►Part 3 of a 6 part series
In the first part of this series, we explained how people’s temperaments (based upon the Arno Profile System) affect how their minds function and how each needs to wage spiritual warfare differently in this area. We looked at melancholies in a previous article and will now consider sanguines.
This post, and others in the series, are adapted from the NCCA newsletters containing articles in the “Temperament Corner” by Dr. Phyllis Arno.
Sanguines need to be around and accepted by people. They tend to respond negatively to situations that involve some of the following circumstances. In each case, I’ve itemized some typical thoughts that might torment them:
- Being Alone.
- “I am going nuts without anyone around!” “My life is boring and worthless!” “I think I’ll go make some excitement on my own.” “I’ll go shopping and see if I can run into somebody to talk to.” “I know that I don’t have any cash, but I do have a credit card!”
- Being Pressured by Family.
- “If they don’t quit nagging me about things that need to be done around the house, I’m going to explode!” “And if that doesn’t work, I am out of here!” “They are always nagging me about staying home!” “Who wants to stay home all the time?”
- Being Pressured at Work.
- “If they don’t get off my back, I’ll fix them.” “I’ll get even with them for putting me on notice—I’ll tell them off!” “I was only an hour or so late today!” “I am tired of people telling me that my work is not up to their standards!” “If my work is not good enough, then why finish the project?” “I’ll just take off, and they can get somebody else to meet this deadline!” “I am going to go buy a whole gallon of ice cream and eat it all myself!”
- Being Tempted by “Friends”.
- “I know it’s wrong to do drugs, but if I don’t, my friends might not want to hang out with me.” “They will think I don’t want to hang with them!” “What can be the harm with going to an x-rated movie—just once?” “Who will ever know?” “I’ll just have a few drinks with everyone else. What can that hurt?” “I can hold my liquor! And if I can’t, somebody will get me home.”
- Rejection from Deep Relationships.
- “If he/she does not want to make love, I’ll go find someone else who will.” “I need to be loved!” “If the kids don’t want to go to the mall with me, I’ll go by myself—let them sit at home alone!”
- Death or Dying.
- “I don’t know why they have to die and leave me alone!” “How am I going to make it without them?” “This makes me so angry, they just can’t leave me!” “I am just going to sit here and sulk!” “Don’t anybody bother me and try to cheer me up!”
For the Sanguine, after being put down or rejected, their mind can be a private place to go sulk and think of ways to retaliate. When they start spiraling downward with these thoughts, they become depressed and moody, and it is nearly impossible for anyone to pull them up. They can’t stand themselves and neither can anybody else!After the negative thoughts become too much to bear, they may try to escape by doing drugs, using alcohol, viewing pornography, gambling, etc. This is really no escape because it then opens them up to more negative thoughts and problems.
The key for the Sanguines is to quickly capture the negative thoughts and replace them with godly ones (scriptural truths). The godly, positive thoughts will help turn their mood upward (sanguines can be very moody and shift moods quickly because of what they are thinking. When they are in their upward swing, the Sanguine is a ray of sunshine to everyone around them. They have a way of encouraging others with their radiant smile and upbeat attitude.
Therefore, by putting God first in their life in all aspects of their thought life, they will tend to not:
- feel alone, because God is always with them—God is just a prayer away.
- feel pressured by their family, because they will love them with God’s love and will want to do things to please them.
- feel pressured at work because they will be doing their work “as unto the Lord.”
- be tempted to do wrong things because they will not want to do anything to displease God.
- suffer severe rejection from relationships as they know that God will always be there for them.
- have the anger over a loved one dying because they know that they will see them again. They will grieve but will be able to say, “joy comes in the morning; today will be a better day.”
Part 1: Know Your Spiritual Temperament And Win More Mind Battles
Part 2: Mind Battles for Melancholies
Part 4: Mind Battles for Cholerics
Part 5: Mind Battles for Phlegmatics
Part 6: Mind Battles for Supines
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