Y'all know of my love of personality tests, so of course, when I discovered there is one especially for ministry, I was on it like a Dior sample sale. Not even the 80 questions deterred me, but with short questions and the same three answer options, it only took like five minutes.

Background:

Based on the book Building a Discipling Culture by Mike Breen, the FiveFold test gives you five scores based on how strong you are at five different ministry categories: Apostles, Prophets, Pastors, Evangilists and Teachers.

My results:

So, for me, Apostle is the strongest. According to my results, this means:

From the Greek apostolos meaning “one who is sent out.” Apostles are visionary and pioneering, always pushing into new territory. They like to establish new churches or ministries. They come up with new, innovative means to do kingdom work.

• Biblical examples—the Twelve, Paul, Priscilla, and Aquilla.
• Jesus’ example—Jesus was the one sent by God (John 3:16).
• Mature Apostles enjoy dreaming, doing new and challenging tasks, change.
• Secular examples—entrepreneurs, explorers.
• Core question Apostles ask: Are we leading the people of God to their destiny?
• Characteristics of immature Apostles: They are unable to distinguish between the constant flood of good and innovative ideas they have and the God-ideas that are being given to them. It's about an inability to discern. They try out something new every week and never really develop any of their ideas and jump from thing to thing to thing. After a while, people stop following them because they have a hard time staying focused on the task at hand and people refuse to give their time and energy to something when they know could change with any whim of an idea coming from the immature apostle.

Conclusion:

I have mixed feelings about this test and my results. Not surprisingly, I saw a little of my strengths in all five ministries, but I definitely feel more drawn towards Apostle and Prophet. Still, maybe my biggest reservation is that I am a bit intimidated with those titles - all of them signify a great calling. Even the word ministry sometimes intimidates me.

According to dictionary.com, to minister is "to perform the functions of a religious minister; to give service, care, or aid; attend, as to wants or necessities; to contribute, as to comfort." That's such a huge undertaking - the constant giving and caring is a lifestyle, and I am ashamed to say, I haven't fully achieved this kind of giving. There are still so many selfish ambitions and insecurities that stop me from embracing a ministry with abandon and dedicating my whole life with it. It's both frustrating and sad, but I am working toward it.

In conclusion, I did find this test a helpful resource in the search for my calling. It got me thinking about my strengths and weaknesses from a more spiritual perspective, versus as a tool for professional development. So, what are you waiting for? It takes five minutes of your time and who knows, it may be just the push you need to commit to a ministry that's been calling you for quite some time!

-Yelena

PS. Since this blog is called "The Twenty-Something," I thought it was only appropriate to share Lauren Conrad's post today titled "20 Things Every Girl in her 20's Should Know." They're quite brilliant - both practical and whimsical, my favorite combination!