I am an ISTJ. So, what ministries are a natural fit for my personality type?
I've been thinking lately about how the Myers-Briggs personality type indicator could prove useful in determining your overall potential for positions in ministry. I have read up on introverts and how the typical stereotype of an evangelist does not seem to fit well with an introverted personality. What I mean by this is that I don't necessarily see an introvert as a person who would willingly embrace stepping out in an evangelistic role in front of droves of people while preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Rather, it seems to me that the introverts among us would more quickly embrace a role where they would affect the lives of fewer people yet dig deeper into relationships.
This is just one example of how the Myers-Briggs personality type indicators could prove useful in helping someone find their place in the Kingdom of God.
Now, I will most certainly need to caveat this blog post by saying that no matter what your personality type indicates, God can and will use someone with the many giftings that they already have but He will also supernaturally provide the giftings as deemed necessary for the moment. After all, He is our provider and we can operate successfully outside of our comfort zones by His manifest presence that sometimes rests upon us for those situations. He can provide us with temporary capabilities that come and go with the circumstances or He can provide us with new capabilities that will never leave.
But, for the purposes of this blog post, let us look at the Meyers-Briggs personality type indicators and explore the natural ministry possibilities that may fit with those comfort zones. After all, it would be worthwhile for us to start into a ministry opportunity based on these type indicators and later find out that we are not in the right place rather than just do nothing at all.
For Meyers-Briggs, there are 4 personality dichotomies.
Extrovert (E) versus Introvert (I)
Sensing (S) versus Intuition (N)
Thinking (T) versus Feeling (F)
Judging (J) versus Perception (P)
http://www.myersbriggs.org/
I've already touched on the first dichotomy slightly.
http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/extraversion-or-introversion.asp
Extroverts tend to be people that like to be around other people. They feel their most alive and gain energy through social interactions. Introverts, on the other hand, tend to expend energy through social interactions and expand their energy through moments of solitude or through reflection. In this dichotomy, we can see that the extrovert would do well in ministries where there are large groups of people (like a teacher or a pastor) or in ministries that would require reaching out to others (like serving the elderly or talking with those that need a friendly face). The introvert would do well in ministries with smaller groups (like bible studies or helps ministry) or ministries that require intensive thoughtful processing (like technical media ministries). This is in no way to suggest that an extrovert could not serve in the ministries that I listed for introverts or vice versa. We all have unique gifts and need to apply them in service to our Lord Jesus Christ.
The second dichotomy (Sensing versus Intuition) describes how we perceive information.
http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/sensing-or-intuition.asp
A person with a sensing personality type may execute better in ministry positions where real data must be used to either inform for decision making or collecting the factual data (such as an administrator or treasurer). A person with an intuition personality type may perform better in ministries that would require observations to be made about statements or where one must perceive the intent behind a person's actions.
The third dichotomy (Thinking versus Feeling) describes how we make decisions.
http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/thinking-or-feeling.asp
A person with a thinking personality type would operate better in a ministry where logical decisions need to be made (sometimes regardless of other people's opinions). A person with a feeling personality type would operate better in a ministry where the opinions of others need to be weighed (maybe even heavily weighed) before making a decision. This is not to say that a feeling personality type could not make a decision which is opposed by others.
The fourth dichotomy (Judging versus Perception) describes how we like to interact with the outside world.
http://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/judging-or-perceiving.asp
A person with the judging personality type would operate better in ministries that are task oriented or have a focused and organized ministry. A person with the perception personality type would operate better in ministries where decisions are left open and they can respond to changing situations and environments.
It is important to note that our personalities can change over time and so should our ministries. We should always seek to grow and expand rather than stay stagnant.
