Author: nik
Posted: 2008-03-03 13:30:32
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Recently a friend sent me a link to a personality test where you determine which of four animal categories you fall into. The four are: lion, beaver, otter, or golden retriever.
Normally I don't like personality tests. For some reason I never get the results I want. But I decided to give it a try anyways.
I discovered I am pretty much a....golden retriever. Ugh! I didn't want to be a golden retriever. I wanted to be a lion! Strong. Confident. Powerful. A golden retriever is.... such a dog! Not only a dog, but a wag-your-tail, super-sensitive, face-licking, people-pleasing kind of dog. I know this because our dog is part golden retriever. Don't get me wrong, I love her personality...for a dog. I just don't want to be one.
I began to think of other people I know and which animal category they would fall in to. The Lions are action-oriented and take the lead. The otters are the life of the party, optimistic, spontaneous and funny. And the beavers bring order out of chaos.
Golden retriever? Who wants to be a golden retriever? But I began to think about our own golden retriever mix who loyally follows me around the house all day. When I feel sad, she puts her head in my lap and tries to comfort me. She is always glad to see me when I return home, even when I was gone a whole lot longer than I promised!
In our family of diverse personalities, our dog seems to bridge the gap of our differences with constant tail-wagging love.
The truth is, God creates us uniquely to serve his purposes- in our family and our circle of friends. He wants us to know ourselves, accept ourselves, and then be ourselves. That's what makes the combination of differences in circles of people work well together. Some push, some pull, some follow, some organize, but the result is best when we fulfill the natural rhythm God created within us. We fill in each others spaces, We make each other better.
So get to know yourself. (you can even take the test for yourself at http://new-life.net/persnty1.htm) Then accept yourself, which means accepting who you are and who you are not. And be yourself, playing to your strengths and celebrating the ways you make others (and you) the best you can be when you act like yourself, whether you're a lion, otter, beaver...or even a golden retriever.
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