Growing as an Enneagram Seven: The EnthusiastExemplo

Your Gift of Long-Suffering

Long-suffering is one way that Sevens reflect the character of God. This trait is quieter than the others you reflect, such as joy and hope, but it is altogether beautiful to observe. It’s not often that one hears long-suffering mentioned in connection with Sevens—influencers are more likely to post memes about Sevens buying a ticket for yet another last-minute vacation—but those of us who know and love Sevens can attest to the truth of long-suffering in their lives.

Long-suffering means having or showing patience in spite of troubles, especially those caused by other people. It means getting all of the facts before reacting negatively, being strong so others can fall apart, and doing the next right thing. 

We often think of patience as playing a sitting and waiting game, one you may personally abhor. But true long-suffering is patience in action. It means choosing not to react, choosing to turn the other cheek, choosing to rejoice in suffering, choosing to be the comforter instead of one demanding comfort, choosing to be strong in the face of trial, choosing to look on the bright side, and choosing to cheer up others instead of giving in to despair. Patience and long-suffering go hand in hand; you cannot be long-suffering without having patience when your actions are hitting some unseen target. 

Dear Seven, there is so much more to you than the fun, joyful, and energetic person the world sees. Sevens are deep, loving, and very intelligent people. If you’ve ever questioned whether you are indeed a Seven because you’re not happy all the time, you’re a deep thinker, or you’re just an emotional person, I want to reassure you that you’re in the right place.

The preconceived idea that Sevens are merely fun, enthusiastic, whimsical people is one of the reasons you don’t often hear about long-suffering as connected to Sevens. However, this aspect of your personality is definitely something that should be talked about more often as it is one of the beautiful ways you show the rest of us the character of Christ.

Sevens are often the glue that holds a family together. While they can be counted on to entertain, a lot of families also rely on Sevens to be the strong ones in trials and grief.

Long-suffering is a compassionate response, a selfless gift to others. It’s a beautiful gift of type Sevens.