As I sit here at Metro Hospital in Grand Rapids this afternoon with my Orthopedic Doctor son (who ironically just underwent orthopedic surgery earlier today for an old football injury that has continued to plague him), I\u2019ve been critically thinking about critical thinking. \u00a0I honestly believe that our perceptions in life direct our pathway through life.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0As a counselor, I\u2019ve worked a lot with people with issues and perspectives that are so out of whack that I\u2019ve often shared with them they are a victim of \u2018stinkin\u2019 thinkin\u2019.\u00a0 Basically, stinkin\u2019thinkin\u2019 is the opposite of critical thinking, as it is thinking through a skewed concept of the world and is definitely not critical thinking, as described in our reading this week.<\/p>\n
Helping individuals to change their perspective and\/or perception is easier said than done.\u00a0 I have always looked for \u2018the story within the story\u2019 with regards to my clients.\u00a0 I have found that the issue they come to me with is often not the issue at all, as there is usually another underlying concern.\u00a0 I have found that their perception of a situation has completely re-written the story.\u00a0 I have also found that people often have the answers already within them, but the answers are covered under negative layers of confusion, disillusion and negative thoughts.<\/p>\n
I recently met with a young lady who was racked with guilt.\u00a0 Her husband had been killed in a gunfight in Chicago many months before and she was distraught to the point of being suicidal.\u00a0 \u00a0As she shared her story, she explained that she had asked to husband to leave a gang he was involved in and when he wouldn\u2019t, she moved to her parent\u2019s home and soon after her husband was killed.\u00a0 Her perspective was that she was wrong for leaving him and that it was all her fault. \u00a0I listened for over two hours as she shared her perspective.\u00a0 \u00a0When she was done, I shared with her that at one point in the two-hour long conversation, she stated, \u201cI did what I had to do.\u201d\u00a0 By reflecting back to her and helping her \u2018hear\u2019 those words that she had spoken but never comprehended internally, she changed her perspective of the situation and began to realize that she truly did what needed to be done to protect herself and her child.\u00a0 It was through that critical analysis of the situation that she was able to change her understanding of the situation and thus more positively focus on her life.<\/p>\n
Human trafficking victims also often carry guilt that they are somehow at fault for their situation.\u00a0 They often carry a tremendous amount of shame, because they carry the blame of their failures and wear the title of VICTIM instead of SURVIVOR.\u00a0 It is my role to help the survivor to look at other systems of thought and test their perceptions, so that they can begin to empower themselves.\u00a0 Then I introduce tools and techniques to equip them for their next phase of their life. \u00a0Often, the most powerful tool for them is critical thinking.\u00a0 The authors define critical thinking as \u2018the art of analyzing and evaluating thinking with a view of improving it.\u2019[1]<\/a>\u00a0 BINGO!<\/p>\n When I first received the book, The Miniature Guide to Critical Thinking, <\/em>I thought it was a mistake or some kind of joke that Amazon was pulling on me. \u00a0\u00a0It was definitely a miniature version of what should have been a book, that\u2019s for sure. But when I checked out some reviews on it, I found out that it truly is only meant to be 23 pages long.\u00a0 What the buzz?!<\/p>\n So, I decided this was definitely a book I could read cover to cover without question.\u00a0 And I\u2019m glad I did.\u00a0 I really found the book to be both fascinating and intriguing.\u00a0 The authors provide everything you could ever want to know about critical thinking – packed into 23 pages of enlightenment!\u00a0 \u00a0I especially appreciated \u2018A Checklist for Reasoning.\u2019\u00a0 It begins with \u2018all reasoning has a purpose\u2019 and asks: \u2018does your reasoning focus completely on your ultimate goal?\u2019[2]<\/a>\u00a0 What a powerful question to ask ourselves as we journey through this crazy world called LIFE ON EARTH!\u00a0 I am trusting that God has an amazing sense of humor that combines with His grace.\u00a0 Because we\u2019ve all got some stinkin\u2019thinkin\u2019 that needs some major blessing from our Heavenly King!<\/p>\n