There were two paragraphs I ended with on my last post. One was about humility and the other surrender.

I have mentioned that I am a Nine on the Enneagram. I am going to give a little breakdown of the system so it is better understood where I am coming from. There are nine personality types on the Enneagram. The nine numbers are divided into three triads and three numbers in each triad—the Heart or Feeling Triad, the Head or Fear Triad, and the Gut or Anger Triad. A person’s personality is not solely one type but can have traits of one or the other remaining types in your triad. That other type is called your wing number.

The Nine falls in the Gut or Anger Triad. But along with that I am a One wing.  Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile have written a good book, The Road Back to You…An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery. They say, “Ones believe their way is the only right way of seeing and doing things and therefore feel justified in being judgmental and critical of others…” and, “As a rule Ones have a merciless inner critic.” Both things I have mentioned before as a struggle for me.

Though I am a peacemaker most of the time, I am also a perfectionist, and I have a sense of justice. I have not particularly liked the One side of my personality because it causes me to leave my beloved peaceful side and really feel angry. I have wondered how to deal with this. When I feel the anger rise up in me, it is often because of my sense of justice. I know something isn’t fair and may need to be said or done about a particular matter.

In past years, if I was angry, I would stuff the feeling because I believed I should not express my anger. But as I have gotten older, I’ve sometimes jumped in when I see something where justice needs to be served, and it has ended badly.

A small event happened the other day that brought my thoughts full circle to these ideas:

• Pray for humility each morning and throughout the day. Ask that I will not think negative thoughts, feel I have to be right, or be opinionated. Then be mindful of what I think and say.
• When I feel anger rise up inside me, try to get by myself and surrender the outcome to the Lord. Accept the fact that I may not physically be able to say or do anything but leave it in His hands and pray for His intervention (serenity). Be open and willing to carefully say or do something if He leads in that direction (courage). Pray and be very sure of His leading (wisdom).

That is my miracle of grace.

 

 

The “Serenity Prayer,” by Reinhold Niebuhr, sums up my thoughts for today:

“Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

Our current world situation gives opportunity to “flesh out” this prayer. Right now, we understand that we don’t have control over a good part of our lives. Truthfully, we actually never know what life is going to send our way. There are three things I have learned or am still learning to do in order to bring relief to an anxious and/or depressed mind.

Acceptance

Accepting the things I can’t change is the first. As I’ve mentioned before, this one is an important foundation to my life. Overthinking brings anxiety, but as I step back and let go, I find the serenity and peace I am longing for.

Courage

Secondly, what areas can I find the courage to change in the world’s current upheaval?  While I cannot change the course of events, I can be responsible as to how I react to all the chaos in life and the world at large. I know outer circumstances do not dictate my level of peace. Whether or not I am rightly aligned inside does.  So I do all I can to keep grounded.

I keep life pretty simple. While not burying my head in the sand, I stay away from too much information that will only be upsetting to me. I try  to keep a normal routine going.   While so many things are changing right now, some things never change. They are the foundations of life: the ebb and flow of tides, sunrise and sunset, and the seasons. I find it calming to take a drive and view the differences in spring, summer, autumn, and winter, those parts of life that always remain in sync. As I look at these things, I realize the God who ordered and created these things is also unchanging. He is not surprised by the course of events. And I trust Him. I find myself being thankful for all that He has done and is doing for me. This is how I can weather the storms of life.

Wisdom

The last of the three is the wisdom to know when to release and when to say or do something. Releasing does not abdicate me from responsibility. Sometimes something has to be said or done in order for change to happen. Knowing the difference is the most difficult part, and I pray often for that wisdom.

 

I have long believed that if I pay attention to five areas in my life, I am a more well-rounded person. These are: spiritual, physical, emotional/mental, relational/social, and financial.

I am talking today about the first three. They represent well-being for me. When I don’t work on them, my life gets out of rhythm.

Well-being

If I don’t take care of the spiritual side of my life by reading God’s Word and other inspirational books and blogs, I begin to lack direction. Likewise, if I only concentrate on the physical, I begin to feel like I am all about responsibility and dislike my life.  I haven’t taken time to recharge emotionally.  And if I only concentrate on caring for myself emotionally, I soon find I neglect preparing healthy meals, scheduling time for exercise, and getting my daily chores done.

However, I find it is impossible to keep these all in perfect balance. Instead, there is a sort of rhythm. When my body and soul are calling for rest and rejuvenation, I don’t soldier on but listen and take the break that I need. Then, I find I have more energy to get back to my responsibilities. And sleep is a priority in my life. I am not a happy person when I don’t get enough of it.

So, it’s all about paying heed to the body, soul and mind God gave me.