Think is a general word meaning to exercise the mental facilities so as to form ideas, arrive at conclusions, etc. The dictionary gives a lot of meanings for the word. Here’s a few:
1. to use the mind for arriving at conclusions, making decisions, drawing inferences, etc.; reflect; reason. 2. to weigh something mentally; reflect. 3. to call to mind; recall; remember. 4. to have an opinion, judgement, etc. 5. to determine, resolve, work out, etc. by reasoning.
You know what happens sometimes? We think we’re thinking, but we’re really not thinking at all. Frequently we may simply be:
Parroting – mechanically repeating the words or acts of others, frequently without full understanding, or:
Quoting – reproducing or repeating a passage of or statement of another.
You’d think that being well educated would mean being an effective and critically thinking person, but, alas, that’s not always the case.
Beware of confusing liking with thinking. Just because we’re fond of something, or prefer something, or used to something, or belong to something isn’t the same as reflecting on, reasoning about, working out, and critically deciding about something.
And, it’s not just about things; it’s also about others. For example, we may prefer the company of and trust someone who may not be so good for us, nor so good as we may imagine.
When we were very young, we learned to accept, repeat, and obey what we were told by adults. But, as we matured and were educated, hopefully we learned to think critically about what we were told by or learned from others.
Others includes, for example, family members, friends, neighbors, colleagues, even doctors, lawyers, officials, newscasters, preachers, teachers, and authors.
When you read, hear, and/or view the daily news, think! When you listen to “experts”, think! When your doctor prescribes for you, think! When someone gives you financial advice, think! When you’re shopping, think. When, you’re betting, think! When you’re proposing, think! When you’re listening to a sermon in church, think! When you’re reading a book, even the Bible, think!
No parroting or quoting. No “deference to authority”. No blind obedience. No unreflective decision making. No being swayed by desires, hopes, and fears. Mature adult people think!
It doesn’t mean that you always get it right. You can think you’re thinking something through completely and adequately, but you may be wrong. The solution: rethink!
There are some things that no amount of thinking can resolve or fully understand, but which still require making decisions and choices. That’s okay.
There is a role for trusting the judgement and insight of another, especially an older, wiser, more experienced other. There are times where choices are required in situations where you can’t think it out alone.
You know an important area where this is the case? Religion, especially belief, faith, and trust. It’s not inappropriate to act on faith and trust, if you have thought things out to the limits of your ability and experience—but it may be inappropriate if you first didn’t bother to think things out as best you could.
God gave us eyes, ears, and a brain to think with and intervenes in our lives more than we fully realized or thought!
Think about that!
16 October 2022