Temperament Corner: January/February

1. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

2. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.

3. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.

4. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

5. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;

6. Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

7. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.

8. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.

9. Because thou has made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;

10. There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.

11. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

12. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.

13. Thou shalt tred upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

14. Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.

15. He shall call upon me, and I will answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him.

16. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

FEAR

FEAR IS A BIG BULLY AND PREYS ON ALL OF THE TEMPERAMENTS!

Fear can keep us locked up in a prison of darkness. But YOU have the key to get out of this prison of darkness. The key is Jesus!

We need to trust that Jesus will get rid of the bully.

How? Jesus is the Light of the World, and the darkness has to run from Him. And

Jesus always keeps His Word.

For example, take a flashlight and shine the light in a dark place and see what happens—the darkness disappears!

The same thing will happen with our fears because Jesus is our Light—our fears will disappear!

The Holy Scriptures tell us:

“Fear not.” It is in our Bible over 70 times and tells us that God is always here for us; however, sometimes, when we are going through the valleys, we tend to let fear creep in and take over.

Encouraging Scriptures regarding fear:

Isaiah 41:10: “Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”

Joshua 1:5: “I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”

Psalm 23:4, 5: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

Psalm 27:1: “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?”

Psalm 56:11: “In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.”

Hebrews 13:6: “So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.”

John 14:27: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

II Timothy 1:7: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

I John 4:18: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”

Dr. Phyllis J. Arno

LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE FEARS IN THE INCLUSION AREA OF THE PHLEGMATIC AND SHINE THE LIGHT OF JESUS ON THEM.

In review, Inclusion is the need to establish and maintain satisfactory relationships with people in the area of surface relationships. (This includes association and socialization.) It also encompasses a person’s intellectual energies.

1. FEAR OF BEING PRESSURED INTO BECOMING TOO INVOLVED

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to not want to become too involved. At work, they tend to try to keep to themselves so that others will not make demands on them. They will respond when spoken to, but will usually not go and initiate a “conversation at the water cooler.” They may even bring their own water bottle so that they do not have to walk to the water cooler for two reasons: First, they do not want to expend the energy; and second, they do not wish to be drawn into office politics. They would prefer to become “invisible.”

Phlegmatics in Inclusion may tend to want to stay home rather than attend church for two reasons: First, they do not want to expend the energy; and second, they do not wish to be drawn into church politics or projects.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion must learn to maintain balance in their life daily.

Otherwise, they may tend to work only at preserving their energy and may lose touch with life itself, including family and friends. It is important for them to know that they are capable of inspiring others, but, in order to inspire them, they need to be in contact with them.

They need to learn to shine the light of Jesus on their fears of becoming too involved and learn that He loves them and wants them to not become weary in well-doing.

I Peter 4:10 tells us: “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

2. FEAR OF SOCIALIZING

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to have the fear of socializing because they are physically drained after a day at work and they do not want to spend their evening interacting with people. Spending time with people in the evening may drain them even more.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion usually tend to prefer to go straight home and settle down in their easy chair or take a nap before dinner. Then, after dinner, they may tend to prefer to sit at the computer or watch TV rather than go out for the evening. In other words, they are “peopled-out” and their energy is depleted. Sometimes, if they have guests in their home, they may “slip out” or “disappear” and go to bed.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion need to learn to maintain balance in this area, not only for themselves, but for their friends and family. If they do not learn to maintain balance, they may find themselves reserving their energy to the point that they have withdrawn from the world itself.

They need to learn to shine the light of Jesus on their fears of socializing. They can learn to do this by maintaining a close relationship with the Lord, so they will have the desire to share God’s love with others.

Psalm 34:4 tells us: “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”

2. FEAR OF SOCIALIZING

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to have the fear of socializing because they are physically drained after a day at work and they do not want to spend their evening interacting with people. Spending time with people in the evening may drain them even more.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion usually tend to prefer to go straight home and settle down in their easy chair or take a nap before dinner. Then, after dinner, they may tend to prefer to sit at the computer or watch TV rather than go out for the evening. In other words, they are “peopled-out” and their energy is depleted. Sometimes, if they have guests in their home, they may “slip out” or “disappear” and go to bed.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion need to learn to maintain balance in this area, not only for themselves, but for their friends and family. If they do not learn to maintain balance, they may find themselves reserving their energy to the point that they have withdrawn from the world itself.

They need to learn to shine the light of Jesus on their fears of socializing. They can learn to do this by maintaining a close relationship with the Lord, so they will have the desire to share God’s love with others.

Psalm 34:4 tells us: “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.”

4. FEAR OF PHYSICAL TAXATION

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to have the fear of physical taxation. They prefer not to be around Sanguines and Cholerics too much because they tend to try to control and make demands on them; therefore, the Phlegmatic in Inclusion will usually try to avoid the

Sanguines and Cholerics. When they cannot avoid them, they will tend to keep them “at bay” by using their humor. Sometimes this humor is dry, sometimes it is witty and charming, and sometimes it can be cutting, hurtful and harsh.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion, because of their low energy level, tend to eat too much and not exercise enough. Therefore, they may tend to have weight problems, which can lead to other physical problems, such as high blood pressure, etc.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion need to learn to maintain balance with work, relaxation, exercise and rest.

They need to learn to shine the light of Jesus on their fear of physical taxation so that their life can become less fearful and more peaceful.

Isaiah 40:29 tells us: “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth strength.”

5. FEAR OF OTHERS DYING AND LEAVING THEM WITH THE LOAD (RESPONSIBILITIES)

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to fear being left with the “load” (responsibilities) if their spouse dies. It is hard for them to work all day and then come home and have to carry the load of taking care of the home and children. This is because it takes too much energy, plus time and “know-how.”

Phlegmatics in Inclusion tend to fear that if a co–worker dies, they must assume more of the workload and/or have to take on the responsibility of training a new person. In either event, they fear it will take too much energy and cause them to be stressed.

Phlegmatics in Inclusion need to learn that God will be with them, no matter what responsibilities they must take on.

They need to learn to shine the light of Jesus on their fear of others dying and leaving them with the load (responsibilities) so that their life can become less fearful and more peaceful.

Philippians 4:13 tells us: “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

CONCLUSION

Phlegmatics in Inclusion need to shine the light of Jesus on their fears and learn that:

1. God wants them to maintain balance in this area and to know that He loves them. He does not want them to fear and become weary in well-doing, as they can be such an inspiration to others.

2. God wants them to maintain a close relationship with Him so that they can learn to balance out preserving their energy and socializing in order to fulfill the call God has on their life.

3. God wants them to maintain a close relationship with Him and learn to seek Him when they need to make changes. He will direct their steps to making changes.

4. God wants them to learn to maintain a close relationship with Him so that He can help them to bring balance into their life regarding work, relaxation, exercise and rest.

5. God wants them to learn to maintain a close relationship with Him and know that He will be with them if they lose a loved one, so they do not need to fear death and dying—He is with them always and is there to support and guide them.

PLEASE NOTE: These are temperament tendencies, and, as always, while you are counseling the Phlegmatics in Inclusion you must take into consideration their walk with the Lord, learned behavior, personality and birth order.

In the next issue we will look at FEARS in the Inclusion area of the Sanguine.