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In This Issue...
Articles
- A Theology of Humor by Cheryl Taylor
- Ministering With Humor by Stephanie Nance
- Christian Leaders Having Fun? by Pam Morton with Kathy Jingling
- The Health Benefits of Humor and Laughter by Dwenda Gjerdingen, MD, MS
Resources
Book Reviews
- Anatomy of an Illness by Norman Cousins
- The Purse-Driven Life by Anita Renfroe
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Who am I? Who are you?
Understanding Personality Types in Ministry
By Shirley Shedd
Shirley Shedd is professor emeritus of communication from Evangel University (Springfield, Missouri) where she taught and advised the weekly college newspaper for 25 years. She is currently a freelance editor and writer as well as an adjunct professor at Evangel. She has been active in lay church ministry for more than 50 years including teaching Sunday school from the primary grades to senior adults, serving as Missionettes coordinator for 20 years, and speaking at various retreats.She has three adult children and eight grandchildren. Her passions are writing, reading, traveling, and taking photos.
"Are you melancholy?"
"Hmm. Well, I don't feel particularly sad, so I guess I'm not."
However, the questioner may not have been inquiring as to your happiness quotient, but may have been trying to identify your personality type.
In today's "self-actualization" society, we all want to find ways to understand ourselves — and others — better. A quick Google search for the "four main personality types" will yield at least 2,050 possible sources with widely varying lists, including categorizing people by colors such as red, blue, yellow, and green.
Florence Littauer, well-known Christian speaker and author, has tackled this topic in her book, Personality Plus. Littauer uses the more classic terms for personality types: choleric, melancholy, sanguine, and phlegmatic. Probably many of us would have trouble pronouncing these words let alone being able to identify them.
In today's "self-actualization" society, we all want to find ways to understand ourselves — and others — better.
In a review of Littauer's book, Amy Storer-Scalia gives this summary of the personality types:
Choleric: This is the commander type. Cholerics are dominant, strong, decisive, stubborn, and even arrogant.
Melancholy: This is the mental type. Their typical behavior involves thinking, assessing, making lists, evaluating the positives and negatives, and general analysis of facts.
Sanguine: This is the social type. They enjoy fun, socializing, chatting, telling stories — and are fond of promising the world because that's the friendly thing to do.
Phlegmatic: This is the flat type. They are indifferent, unexcitable, and relaxed.
In looking over this list, you may be thinking, "I have a little bit of all these types in my personality." You aren't alone. Most of us are a combination of the traits — and that may even vary depending on circumstances, time of day, and both external and internal pressures.
Doris Loida Espinoza, who has served in ministry for almost 40 years, described her personality in this way: " 'C" and 'M' are two consonants that seem so apart in the alphabet, yet combined with the right vowels and other consonants they create a wonderful avenue of communication. In this case the 'C' stands for Choleric and the 'M' for Melancholy. I've often looked into the mirror and realized both the goodness and mercy of God."
She explains, "I have seen God's hand placing me in situations here and abroad where choleric determination and grit were needed ingredients for prompt decisions. Other times the melancholy fragrances were required for long-range planning. Unexpected changes in travel, lodging, and events have all been instrumental in redefining my choleric and melancholy personality. God's sense of humor has been evident as friends and companions have looked at me with inquisitiveness while others have laughed at my surprising statements and actions."
A caution — don't try to overanalyze yourself. In fact, Littauer, in her Personality Plus system, is more concerned about the implications these personality types could have on group interactions. A dominant, energetic choleric, for example, may be frustrated because a phlegmatic does not see the need for getting all worked up about pursuing a certain course of action, right now.
There are a number of personality tests — some scholarly and some more whimsical — that can help ministry leaders better understand those with whom they are working.
Marcae Robertson and her husband, Dr. Nick Robertson, are AGWM missionaries in North India. Their focus is church planting. Marcae says that melancholic is her predominant type with a good bit of sanguine thrown in.
For her, "both the melancholic and the sanguine help with itineration. My being melancholic definitely helps with being organized, systematic, having a plan, etc. The sanguine helps with relating to people and just making connections with people as we travel."
Jennifer Gale, associate pastor at Evangel Temple in Springfield, Missouri, is a self-proclaimed phlegmatic, although others may not agree with that designation of her personality. She says, "Being a phlegmatic is great for having long-term loyalty and getting along with people, but horrible when it comes to decision making!"
Especially in ministry, it is important to be able to work with many people in a variety of situations. Those in leadership should be sensitive to the fact that a choleric and a phlegmatic may not work well together on a project. On the other hand, they may be able to complement each other and actually produce a better result as the phlegmatic may be pushed beyond her comfort zone by an enthusiastic choleric who, on the other hand, may be tempered by the easy-going, even-tempered phlegmatic.
Loida points out that "whatever the mixture of feelings and inner motives God has placed inside of us, He is sure to refine and even recycle our lives and ministry. Look into a mirror and always remember: whether you are choleric, melancholy, sanguine, phlegmatic, or a combination of any of these, 'He's still working on me, to make me what I ought to be!' "
Although we may be able to identify some of these personality types from just observation, there are a number of personality tests — some scholarly and some more whimsical — that can help ministry leaders better understand those with whom they are working. Retreats are a good place to administer such tests in a non-threatening atmosphere. Providing time for discussion and interaction after the test can give the participants insight into their own personalities and help them understand their fellow workers better.
Women in ministry can use these insights to capitalize on the strengths of their own personalities while also helping them confront aspects of their personalities that may need modification to become godly, empathetic leaders.
Marcae cautions, "We must not expect others to be just like we are. When they do not act or think like us, we should not feel superior and pray for God to change them to be like we are. God has given each of us, not only our intellectual makeup, talents, and spiritual gifts, but He has given us our personalities. And God does all things for a purpose. As 1 Corinthians 12 relates, we are all unique parts that blend together to create the body of Christ."
"On the field," Marcae continues, "I have seen melancholic missionaries grow disgruntled with sanguines. The sanguines are throwing out ideas, socializing, talking, and promising the moon to everyone. The melancholics are trying to rein the sanguines in, asking, 'Just how are you going to get all this done? What is your plan?' How much better when we learn to appreciate and respect our differences and see how together we can create a richness that would not exist apart from each other — a richness that makes it possible to see every individual on the planet--whether choleric, melancholic, sanguine, or phlegmatic — reach with the love of Christ."
