Proverbs 21:2 English Standard Version (ESV) Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.

When a dear friend told me that not everyone is introspective I was shocked. I thought we all were introspective. Not everyone is like me. Wow, really? I guess I was right in my own eyes. I never thought of it in any other way. Or did I?

I had little to learn from the definition of introspective so I looked at the introspective antonym, it is extrovert.  I had never been one of those but I knew people like that. I just never thought of them as being extroverts, only that they chose to be outgoing as a result of being introspective. I was wrong.

Perhaps it is a matter of not understanding the differences between the mind and the heart. God weighs the heart. To some that holds no meaning because they do not understand the issues of the heart as being the seat of choice. For the extrovert it has always been a matter of the mental aspects of decision making.

How can an introvert relate to the extrovert in terms of God’s view of the heart? Does the heart for an extrovert only mean emotional feelings that does not have the ability to make decisions? Do they only feel and in those terms become helpless to control those emotions? Do they rationalize how to deal with emotions in order to not become a victim to their emotions? I don’t know for sure because I am introspective.

I recognize that I was helpless to change my heart. I needed God to do that for me. That is a surrender of self to a higher power. Perhaps that is a difficult thing to do for an extrovert. Those are control issues. Turning over control to anyone for an extrovert has to be a rational decision of the mind. It is the extrovert that enlist in the military and accepts that rank has it place and seeks advancement up the chain of command in order to be in charge.

Not so in God’s Kingdom.