What are they like?

ISFPs are the quiet doers of the world.  Although they have no interest in being in charge (nor being under someone’s thumb) they are very comfortable in a group setting… just don’t ask them to contribute verbally too much. They loathe too much logic and prefer to move forward with their feelings.  A highly perceptive type, ISFPs have a highly refined aesthetic sense and contribute artistically often.

As a personality which has a strong internal sense of what is right and wrong, they make take longer than other s to buy into the value of a given project.  However, once they are satisfied, they will work diligently to accomplish whatever concrete goals they have been given.

Where do they find value in their religious life?

Two words offer a clue to where and ISFP will find religious value: beauty and action.  Do not expect this personality to be content simply sitting in the pew on a Sunday morning.  It is more likely that they will be involved in some way with the “betterment” of the community.  Always meticulous, ISFPs can be found on most worship committees, never saying much, but doing what they can to ensure that the worship space is “right.”  They are also found contributing to external ministries which involve the beautification or functional improvement of someone’s life.

What practices help them stay balanced and centered in God?

Being action oriented, ISFPs find grounding in work that allows them to give to others.  They are always desiring to make a positive contribution to life, and participating in hands-on mission work is at the top of their lists.

What practices push them to go beyond themselves and sacrifice for others?

ISFPs can get caught up on the feelings associated with doing good, that they often push aside the value of theological thought.  A regular practice of scriptural interpretation by reading commentaries and theological works will push them to see beyond their seemingly “self-evident” belief system.

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As a fellow Introvert, I like the ISFP very much.  I appreciate their need for space and their willingness to give space.

They key to employing an ISFP in a change project is a three step process:

1) Do the hard work necessary to help them see the need and value of the project.

2) Give them a role which maximizes their love of concrete action which adds beauty to the world.

3) Leave them alone to work.

You know that man who doesn’t really like to come to worship or Sunday School (and, when he does, rarely talks), but is always the first to volunteer for the mission project?  He’s probably an ESTJ.

What are they like?

ESTJs are the “get ‘er done” people of this world.  Tell them what needs accomplishing and they will accomplish it.  They do not want to spend time talking about the theory behind a project, they just want to do it.  They are tenacious, and have an uncanny ability to get people on board with a project.

Ambiguity is not in the ESTJ’s vocabulary, and they have little tolerance for what they see as waffling in others.  If you are perceived as incompetent or half-hearted, then the ESTJ will pass you by.

Where do they find value in their religious life?

No matter the area of religious life, the ESTJ is the one leading the charge.  If they have an understanding of service, they will be the ones in charge of the Habitat for Humanity build, or another big missions project.

They will often say that they are the ones with the simple faith.  They’ll “leave the complex theology to others” and focus on what they believe God has called them to do.  If they can’t see their results then they do not feel like they have done anything worthwhile.

What practices help them stay balanced and centered in God?

Accomplishing anything concrete is a great practice for an ESTJ.  Putting this person in charge of a mission project will fill them with more joy than sitting through a sermon.

What practices push them to go beyond themselves and sacrifice for others?

The place of growth for the ESTJ is reflective biblical and theological study.  Although not predisposed towards complex theory, the more their inner compass of “right and wrong” is grown the better for us all.

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I really like the ESTJ.  I know several in the congregation I serve and they are awesome people.  Many times, they think I’m a freak and question why I would push the boundaries of faith like I do.  What I have found to be important is that I help them to understand how the things I am talking about translate to concrete benefit for others.  Once they see that connection, they are all over it.

Change Agents should spend time with ESTJs to get them on board with the goals of the change project.  If the ESTJ can clearly see how a course of action will benefit others, then they will begin marshaling others and their resources to accomplish it.

The people I have know who are ESFJs are always involved in ministries of care and compassion.  Given their ability to lead a group well, they might be in charge of such ministries.

What are they like?

ESFJs are the people who send you the birthday card, every year, exactly two days before your big day, without fail.  Because they are externally focused feelers, they are intensely concerned with traditions and customs, and the celebrate them with gusto!

