We are Connected for Community
We were never intended to do life all alone, but rather in the love and company of God and each other.
There is a rhythm to everything that exists. The universe, and all that is in it. Galaxies, suns, moons, stars. Everything that is made has pattern and pace. Timing and tempo. Rhyme and reason. Can you sense it? Hear it? Feel it? Just take a look around you for a moment. The oceans ebb and flow; the seasons come and go. They have their own schedule. They keep time to a certain rhythm. And it’s not just around you. It’s in you. Pay attention to your breathing for a moment. Your lungs breathe in and breathe out some 17 to 21,000 times in a single day; and most of the time without you even knowing it. Can you feel your heartbeat? Can you hear it work? Your heart will pound (on average) anywhere from 86 to 144,000 times today. Each time, constricting and releasing, squeezing and letting go. And this pattern…this routine…this rhythm… is what sustains life. Want to get really crazy? Think about this. It’s not just the vital organs like hearts and lungs. It’s every other subtle system in your body. There is a rhythm to our blinking, our chewing, our sleeping, our waking. Even in the tiniest, unseen particles; the sub-atomic matter that courses through our bodies, and makes up our cells. That too has a schedule to keep. A rhythm to respect. Making it possible to heal wounds, regenerate skin, and even grow hair. The point? Rhythm is how you’re put together. Is it any wonder why, when life gets out of sync and we get off-beat, it feels like we’re falling apart? Think about the sheer number of commitments your family has in the span of a normal week. All of which may be valuable and completely necessary. (Or so we assume.) The kids have homework each night that must be checked. But they can’t start on it until 9:00 or so, because after school they have club duties, and then ball practice, which is every night. And by the time they get home, it’s 8:30 or later. So they choke something down for dinner, rush through their homework, and then crash in bed, all in order to get up the next morning and do it all over again. And that’s just the kids. You have your jobs, which can be, what, 50 or 60 + hours each week. Then there is taking care of the home, paying the bills, getting the groceries. Then a string of meetings to attend all through the week because of all the positions that you said yes to, which at the time sounded like a great idea 6 months ago. And you’ve got to go to the gym time…to work off the fast food you had to get on your way to those meetings. Then there’s finding time to tend the marriage. Trying to spend time with family or friends. And oh, yeah, if there’s any time left and we don’t have a tournament, we’d like to hit church at least twice this month. When Jesus said “I came so that you might have life and have it more abundantly,” is that what he had in mind? What is it that calibrates your life? Who sets the timing and adjusts the pace? How do you know if you’re moving too fast or too slow? When it’s time to start one thing or stop another? Speed things up, or slow things down? In the Bible, there is a collection of wisdom sayings entitled “Ecclesiastes.” In it, the ancient writer puts it this way: For everything there is a season, and a timing for every matter under heaven: a time to be born…and a time to die; a time to plant…and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build back up there is a time to weep…but there is also a time to laugh; a time to mourn, yes…but also a time to dance. a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace (to hold on tight to the ones we love), and a time to refrain from embracing; (to not hold on so tight) a time to seek… lose; to keep…to throw away; a time to tear…to sew; to speak and to keep silent. a time for love, for hate; for war, for peace. There is a rhythm that makes sense; a tempo that gives life. And it can be learned. Jesus said, “come to me all of you who are weary and carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Here is a link to “The Greatest Temptation of All” – Part 1 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Twos” – Part 2 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Threes” – Part 3 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
2. While the superpower of a Three is this drive to succeed, this super power comes with a “kryptonite” that can cripple them. The Kryptonite is the “deadly sin” of deceit. Not that Threes are necessarily liars…but rather, they are so good at “shape-shifting” and positioning themselves in order to win, they often deceive themselves about who they really are and what they really feel. Question: If gone unchecked, what impact would this pattern have on a Three?
3. The Biblical character we studied on Sunday was the “Rich, Young, Ruler.” He runs up to Jesus and asks the ultimate Three-question: “What must I do…” In the sermon, I said, “Threes may have the hardest time of all remembering that we were created to be human BEINGS, and not just human DOINGS.” Why is this a struggle for Threes?
4. We usually relate this Biblical story to wealth or materialism. But what if it’s not? Jesus told him the one thing he lacks is to sell it all…to rid himself of all trophies and evidences of his success. We are told he then walks away sad. Looking at this story through the lens of the Enneagram, how do you read this part of the story?
5. The wounding message that Threes carry within is ” It’s not okay to have your own feelings and your own identity.” The healing message Threes need to hear is “You are loved for yourself (for who you are and not for what you do).” Do you have any Threes in your life? How might you offer them the gift of hearing the healing message that they are loved for WHO they are, and not what they do?
Here is a link to “Fours” – Part 4 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Fives” – Part 5 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Sixes” – Part 6 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Sevens” – Part 7 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Eights” – Part 8 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Nines” – Part 9 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
Here is a link to “Ones” – Part 10 of Me, Myself and Why. If you are gathering with friends or family, share this link, and toss out one or two of these questions for discussion…
You were born because God thought you were a good idea.
You–with all your strengths, weaknesses, quirks, and idiosyncrasies.
You were fearfully and wonderfully made—in the holy image of God.
(And, for what it’s worth–you still are.)
Live long enough, however, and you begin to wonder.
If I am so fearfully and wonderfully made in God’s own image, then why do I do the things I do?
Why do I keep falling into the same traps, repeating the same self-defeating patterns of behavior?
When asked what was the greatest of all commandments, Jesus said “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-38)
But what do you do when engrained patterns of behavior get in the way of even your best efforts to love God, love others, or even love yourself?
For millions of Christians throughout the ages, one powerful tool in understanding our own behaviors and hidden motivations is the study of the Enneagram.
The Enneagram is an ancient personality typing system–but it is far more than that.
It is a lens through which to observe your own life, and in the light of nonjudgmental self-observation, recognize the engrained patterns that keep us from living freely and loving fully, as God intended.
For this pastor, I can say with confidence that no other resource outside sacred scripture has been as fruitful in my own spiritual journey with Christ and in my personal relationships with family and friends as the Enneagram.
That is why, beginning Sunday, February 2nd, I will begin a new sermon series entitled “Me, Myself, and Why?” Each week we will look at individuals within the Bible who seem to embody the strengths and weaknesses of each particular Enneagram number. We will consider the particular wounding messages that we carry around with us, and proclaim the healing message each number needs to hear in order to live freely and love fully, as God intended.