If you know Latin you know this essentially means: “I don’t work, therefore I think.” It is a play on a phrase you may know, “cogito ergo sum,” or, “I think, therefore I am.”
I will not take the time to elaborate on the more famous phrase by Descartes as this is a blog article and not a philosophy text. But my phrase, given to me by former student and friend John Seago, has a particular meaning I hope to unpack. (Shout out to Brandy Seago and little Nahum as well!)
What do I mean by “non laboro ergo cogito?” We live excessively busy lives. Sometimes we Christ-followers live as though busyness marks our godliness: the more crowded our calendar, the more like Jesus, we imply. I think part of this comes from our American culture. After all, how many other nations have a Mount RUSHmore? If you go to a third world country you see life moving at a much slower pace. But friendship can be made very quickly, and deep friendships at that. But in the West, life moves at an accelerated pace. Connections are easily made, but deep friendships seem much harder to find.
I think part of the problem of our excessive pace is theological. We affirm that salvation comes by grace through faith, but we act as though our sanctification comes by the number of activities in which we participate. This surely misses the fact that the gospel guides not only the unbeliever to Christ, but also guides the believer as he or she follows Christ. If one generation thought cleanliness leads to godliness, we seem to think busyness leads to godliness.
Regardless the reason, the point in my little Latin phrase is this: we do not value the importance of time set aside simply to think. The first time I took a six-month sabbatical I had been teaching for a long time, both at Houston Baptist University and my early years at Southeastern. I had developed a routine of teaching, speaking in churches, and writing, a rhythm if you will. But when I took the sabbatical, I actually had time to, well, just think. Yes, I worked on a writing project and new lectures. I read a lot of books. But for the first time in a long time I took some lengthy times on certain days with no agenda but to think.
The mind truly is a terrible thing to waste. And sometimes the best thing we can do is to get off the ferris wheel of a busy life and think. Not to sit around like a snotty snob and imagine our superiority because we fancy ourselves to be thinkers. And certainly some people sit around and think too much and do too little. But that does not seem to be my problem.
Sometime take a Bible, a notebook, and a pen. Go to a place where you are not easily distracted. CUT OFF YOUR PHONE. Just read and think. It may seem hard at first. An activist by nature like me has to be trained to do this. I love rigorous activity, am passionate about time with people, and find sitting still to be contemplative grates against my nature. But I also find that when I take time to do so it gives me perspective I can find no other way.
When do you take time simply to think? No agenda, no huge goal, no book to write, sermon to prepare, test to master, or crisis to conquer. Just think, about life, about what matters. Think about the gospel and what you are doing with your life.
If we are honest we know how easy it is to get other’s opinions about a decision we must make than to get away, clear our minds, and think for ourselves. Sometimes I think our desire to “seek wise counsel” is a disguise for the shallowness of our own ability to hear the voice of God speaking into our lives. We need others, but we need to hear from God more.
Taking time to think gives fresh perspective: you realize how much you are given to foolish things, to petty things, to things that may seem really important, but that actually matter very little. You can think not only about the immediate things in your life but also about the trajectory of life. You can step away from a situation pressing in on your life and think holistically about it. You can evaluate relationships and value cherished relationships afresh.
So sometime, stop doing. Instead, think. You may find you actually get more done as a result. Remember our great God tells us to be still and know that He is God.
