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A friend recently sent me an article entitled "23 Signs You're Secretly An Introvert" *. He happens to be an introvert and, knowing I am as well, felt I'd find the article interesting. He was right. But there was also something there I found very alarming. First let me explain what being introverted actually means.
Contrary to some definitions, being introverted has nothing to do with shyness. An introvert has no problem with being around others but prefers small groups with those he already knows. One who suffers from shyness, however, experiences anxiety resulting from an actual fear of people or social situations.
Here are a few traits of introverts: Self-aware, thoughtful, enjoy understanding details, keep emotions private, often quiet in large groups or around unfamiliar people, and learn well through observation. They prefer deep, meaningful conversations and having a full understanding of a concept before they voice an opinion or offer an explanation.
Extraverts, on the other hand, are outgoing and social. They learn more by trial and error, love crowds, avoid solitude, easily engage in small talk, enjoy meeting new people, see downtime as unproductive, and find audience participation exciting.
Studies indicate that extraverts outnumber introverts three to one. (That's OK with us introverts because we prefer smaller groups anyway.) But here's the problem---extraverts tend to believe there's something wrong with introverts, labeling them too intense and pressuring them to "come out of their shells." In other words, they want to change introverts to be like them.
Now back to that article. What alarmed me was the following passage:Despite the growing conversation around introversion, it remains a frequently misunderstood personality trait. As recently as 2010, the American Psychiatric Association even considered classifying "introverted personality" as a disorder by listing it in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5), a manual used to diagnose mental illness.
Do you see what some in this group were actually saying? "To be right, you must be like us, think like us, act like us. Or there's something wrong with you. We will not accept you...if you're different."
The world has an "I'm right---You're wrong" mentality. I'm right because I say so. You're wrong because you disagree. We use the differences among us to create division, rather than embracing what we have in common so we may stand together as one. Isn't it great that God doesn't treat us that way!
Paul wrote, God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us! (Romans 5:8) When we turned to God, we could not have been more different from Him. We were dirty and diseased by sin that was destroying our lives. We had spit into His face, doing whatever we wanted. Yet even then, the difference---His holiness and our corruption---did not stop Him from loving us.
Isn't that amazing! We often require others to be just like us. We put them in categories and treat each differently from the next. But Jesus saw us in one category---people dying, with no hope. Instead of treating us differently, He offered each of us the same solution---Himself. And He didn't require that we change and become like Him before He would accept us into His family. We have so much to learn.
Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. (Romans 5:7)
Oh, and the 22nd "Sign You're Secretly An Introvert"? You're a writer. Hey, I am what I am.
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