Who am I? Where do I belong? It is a question that everyone asks in some form at some point in their lives.
There are many tests out there that can help you determine.
A few times, I have taken a Myers-Briggs test for the places I’ve worked. The Myers-Briggs tests people on how they perceive the world and make decisions. According to the Myers-Briggs test, I am an ISFJ. An Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judgement. All of my percentages between Sensing/Intuition, Feeling/Thinking and Judgement/Perception were very low.... like they could go either way.
My Introverted score was off the chart.
Other ISFJ’s according to a website I looked up, include Mother Theresa, Michael Jordan, Robert E Lee (my great-great grandfather’s Uncle) and OJ Simpson. According the website, my career should be a nurse, a secretary or a researcher. Three things that I don’t think I could handle. At all.
There are also goofy tests out there, if you are on Facebook you see them all the time. Like Which Muppet Are You? I scored a tie between Gonzo and Kermit. The tie-breaking question gave me an edge to Gonzo. What does that say about me? I don’t know, I’ll allow you to make those conclusions.
There are also tests out there to determine your Spiritual Gifts. I’ve taken many of these, and for fun I took a few yesterday online, some were better than others. In all of them, I scored the highest in Teaching, Prophecy and Evangelism. This is pretty accurate to my experience and what I do. I scored the lowest in Hospitality and Pastoral Care. This is also pretty accurate to who I am and what I do. One of my former Rectors used to joke that he had a Black Belt in Pastoral Care. He tended to chop right to the heart of an issue instead of empathize and work through issues with people. I can be the same way most of the time.
There is a scene in the movie Rocky where Rocky is talking to Paulie about Paulie’s sister, who Rocky likes.
Paulie: [talking about Adrian] You like her? Rocky: Sure, I like her. Paulie: What's the attraction? Rocky: I dunno... she fills gaps.
Paulie: What's 'gaps'? Rocky: I dunno, she's got gaps, I got gaps, together we fill gaps.
This is a picture of what Paul is talking about today in 1 Corinthians reading. We all have a place in the body of Christ. Some of teachers, some miracle workers, some with the gifts of healing or administration. None of us can do it all. My next lowest score on the test was Administration. You can talk to Cynthia Cudgel, who helps me out in that area. She can testify to that.
The key to any of these tests is to BE HONEST IN YOUR ANSWERS. If it says True or False: I am a cheerful giver, and you are not, put FALSE! Don’t put true just because you think you SHOULD be.
When it says “Do you enjoy having strangers in your house” I put no. I don’t enjoy that! I’m not very good at pretending to like someone that I don’t! Some of you may sense that in me.
When Jesus read the scroll of Isaiah in the synagogue he was honest with them. The reading was talking about him!
The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
At first, they were impressed with him, then, as he continued being honest, next week we’ll see that they wanted to throw him off a cliff!
In our society, sometimes being truthful about who we are is looked down on. It isn’t always politically correct. When I have found myself in the position of having to look for a job, Robyn sometimes gets nervous about how honest I am on my resume and in interviews. I don’t hide the fact that I have tattoos. I’m not ashamed of them, in fact, as you heard last month they can be used, and are in fact intended to be evangelism tools. I’ve told churches up front that I am not a fun-loving, extroverted, life-of-the- party youth minister that everyone likes. Its just not me. But when I develop relationships with people, youth or adults, they are often deep and meaningful.
Some people can walk on their hands, but it is not practical. I can pick things up with my toes, but you probably wouldn’t want to shake my bare foot at the peace.
God doesn’t call us to be something that we are not, he calls us to fit in where we were created to be. A liver isn’t very exciting most of the time, but you can’t live without one.
A brain without a heart can make some pretty harsh seeming decisions. A heart without a brain can make some foolish ones.
Its only when all the pieces work together, each doing what they are supposed to, following the example of Christ, that the church can operate in a healthy way.
If you would like to take the test to see what your spiritual gifts are and where you could serve, I’ve posted a link on the youth website, which you can find off of the St Luke’s website. I encourage you to take the test, see where you fit, and lets all work together to grow the body of Christ.
