Know thyself

I am spending another week at Liberty Theological Seminary taking a DMin class. This class is unlike any I've ever taken. It's called "Growth and Development of the Contemporary Minister." It involves a lot of testing to help us better understand how God wired us. We've taken the Myers-Briggs, DISC, and several other temperment tests. It's been an eye-opening experience and not always a good one. Our final project will be to write a paper on where we are, where we want to be, how we can get there, and who can help us make that journey. I think it will be one of the most challenging assignments because it addresses who we are at our very core and forces us to determine if that is really who we want to be.

It's important to remember that there are no bad findings in this process. God has created each of us with the personalities and temperments we have. However, He has also called us to submit ourselves to Him and to allow His Holy Spirit access into those personalties and temperments. It is not enough to excuse our bad behavior by saying we're merely human or that is just the way we are. As believers in Christ we are to be continuously being remade into the image of God, and to do that we have to open ourselves up to Him. It can sometimes be a painful process, but it is one each of us must do if we are to grow in Christ.

These tests have shown me why I have done some of the things I've done and made some of the decisions I've made. They have also shown me why I enjoy doing certain things and why I avoid other things. My DISC scores reveal that I am perfectly suited to lead workshops and to preach, and these are things I greatly enjoy doing. They also show I will try to avoid conflict at all costs, and there are some personality issues I have that are not positive. In other words, there are things I need to work on. Just like you.

I would recommend every minister go through some testing to learn more about who you are and the opportunities that exist in your life for improvement. If you are interested in taking the DISC assessment you can do so for about $15.00 online at http://www.UniquelyYou.com. I took the test called 7 Spiritual Gifts with 4 (DISC) Personality Types. This not only showed me my DISC scores but related them to potential spiritual gifts that I might have. It was very informative.

It's time to leave the motel room for class. Let me know if you take the test and how it spoke to you.