ESFJs are great at being in charge, and they manage people well.  More so than that, however, they are great at maintaining established processes – processes which have proved to be reliable and beneficial.  They do things right, and they do them at the right time.

They are big feelers, often “wearing their hearts on their sleeves.”  This tendency comes into conflict with their strong sense of right and wrong however.  They often find themselves put in between the rock and the hard place of wanting the right thing to be done and wanting to preserve the feelings of another (correlating to their skill and joy at being a part of established processes).  It is not uncommon for an ESFJ to exact swift “punishment” on someone, only to rescue them from their punishment out of concern for scarring the other person.

Where so they find value in their religious life?

Because they are such intense feelers, ESFJs gravitate towards the care taking aspects of religious life.  Phrases such as “the nurture and care of the children of God” resonates strongly with them.  They see the Church as the place where the worries of the world can and should be set aside in order to have a moment of peace and security in a chaotic world.  “Love one another” is the highest command.

What practices help them stay balanced and centered in God?

The strengths of the ESFJ center on their ability to care for others.  This usually manifests itself in acts of generosity.  Prayers of intercession and acts of service for others would be spiritual practices that would feed the ESFJ’s soul.

What practices push them to go beyond themselves and sacrifice for others?

Much like the ISFJ, the ESFJ seems to have caring for others built into the very fabric of their very being. The challenge for them comes with the reality that such a large part of their personality is externally focused and feeling based.  If not balanced, this results in a sense of right and wrong that is not entirely “grounded” – by this I mean that the main filter through which they view the world is whether or not something feels comfortable.  As we know, many situations in life which are right do not feel comfortable.

The solution for this is practices which allow them to challenge and analyze the way things initially appear to them.  Journaling, coupled with the practice of The Examen are excellent individual practices.  Debriefing with another person who views things differently is an example of a corporate practice.

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Like other S’s, the ESFJ is predisposed to “establishment.”  They have a strong sense of what is good, and that sense is primarily manifest in how persons are cared for.

As I consider they ways I would employ an ESFJ’s natural gifts in the project of change, it occurs to me that if an ESFJ were to belive and understand that the prescribed change was a beneficial one, they would be a great ally in caring for those who are anxious or fearful of the coming transition.  They would know how to address the fears that people express.  They would be able to help strategize ways in which the needs and feelings of those who will be affected could be lessened or in some way accounted for.

In short, ESFJs could help a Change Agent honor the giant upon whos shoulders the change project is standing.

Yesterday, I woke up vomiting. (You’re welcome for that image.)  From the moment it happened, I knew that the day was just not going to go as planned.  I knew that the list of things I had in my head that I wanted to accomplish were not going to get done, and I had to accept that fact.

It drove me nuts.

Normally, I am what I refer to as “King of Sabbath.”  I rarely have problems separating out time to recuperate and recover.  I rarely have any issue setting boundaries or allowing various parts of my life to interfere with those moments which serve to rejuvenate me.  But when there is something that I believe needs doing, I will do it.

I have set a schedule for myself in writing for this site.  I have told myself and others that every Monday and Thursday – come Hell or high water – I would post something.  I know myself well enough to know that, if I slip and don’t post one day, then I will be setting myself on a road to ruin.  But yesterday, I was puking and my head was pounding.

Sometimes, there’s just nothing one can do about the distractions, road blocks, or hurdles that come at us in life.  But there is a difference between you standing in your own way and something else doing it, and it is imperative for the Change Agent to realize the difference.  One can be dealt with (somewhat) quickly and effectively, and the other cannot.  I can tell myself to buck up and employ the various methods I have learned to get my sorry rear in gear again, but I can’t do much about that one person who insists on blocking every move I make.

I have, in the recent past, had to wait a few things out.  As someone naturally predisposed to change, I am constantly on the move, constantly trying to figure out the next thing to do.  But there were somethings that would just not let me move.  Try as I might, I could not get around these realities.  I could not find an alternate pathway.  Most things you might read will tell you to just keep moving, and, if you do, the way forward will become clear.