There are many tests out there that can help you determine.
A few times, I have taken a Myers-Briggs test for the places I’ve worked. The Myers-Briggs tests people on how they perceive the world and make decisions. According to the Myers-Briggs test, I am an ISFJ. An Introverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judgement. All of my percentages between Sensing/Intuition, Feeling/Thinking and Judgement/Perception were very low.... like they could go either way.
My Introverted score was off the chart.
Other ISFJ’s according to a website I looked up, include Mother Theresa, Michael Jordan, Robert E Lee (my great-great grandfather’s Uncle) and OJ Simpson. According the website, my career should be a nurse, a secretary or a researcher. Three things that I don’t think I could handle. At all.
There are also goofy tests out there, if you are on Facebook you see them all the time. Like Which Muppet Are You? I scored a tie between Gonzo and Kermit. The tie-breaking question gave me an edge to Gonzo. What does that say about me? I don’t know, I’ll allow you to make those conclusions.
There are also tests out there to determine your Spiritual Gifts. I’ve taken many of these, and for fun I took a few yesterday online, some were better than others. In all of them, I scored the highest in Teaching, Prophecy and Evangelism. This is pretty accurate to my experience and what I do. I scored the lowest in Hospitality and Pastoral Care. This is also pretty accurate to who I am and what I do. One of my former Rectors used to joke that he had a Black Belt in Pastoral Care. He tended to chop right to the heart of an issue instead of empathize and work through issues with people. I can be the same way most of the time.
There is a scene in the movie Rocky where Rocky is talking to Paulie about Paulie’s sister, who Rocky likes.
Paulie: [talking about Adrian] You like her? Rocky: Sure, I like her. Paulie: What's the attraction? Rocky: I dunno... she fills gaps.
Paulie: What's 'gaps'? Rocky: I dunno, she's got gaps, I got gaps, together we fill gaps.
This is a picture of what Paul is talking about today in 1 Corinthians reading. We all have a place in the body of Christ. Some of teachers, some miracle workers, some with the gifts of healing or administration. None of us can do it all. My next lowest score on the test was Administration. You can talk to Cynthia Cudgel, who helps me out in that area. She can testify to that.
The key to any of these tests is to BE HONEST IN YOUR ANSWERS. If it says True or False: I am a cheerful giver, and you are not, put FALSE! Don’t put true just because you think you SHOULD be.
When it says “Do you enjoy having strangers in your house” I put no. I don’t enjoy that! I’m not very good at pretending to like someone that I don’t! Some of you may sense that in me.
When Jesus read the scroll of Isaiah in the synagogue he was honest with them. The reading was talking about him!
The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,
19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
At first, they were impressed with him, then, as he continued being honest, next week we’ll see that they wanted to throw him off a cliff!
In our society, sometimes being truthful about who we are is looked down on. It isn’t always politically correct. When I have found myself in the position of having to look for a job, Robyn sometimes gets nervous about how honest I am on my resume and in interviews. I don’t hide the fact that I have tattoos. I’m not ashamed of them, in fact, as you heard last month they can be used, and are in fact intended to be evangelism tools. I’ve told churches up front that I am not a fun-loving, extroverted, life-of-the- party youth minister that everyone likes. Its just not me. But when I develop relationships with people, youth or adults, they are often deep and meaningful.
Some people can walk on their hands, but it is not practical. I can pick things up with my toes, but you probably wouldn’t want to shake my bare foot at the peace.
God doesn’t call us to be something that we are not, he calls us to fit in where we were created to be. A liver isn’t very exciting most of the time, but you can’t live without one.
A brain without a heart can make some pretty harsh seeming decisions. A heart without a brain can make some foolish ones.
Its only when all the pieces work together, each doing what they are supposed to, following the example of Christ, that the church can operate in a healthy way.
If you would like to take the test to see what your spiritual gifts are and where you could serve, I’ve posted a link on the youth website, which you can find off of the St Luke’s website. I encourage you to take the test, see where you fit, and lets all work together to grow the body of Christ.
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