Why Writing on Narcissism in the Church is So Hard

I was reading a description of my "INFJ" personality this week and it hit me again - I'm a mess. My head spun as a I read painfully true quotes about my personality type:You may become easily entangled and absorbed in how others are behaving or what they think of you. Due to their high sensitivity, they tend to be very compassionate people who are overly generous and conscientious to the needs of others. This makes them a target for predators like narcissists who seek to exploit them. That’s why it’s important for INFJs to develop a “radar” for emotional con artists and move slowly in relationships to ward off these toxic types.They are easily overwhelmed by bullying types who treat others with a reckless disregard or abrasiveness. The exception being, of course, manipulative charmers who can “present” a more gentle personality type at the onset, but later unmask themselves to be cruel and callous. INFJs can have a more difficult time detoxing from these types of manipulators simply because of the trauma this “unmasking” reveals.Ouch. Of course, there were stunningly positive lines that should have soothed my self-deprecating, INFJ/E4 soul. But these, and a few choice others, sent me spiraling. That, and perhaps the fact that I'm slowly tapering off of Zoloft after 20 years.I've been pastoring and counseling and teaching for two decades now. That ought to provide some sense of self-assurance, confidence, even a sense of "expertise," as these new friends described it when I did a recent podcast on narcissism.  But as I put it in a book on narcissism I've been chipping away on for 2 years, narcissism's bite stings, and it stays with you a long time. I hear those lines above and they say to me: "You're too broken, too confused, too enmeshed, too gullible."For years, I've watched the debris field - on a personal level, in close relationships, with clergy, in clients I care about, on church staffs. I am personally involved in this book in away I've not been involved with any other. But, as the INFJ article also indicates, people with my personality see things - we see systemic issues before others do, we have an eerily intuitive sense of impending crisis, we have a highly active imagination which plays out multiple possible scenarios. This makes me a pretty good counselor - one who can see the contingencies, who can imagine multiple pathways, who can assess troubling systemic dynamics. It's also...exhausting. Thus, my on-again-off-again relationship with this book I call When Narcissism Comes to Church. It is coming along. Seven chapter are complete, and I think they're helpful. But a final piece is tough - I am mindful of all of the possible pieces I'm missing, whether I've just neglected to follow a lead or whether I'll be courageous enough to say the hard things or whether my own issues blind me to something or whether I'll write something worthy of the courageous people who've been bitten by narcissism's angry bite. Mindful of this during my times of contemplative prayer, these sessions have been more difficult than usual, as my sense of focus, presence, and clarity is all over the place.So, if you're inclined to it, pray for me. If you're up for it, send me a note to say, "Please write on this." If you want, send me some encouragement! If you've got an idea - I'm all ears. I'd love to offer the church the most helpful, the most honest, and the most challenging book I can on narcissism.