Today was a fascinating day. I quickly discovered that trying to describe and fully understand a 3,500+ year old spiritual practice like the Enneagram is not possible. I was hoping that we would just take some sort of test and then spend a few days talking about the results of our test with each other. NOPE!
Our teacher, Suzanne Stabile, said that your Enneagram number is established by the time you are 5, you are fully solidified in this number by the time you are 12. It is part genetic, part environment. And our number is determined by our motivation, not our behavior. Yea, that’s enough to make a person’s head spin just a little. 🙂
Google it and see what I’m discovering this week!
One of the great things I learned today came through this illustration. There are several of us who walk up to a fence that has a bunch of holes in it. We all look through the holes at exactly the same time. We are looking at exactly the same thing, in exactly the same direction. We spend a few minutes looking.
Then we stop looking through the fence and describe what we saw. Remember, we are all looking through the same fence, at the same thing, in the same direction, at exactly the same time. Is our description of what we saw all sound the same?
How could this describe who we are as children of God seeking to follow Jesus? Or, how is does this express a truth about who we are as followers of the risen savior Jesus Christ that may be Methodists or Pentecostals or Roman Catholics or Lutherans or even Baptists? We are all looking through the fence and seeing Jesus, but experiencing our life in Christ in very different ways. But…are they really different?
When you see Jesus, what do you see? I’m thankful to be able to share what we are seeing with each other. My prayer each day is that these experiences are challenging us to grow in relationship with each other and our God through a savior named Jesus Christ. Blessings to you as you peek through the fence today!
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About Bishop Craig Schweitzer
The Rev. Craig Schweitzer, of Bismarck, was elected as bishop of the Western North Dakota Synod on July 17, 2020, in the first-ever digital Synod Assembly. A historic event, Schweitzer is the first bishop in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) to be elected in an online assembly.
Bishop Craig Schweitzer began serving the Western North Dakota Synod-ELCA on September 1, 2020. He has always seen himself as an easy-going person who seeks to daily discover anew how God is present in his life and the world in which he lives and serves.
Prior to service in the Office of Bishop of the Western North Dakota Synod, Bishop Craig served at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Bismarck, ND as Music and Worship Minister (lay staff from 2002-2010), Associate Pastor (2010-2014), and Senior Pastor (2014-2020). Beyond his service in the church, he has an eclectic background that is a diverse collection of musical, educational, and business experiences ranging from live concert production and promotion to recording studios and live performance to music education.
Throughout all of his professional and personal experiences, the Apostle Paul’s words to the church in Rome have been a guiding light that has kept him grounded in whatever work God was calling him into – “Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” (Romans 15:7)
Bishop Craig is a graduate of the University of Mary in Bismarck with a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education and a Master of Science in Strategic Leadership. He also holds a certificate degree in Theological Education for Emerging Ministries (TEEM) from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkeley, CA. He was ordained as a Minister of Word and Sacrament on September 16, 2010.
Outside of his life as Bishop, Bishop Craig enjoys reading, all music, a little golf, a cold beverage with friends, and intentional times of quiet. And, of course, spending time with his wife Wendy and their adult twin daughters Ilia and Taegan.
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Today was a fascinating day. I quickly discovered that trying to describe and fully understand a 3,500+ year old spiritual practice like the Enneagram is not possible. I was hoping that we would just take some sort of test and then spend a few days talking about the results of our test with each other. NOPE!
Bishop Craig Schweitzer 
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