It seemed like a no-brainer to me.
A good friend had been offered a very lucrative opportunity that did not appear to have any downside. The salary would be better. There was more growth potential. His daily drive to the office every morning would be cut in half. Why would he not accept this new job?
As I aggressively pressed him to take the position, he halted my hyper-ambitiousness. “I need to sit on it awhile and let it ruminate,” he calmly replied. My initial response was one of disbelief and disgust. He needed to act now or he may miss out on this golden opportunity.
But upon further reflection, I decided his patient deliberation was the wiser course. I decided that rumination is a lost art in our culture of immediacy. I wondered if rumination might be appropriate before we agree to the marriage. I wondered if rumination might guide us in speaking more positively to our children. I wondered if rumination might provide clarity when we are offered what appears to be a no-brainer. In the decisive moments of life, sometimes our aggressiveness gets the best of us and we charge forward. However, we must remember that nothing is ever accomplished in a stampede.
Jesus was a master in the practice of rumination. Before he chose his twelve disciples, before he faced the wrath of Pontius Pilate, as he grieved the death of his cousin, John the Baptist- in those times of stress and uncertainty, Jesus retreated to a private place to ruminate.
Perhaps that is why God constructed us as we are. Even no-brainers require the use of our brain.
Ponderings 