- Home
- Preface
- Introduction
- Three Zones and Nine Sectors
- Wings and Moves and other functions
- Biblical Journeys
- Prayer
- The Enneagram
- From the Enneagram to the Strategy Board
buy from amazon.com
buy from amazon.co.uk
Confession at TWO
I am TWO. Deep down I’m proud. That’s my brokenness. I feel I’m better than others because I’m generally more caring. I see the needs of others even before they do themselves and do everything I can to help them, sometimes without even being asked. I constantly put myself out to be of service, but I also expect people to recognize and appreciate what I do for them.
However, when I really think about it, I know that my helpfulness is both a source of recognition and a way of seeing myself as being of value. I know that what appears to others as selfless and generous is not entirely so. There are often strings attached. I exercise pressure indirectly and by stealth. I don’t blatantly seek to manipulate, but I know that what I do is manipulative nonetheless. Being helpful is my way of getting attention, of asking for love without putting it into words. It feels good to have people who depend on me. Their need gives me a sense of being important, useful, and worthwhile. It helps me define who I am.
Lord God, I know this means I don’t have a good self-image, and that I don’t appreciate the gift you have given me. You love me unconditionally. I don’t have to keep proving myself, to you or to anyone else. I don’t have to try so hard to please all the time. Love cannot be earned or paid for. It is always a gift. Help me to realize that the needs I perceive in others are often a reflection of those within myself. Give me the humility to accept that I, too, am in need of help.
We are TWOs. Our constant concern for others frequently masks the lack of attention we pay to our own physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. We help others and we neglect ourselves. But if we’re always giving, always active, is there anything for ourselves when at some point we stop the treadmill? Who fills the emptiness of our personal storehouse? We need to learn the spiritual truth that ‘charity begins at home,’ that without a realistic acceptance of our own woundedness, we cannot even begin to understand the pain of others – let alone help them through it. We need the humility to accept our brokenness, and the patience to allow God’s love to heal our wounds.