Study
What was the result/fruit?
 Test
Was the result or fruit life-giving or destructive?

Belief: I do not agree others beliefs therefore I cannot accept nor love them.

Scripture

1 John 3:11 (ESV)
11 For this is the message that you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

Luke 6:37 (ESV)
37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;

  John 12:47 (ESV) (Words of Jesus)
47 If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.


Take action towards separating from people with opposing beliefs.
Feeling divided.

Others feel judged and unwelcome.
Results = division = Destructive Fruit

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