It reminds me a little of what the staff is currently experiencing. Over the last few weeks the staff has been excitedly talking about a little "test" the Senior Pastor had us take called the Enneagram. The Enneagram is a type of personality test that starts with the understanding that we all yearn to know who we are and why we are here. We yearn to soar but often end up crashing on the rocks below or into the people around us. This assessment tool reminds us that although we all want to discover the answers to life’s ques-tions, our restless yearnings are all expressed in different ways. Understanding these differences can help us understand ourselves and one another better, work together synergistically, and forgive one another more freely through acceptance of our acknowledged differences.
There are many such tools out there. They are fascinating and provide windows into our own behavior and thought processes. Perhaps the most well-known tool is the Myers-Briggs Personality Assessment. A little known one is called "Theological Worlds."
Theological Worlds tells us there are five basic "worlds" of spirituality from which we all operate. It assumes that Christians pos-sess a basic, core set of beliefs. Theological Worlds shows us that even though we all possess these core beliefs, individuals empha-size, or hold some beliefs as more important than others. For example, one person may place an emphasis on transformation through prayer, while another emphasizes justice. No world is right or wrong, but our functional theology, that is, how we live out our beliefs in the world, are based upon our own preferred theological world. Knowing this can help us understand that even though we are the Church Universal, we’re simply not always going to see eye to eye. Here’s another example: one group in a congregation might believe a sum of money should be used for the glory of God to restore stained glass windows in the sanctuary, while a rival group may want to use that money to send a group for Africa to build a new well. Again, neither group is right or wrong; they are merely trying to live out their functional theology based on their own theological world as best they can. Theological Worlds is not simply a tool that’s interesting to use, but has real impact for us as we come together as a congregation. As Gravel Hill continues to grow and seek new ways to reach out to the community, differences of opinion concerning how we should do this may arise because we all live and work out of our slightly different understandings of God’s will for us and how we should
respond to God. We’ve weathered these storms before and emerged as a stronger, more focused congregation because we found ways to resolve differences and work together. Always keep in mind that service to God can take many forms, and what we want may not be what is best, feasible, or necessary at the current time, or even what the majority of people or the church leaders have decided to do. Neither side may be right or wrong, but there must be a focus on one aspect of ministry for us to move ahead. I urge you to acknowledge and respect our differences while embracing our strengths as a congregation, because that is what allows us to learn together, share together, live together and love together. There is a depth and power in diversity that God can use well for his kingdom.
As Gravel Hill continues its spiritual journey, keep in mind that we all have our own lenses through which we view our purpose and the manner in which we would like to achieve goals for God. Individually, pieces of glass may all have different colors, differ-ent opacity, different thicknesses, causing light to scatter randomly in different ways. But when these pieces are brought togeth-er, they can form a mighty lens through which we can look to discern God’s will for us as a congregation, and through which we can magnify and focus the light of God in the world.
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