In summer of 2017 I was unknowingly walking through some emotional trauma. The person I was still yet unaware of creating and fueling all that drama and chaos had actually mentioned the enneagram (for that I will always be thankful). which I’d never before heard of, with a dismissive “you’re too analytical so it won’t be helpful to you”. Just a few weeks later as I navigated discipling a student with a frustrated and weary parent, the parent mentioned the enneagram to me and turned out to be a huge enthusiast. As it had just been discouraged by someone whose influence in my life I’d started pushing back against, I was curious to explore more. At the time I was interested but overwhelmed by what was going on in my life and because of all the anxiety, manipulation and gaslighting I was experiencing surrounding the situation I was all over the place- testing and seeming to land between 3 numbers that didn't fully resonate with me but looked like me, while feeling like another had a sense of familiarity although I wasn't showing up that way. So I pushed it aside as I worked on the resources God was providing for me to move on and grow through the situation I’d just come away from. That spring I was telling another parent about my summer plans and she asked, 'Do you know about the enneagram? I really think you're a ____". I'd already taught another one of her kids, known her for several years, and what she described seemed familiar to me. She mentioned Annie Downs' That Sounds Fun EnneaSummer podcast series and encouraged me to give it a listen. I still wasn't sure about it since I'd been so confused before but I thought, "why not give it another go?”.
I was really intrigued after listening to the first episode with Suzanne Stabile. I followed up the podcast series by reading Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile's The Road Back to You. I was floored when I heard my story being told and it echoed SO much of what I had learned about myself and how I was trained to embrace Christ's truths to live more fully in this world through my counseling courses. I'm still not unconvinced that my professor and counseling trainers weren't closet enneagram enthusiasts! After hearing the episode featuring Beth McCord (of Your Enneagram Coach) and the way she explained that looking at the enneagram through the lens of the Gospel allows you to more accurately and clearly see your thinking, feeling and behavior patterns in light of your core fears and desires which enables you to turn to the ways Christ speaks into this to harness and transformative, life-enhancing personal empowerment I was pretty much on board. I took the Your Enneagram Coach online test, and devoured about 4 other enneagram books in a month!😆 When I sheepishly mentioned my new discoveries and interest to my therapist she was so excited because of her own belief that it is a powerful tool for growth and development! She confirmed the number that now resonated so strongly with me (the same number the parent who’d known me since I moved here was also convinced I am). As it turns out, 2 of the numbers I thought I previously might have been were numbers that constantly deal with anxiety, deep sorrow and emotional distress (all the things I was experiencing at the time I‘d first encountered the enneagram) and the other was the number I go to when I'm in stress. It all made so much sense at that point! All that to say I'm a huge fan of finding yourself in the enneagram framed through the Gospel and how it encourages you to see and accept the very real and different ways others see the world so you can respond to them with patience, compassion, and understanding.
I’m kind of late to the game but I recently started listening to Beth and Jeff McCord's enneagram podcasts starting with the one on Understanding Ourselves and Each Other in a Pandemic (linked here in case it’s not embedded properly in my post). I do think there is something unique about the pandemic (in the US anyway) in how politically polarizing it is proving to be. As I listened, I know some folks who didn’t respond quite in the ways described. Some 1s see others not following the rules and procedures and unnecessarily hoarding from others who need them as infuriating injustices while others feel the financial loss, the feeling that citizens aren’t experiencing their freedoms and personal liberties as new mandates are placed on them as the greater injustice and more important rule not being followed. Some 8s are fighting to do all the things to make sure their loved ones are protected from succumbing to the virus and not separated by illness or death. To them the virus’ physical effects, negligence of others and fractured and confusing governmental response is the enemy. For others their reactions are focused on fighting for themselves and loved ones against the injustice of being denied the opportunity to go to work and other places they feel are needed to take care of themselves financially, physically, emotionally, or professionally. They see the restrictions and interference of the government as the enemy that many need to be protected from.
That being said, I really appreciated Beth and Jeff pointing out that at their core there’s a lot of nobility, integrity and wisdom that comes from 1s as this pandemic stresses them out because they want folks to be safe and healthy (be it physically, emotionally, or financially). For 8s there’s a desire for those close to them to stay safe, not blindsided, or at the mercy of corrupt government (whether it’s a government they believe is being negligent and chaotic or strong-handed and invasive). I LOVED this podcast because it helped me see in the midst of my greatest frustrations in this pandemic, that regardless of which political perspective my friends land on and how that fuels and influences their responses, and despite whether it’s the same or different from my own, when I consider where their hearts are coming from in the helpful ways their core fears and desires are pointed out it gives me grace and patience in my interactions with them.
At the time of recording the Exploring You course was being sold at a 67% discount and there was a 50% discount for the Becoming Us (for couples) course. Not sure if those discountss are still in effect but I think it'd be good to at least check out the free type assessment and make the use of the space and slow pace this situation is giving us to learn more about yourself and how you can grow through what’s going on right now. Many of Your Enneagram Coach’s helpful resources are free online. Also, I just can’t say enough about Suzanne Stabile and Ian Morgan Cron's “The Road Back to You” as well as Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend’s book “Boundaries”. They have been THE most healing, transformational and growth forming tools the Lord has used in my life in the past two years. I hope if you make use of these resources they bring you to a greater and truer understanding of your failings and weaknesses and deeper, more robust appreciation and longing for all Christ has done and given you to be satisfied in Him.
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