What I want to say is that there are going to be times when the most productive thing you can do is sit on your hands and do nothing.

This is not a cop-out.  This is not giving up.  This is learning to be realistic about a situation and saving your energy.  Those things will not stay in place forever and the Change Agent needs to learn that their best friend is often attrition. Most situations, people, structural realities will all go away eventually. Can you wait them out?  Can you choose to put your energy towards some other areas while your waiting?

Being a Change Agent is about having a little bit of wisdom and recognizing that you’re not actually the one producing any kind of change. (shocker!)  Being a Change Agent is about recognizing that the work that we do is actually God working through us, and that we’re not the only vehicle God is working through.

My headaches and vomiting went away, and I was able to sit down this morning and write.  Sometimes, the Change Agent just needs to chill.

The ISFJ is the most caring person you know.  Finding out that this person is a Deacon (minister of care and compassion) is not a shock in any way, shape, or form.

What are they like?

ISFJs are the servants of the world, and they are that way not necessarily out of obligation, but because they “need to be needed.”  The feeling of being valuable for what they can offer contributes greatly to the sense of self-worth of the ISFJ.  Because ISFJs are loyal and can be counted on to deliver high quality work, they often find themselves loaded down with many responsibilities.  They are often taken for granted and occasionally taken advantage of.  Their tendency to find themselves in situations where they are overburdened often results in ISFJs succumbing to a rash of psychosomatic illnesses (physical disorders caused or notably influenced by emotional factors).

Much like the ISTJ, the ISFJ has a strong sense of what they believe to be “proper,” a set of ideal qualities or characteristics that an object, event, or person must exhibit.  This, coupled with a highly developed sense of loyalty (to people, not institutions), results in that friends we might have whom we assume to be sulking, but is (in fact) troubled by something very distressing and reticent to bother us with it.

Where do they find value in their religious life?

ISFJs can be found in all communities of faith in the roles that require and encourage service. ISFJs can be found in the nursery, kitchen, or serving as a member of the congregational care team.

They are loyal to the Church because they understand it to be a place of care and compassion.  The institutional form matters little to them as long as there is a strong sense of “family.”  The chances of finding an ISFJ in a larger church would likely be rare because their opportunities to be “needed” would be fewer.

What practices help them stay balanced and centered in God?

ISFJs are subject to two interconnected realities that take a toll on their well-being: they are often overworked (taken for granted and taken advantage of) and they posses strong feeling of inadequacy.  The resulting combination finds an ISFJ more prone to psychosomatic illness than the rest of us.

Literally, for the health and wellbeing of the ISFJ, this personality type must embrace the practice of discernment.  This involves knowing the difference between the temporal and eternal, being able to identify the manipulative actions of others, drawing clear boundaries based on a predetermined set of values.  These discernment practices will be aided by some form of contemplative practice which allow they to know their value before God and to observe the fleeting nature of reality.

What practices push them to go beyond themselves and sacrifice for others?

No one should ever be worried about an ISFJ sacrificing for others – it’s built into the fabric of their self-understanding.  What is imperative for the ISFJ to learn, however, is the value of the perspectives of others’ worldviews.  Due to their highly developed internal sense of what is proper and good, the ISFJ can cut themselves off from other to such a degree that they begin living in such a way as to constantly reinforce their own senses of safety and certainty.

Like the ISTJ, effective practices involve praying the Psalms (allowing the variety of expressions to become normative) and constant exposure to differing worldviews.

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As I was researching the ISFJ it occurred to me that I know several people of this personality type.  While not one to push for change, per se, an ISFJ can be a Change Agent’s rock if they have the fortune of knowing one.

The reality is that the work of changing cultures is hard, and cannot be done alone.  If someone were to find an ISFJ who understands the necessity for a particular project of change, they can be counted on to assist the Agent in the work.  Most likely, the ISFJ can be that confidant we all long for.  However, special care must be made to not TAKE ADVANTAGE of the ISFJ!