Why Understanding Yourself as a Believer Matters
One thing I love about integrating faith into mental health is that it helps us understand the patterns we’re actually operating from. When we can see those patterns, we’re able to apply the truth of Scripture more intentionally—which is where real growth with God happens.
Because a lot of times, it’s not that we don’t know the truth… we just don’t understand what’s actually driving us, we can’t surrender what we don’t see. But if we’re honest, a lot of us are trying to grow without ever slowing down long enough to really look at what’s going on underneath.
What if understanding those patterns is actually what interrupts the cycle?
What if it’s part of how we begin to walk in the freedom Jesus already paid for?
We all want to grow. And believers in Jesus are all called to grow through sanctification. I know I want to be more patient, more present, better in my relationships, and honestly just more like Christ. But that isn’t always so simple, is it?
Thankfully, God made us all unique. And we all come with different backgrounds, successes, failures, cultures—even trauma… all of which shape how we think, relate, and respond. But Scripture is the authority, and God defines who we are. Any other source, on its own, can lead to confusion and distorted beliefs.
I recently listened to Tony Evans talk about the difference between truth and facts, and I keep coming back to it. We may know facts about ourselves—our history, our tendencies, even our struggles—but truth is only found in what God says about us. If we’re not careful, we start building our lives on facts without filtering them through truth. That’s where we get stuck.
Thankfully, we also have tools that help us sort through what is true, what is false, and what beliefs we’ve been holding onto that we need to let go of.
One of the greatest tools I know is faith-based therapy (no surprise there). But another really helpful tool is the Enneagram. We’re hosting an Enneagram workshop focused specifically on communication, because this is where we see so many of these patterns show up—marriages, friendships, parenting, leadership… all of it.
The Enneagram is a tool. That’s it. It’s a framework that helps us understand the why behind our behavior—a way to understand our core motivations, fears, and patterns. And like many tools used in counseling, it doesn’t create anything new… it just helps us see what’s already there.
Don’t worry! The Enneagram isn’t a fortune-telling tool, and it doesn’t assign your identity. It simply observes patterns of behavior. We don’t look to the Enneagram to tell us who we are—we look to God for that. The Enneagram just helps us see where we might be operating out of fear, pride, self-protection, or old patterns that no longer serve us.
And maybe it’s worth looking into. Because the TRUTH in Scripture doesn’t shy away from this kind of self-awareness—it calls us into it.
“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves…” — 2 Corinthians 13:5
“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment…” — Romans 12:3
“Watch your life and doctrine closely…” — 1 Timothy 4:16
“Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord.” — Lamentations 3:40
“The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.” — Proverbs 20:5
“If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves.” — Galatians 6:3
And of course: “Search me, O God, and know my heart…” — Psalm 139
This isn’t surface-level work. This is an invitation to learn more about what’s underneath. Because we cannot surrender what we’re not aware of. A lot of us are trying to surrender behaviors without understanding what’s driving them.
The goal with any personality assessment is not to label yourself—“well, that’s just how I am.” No. The goal is awareness, repentance, and surrender, leading to ongoing transformation. Like we see in Romans 12:1–2, the renewing of our minds. We begin to notice where we tighten up, where we react, where fear is driving the moment, and instead of staying there, we bring it into the light. We surrender it and allow the Lord to renew us, again and again. And I’m so thankful for his faithfulness in our renewal. Aren’t you?
Self-understanding matters in our relationships more than we realize, or would like to admit. Most conflict isn’t about the surface issue—it’s about the patterns underneath. The ways we protect ourselves, the things we fear, the needs we don’t know how to communicate. Understanding those patterns doesn’t excuse them, but it does give us a place to start. And that changes how we respond.
If you join us for the workshop, you’ll:
Learn your type
Understand your core patterns
See how those patterns may be affecting your relationships
And begin applying this in real, practical ways
May 9, 2026
$30 (includes assessment)
Register here
No matter what tool you’re using for deeper self-understanding, don’t forget this:
You are not your trauma.
You are not your diagnosis.
You are not your patterns, your defenses, or your worst reactions.
Those are places you’ve learned to protect yourself—or places where you needed protection.
And the Lord is not intimidated by any of it.
He is sovereign over all things—your past, your story, even your sin. In His kindness, He brings conviction, which leads to repentance—and that leads to freedom.
He invites us into deeper awareness not so we stay stuck—but so we can grow in spiritual maturity and actually live in the freedom He already paid for. How wonderful that He allows us to keep growing!
Hayley Seidel, LPC
