I Am Not My Enneagram

Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be an epic Enneagram bashing post in which I rant and rave about how it’s somehow unbiblical and leading you down a path of apostasy/opioid addiction.

If you benefit from Enneagram test, bully for you (that phrase needs to come back).

(Note: If you’re unfamiliar, the Enneagram test is the hipper, Brooklyn-living, kombucha-drinking, artisanal pickle-making cousin of the Meyers-Briggs test. It’s a personality test.)

And for full disclosure, I haven’t actually taken the Enneagram test. Well, I did once but it was on a shady website that looked like it had been designed in MySpace.

I have, however, taken the Myers-Briggs personality test, and the results were, to put it nicely, less than flattering. According to the test, I am an INTJ, which is also what Vladimir Putin, Frederick Nietzsche, and Walter White are/were.

One website says this about INTJs:

INTJs are brilliant and confident in bodies of knowledge they have taken the time to understand, but unfortunately the social contract is unlikely to be one of those subjects. White lies and small talk are hard enough as it is for a type that craves truth and depth, but INTJs may go so far as to see many social conventions as downright stupid.

Yikes.

But there is some truth in this description, at least as it applies to me. I can be incredibly arrogant, stubborn, and hardheaded when it comes to particular subjects in which I have even the smallest amount of knowledge.

I do tend to view many social conventions as stupid, which can lead to me doing things without considering how they affect other people. And because I’m an awkward introvert, I’m not very good at small talk (okay, I’m terrible at it and I apologize to all the people I’ve made uncomfortable).

But reading this description doesn’t discourage me. Why? Because personality tests leave out one critical element: the power of the Holy Spirit working in my life. 

I am a child of God, united to Christ, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit. I am no longer a slave to sin and the old me, which had no problem with telling lies and arrogantly dismissing other people, is dead.

Every day, my personality and character are being slowly molded into the image of Jesus Christ, who supersedes all personality tests. I am being transformed from one degree of glory to another and nothing, not even the limitations of my personality, can keep God from achieving his purposes in my life.

To be clear, I think personality tests can be helpful in some ways. They can give us more understanding of who we are and what makes us tick. But I tend to view them the same way I view secular psychologists and therapists: very good at making observations but unable to provide a true solution. 

In other words, God has given many non-Christians great amounts of wisdom when it comes to understanding human behavior. I have really benefited from reading people like Brene Brown (not sure if she’s a Christian) and recommend her books to people.

However, personality tests and secular psychologists don’t understand the glorious reality of the Triune God dwelling in me. I am not ultimately defined by my personality, family history, biology, or anything else. My identity is in Christ, and that changes everything.

There are strengths and weaknesses to my personality. And the reality is that I’m probably not going to turn into a flamboyant extrovert who enjoys schmoozing people.

But my Enneagram number or Myers-Briggs type don’t define me. Christ defines me and he’s not done working on me.

Stephen Altrogge is a writer, pastor, and knows a lot about Star Wars. Find out more at The Blazing Center.

This article originally appeared on The Blazing Center. Used with permission.

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