There are books that are a comfort for me, which I would at times re-read for relaxation and encouragement. "Sacred Pathways: Discover Your Soul's Path to God" by Gary Thomas is one of those books.
In this book, Thomas has a premise that different people have different "spiritual temperaments," different ways they naturally (or supernaturally, since God is our Creator and Designer) tend to worship God.
The author proposes nine spiritual temperaments: Naturalist, Sensate, Traditionalist, Ascetic, Activist, Caregiver, Enthusiast, Contemplative, and Intellectual. He gives a description, Biblical examples, and weaknesses of each temperament, and concluding that chapter with 6 statements to rate between 1 and 5, to determine how you are on each temperament. As with most profiles, a person can be a combination. I scored 26 of a possible 30 on intellectual, 24 on enthusiast, 21 on activist, and 20 on sensate.
If you're in a group, this might also help to see how others lean so you can work together and complement each other. When I read the first chapter (naturalist), I quickly realized - this was one Becky was strong in. But her strongest were a tie at 24 with intellectual and caregiver, a tie at 23 of ascetic and traditonalist, and naturalist at 21. At that time, we tried going to a campground and had miserable experiences, and she kept wanting to try again; after reading this book, I realized that desire is based on her naturalist side, so I became quicker to agree to try it.
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