That Do I

"For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."

Romans 7:15

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Several questions naturally arise when broaching the subject of temperament; the most obvious is, what is temperament and how is it discovered?  Subsequently, one may ask how does one's temperament affect everyday life.  Temperament affects how we relate to ourselves, to others and to God.  Proverbs 27:19 says. "As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of a man to man" (KJV).  Inherently we are made in the image of God, we have been given gifts and tendencies for His honor and glory.  Marked by the Adamic Fall, we are distorted by sin; and thus, our personalities reflect both our God-given traits and our sin-twisted flaws.  In Romans 7:15 Paul speaks of his personal struggle with his sin nature, "For that which I do I allow not:  for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."  Paul knew and understood human sin nature and its ability to assert itself in our behavior.  Socrates said that the unexamined life is not worth living; but I propose that, the unsubmitted life is the valueless one.  Temperament is a combination of God-given traits and tendencies that intermingle to create unique human beings.  Due to human sin-nature inherited by humanity from Adam, our personalities are distorted and only by submission to God, made possible by the Blood of Christ, are they redeemed.   Temperament may be discovered by the use of personality tests; such as, the one contained in Tim LaHaye's book, Why You Act The Way You Do published by Tyndale House Publishers, 1984. 

Temperament is a complex and rich mixture of traits and tendencies, given to us by a creative and loving Father  and skewed by sin.  The value of discovering and understanding our temperaments, as well as, those of others, is the insight into behavior that is gained through it.  The ability to use our strengths to their full capacity and understand our weaknesses, and submit both to God will surely build a greater maturity in our Christian walk.

Patti