Jesus teaches us that to be His follower means to grow a passion for people and a call to love and serve others. However, this should never be mistaken as a command for everyone to be extroverted. As believers and followers of Christ, we can learn to love people even if we have introverted tendencies.
I am a self-confessed introvert. I love spending time alone. I tend to get uneasy when too many people are around me. If given a chance to pick out my day, I would love spending it reading a book in the comfort of my own serene home.
But in all of this, the Holy Spirit has put in my heart a desire to be a blessing to the church and to reach out to the lost. I still get uneasy around big crowds of people, but now I am overcome by an urge to pray, minister to and bless the crowds especially if they are sheep without a shepherd.
One thing we must all understand about introverts is that God wired them the exact way they are. Ephesians 2:10 tells us, "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."
We were created by God the exact way we should be, and we can do good—even great—things with what God has given us.
Being an introvert doesn't mean that you hate people. It also doesn't mean that you cannot engage in evangelism, exhortation, counselling and other gifts of the Spirit that require human interaction. Having this type of personality also doesn't mean that you have to ask God to take your introverted tendencies.
We also have to get away from this stigma that God made some people to hate other people. This mindset is a twisted view of introverted behaviour that is both non-scientific and nonsense. It's an idea that has been brewed simply by a barrage of online jokes with no basis whatsoever. God made us for the sole purpose of loving Him and loving other people.
John 13:34-35 tells us, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
God would not command us to do something that He knows will go against a self-built nature.
God calls, loves and creates both introverted and extroverted people alike, and we are all empowered to receive and give love. It's a matter of understanding God's nature and fine print in you that we understand our calling and identity.
