It’s wonderful how different we all are from one another. Some of us are deeply reflective, others of us are activists with a new idea always bubbling around – some of us natural optimists, others of us rather more attentive to the things in life that can go wrong. When God “knit us together in our mother’s womb” he did not make us one size fits all, he created a veritable smorgasbord of personalities among his people. These creational tendencies are neither good nor bad. All personality traits can be turned to God-glorifying service or self-focused indulgence; they are simply the natural temperaments – the raw material – that the Lord has given us all.
The church needs people of all personalities – and not just in the ways we might imagine. We are probably all familiar with the creative church planter, the detail-driven administrator with responsibility for governance, the exuberant leader of sung worship but these, whilst beautiful, can end up being very narrow expressions of how our temperament might play out in the local church. Think for a moment about biblical counsellors – or those involved in more informal conversational ministry in the local church – that role is not reserved for a particular personality type. We need both naturally reflective and activistic – creative and logical – quiet and chatty individuals to be walking alongside others well.
It can’t be me
Why is it worth saying that people of all personalities are needed? Because there can be a tendency in the human heart to say, “that could never be me”. We look at a role, look at our personalities, see that there may be challenges ahead and say, “no – I can’t do that”. And that tendency can rob the church of the people who really could be wonderful in serving others well.
Take a look at some biblical characters. Moses was really not an up-front person – the thought of speaking in public filled him with dread, we’re not quite sure of what lay behind that fear, but Exodus 6 makes it clear. Yet, he was enabled by God to be the Lord’s messenger and led a nation to freedom. Gideon was a pretty timid individual it seems (Judges 6) but still he was able to step up and lead. David was quite a confident young lad, able to go into battle whether that was with a bear, a giant or a whole army but he was still able to write the deeply personal, emotional songs we have recorded in the book of Psalms. None of them were just working to their strengths. They weren’t doing roles that fitted their personality type all the time. They were people who said “yes” to God, followed wherever he led, and ended up serving in some surprising ways.
It shouldn’t be me
That doesn’t mean we should be unaware of our temperament. If a role crunches with our natural tendencies, it should give us pause for thought – it should cause us to enlist the wisdom of brothers and sisters we trust – and it should certainly nudge us to pray. Often, the Lord does call us to serve in ways that are consistent with the ways he has wired us. It would be folly to jump headlong into a role that doesn’t quite seem to fit if there is no indication that the Lord is leading in that direction. But exercising that wisdom is not the same as a knee-jerk, “no” – this is a prayerful discernment that is seeking God’s face. It leaves us open to the possibility that our personality is just what is going to be needed in the role to come, even if it isn’t obvious how just yet – it leaves us open to the possibility that God wants us in the role so his glory can shine through an unlikely person.
Of course, there are also some moments when personality should be the reason we say an instant “no” to a ministry role. An explosive anger – an overwhelming jealousy – a fearfulness that leads to the manipulation of others is and should always be a barrier to ministry. Personality traits out of control are a blessing to no-one – if we are in that place, seeking the help of wise friends and church leaders is a useful first step to change.
But, generally, a perceived mismatch between a godly temperament and a specific role rightly causes us to explore more not run away.
It could be me
So, what can we do? Well, it’s less about action and more about posture. It’s about having a stance before the Lord that says, “Father, you have given me this personality, you have prepared good works in advance for me to do, lead me, I trust you – I’ll follow wherever you wish me to go”. A stance like that, doesn’t try to limit God. It doesn’t assume what a situation needs or what the Lord’s plans might be. It remains attentive to our tendencies – it is alert to potential challenges – but not limited by human wisdom.
So, the next time we become aware of a need in the church – or are asked to consider a role – or are even told about a training opportunity for an area of service, let’s not default to “I couldn’t possibly” based on some understanding of our temperament. Let’s sink to our knees – call a friend – and ask the question, “Lord, could it be me?”
