- 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
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Confession at SEVEN
I am SEVEN. Deep down I’m intemperate. That’s my brokenness. I don’t normally admit it, but I’m a glutton for more. What I want is a superabundance of the good things in life, of the things that are likely to bring me happiness. Nothing is ever enough. I consume things rather than savor and enjoy them. I take life in big gulps rather than in little sips. I emphasize the positive and minimize the negative. Basically, what I’m doing is trying to avoid pain and the emptiness inside.
Even though I move around a lot, essentially I live in my head. I always concentrate on the good, and rationalize or trivialize the difficult: I have lots of plans and schemes for doing good, but I gloss over the problems. I’m future-orientated, always anticipating life. The fact that I don’t fully experience the pleasure of the present leads to my not being completely satisfied. I generally make sure I have so much to do that I’ll never get bored. Indeed, my need for constant stimulation leads me, at times, to addictive behavior.
I look for distractions to keep me occupied and help me cope with painful realities. I find it hard to delay gratification. When I want things I want them now. My senses are so sharp that I can almost taste the enjoyment. The trouble is that I can also vividly imagine the intensity of pain, and I look for every possible diversion to avoid it. That’s why I’m continually on the go and try not to get tied down to routine tasks. In effect, I’m running away from myself because I fear that if I stop to look inside I won’t like what I see.
Lord God, slow me down long enough to discover the depth and beauty within. You have given me a childlike wonder at life, the blessing of good humor, and a marvelous sense of fun. I am able to see the ridiculous side of life and make people laugh. That’s a precious commodity in today’s world. But I need help to realize that I do not have to search for happiness non-stop – that if I cease my restless pursuit of it, happiness will surely find me. I need to discover that real joy is not dependent on outside circumstances but lies essentially within my own heart. Help me to dig beneath the surface so as to gain the true perspective of depth.
We are SEVENs. We need to become more reflective and responsible on the inside – and more honestly engaged with the realities outside. Our natural curiosity and our attraction to constant change and the ‘quick fix’ make it very difficult for us to focus our attention when we come to pray. There are so many delightful possibilities and options to choose from, that given the opportunity, we attempt to pursue them all. However, we can slow down our mental games by ‘anchoring’ ourselves in the real – perhaps beginning by adopting a posture which ensures a rare stillness: then we can begin.