Ken Voges was attempting to build a good life for his family in the mid-1970’s. He and his wife, Linda, were the parents of two young children, and Ken was travelling 60% of the week as a sales representative for General Electric. Although the pay was good, the travel time away from home was taking its toll on his marriage. Not long after, Ken and Linda found themselves in their Pastor’s office for marriage counseling, wondering if their marriage could be saved.
Finding Hope
Through counseling, Ken was introduced to behavioral assessment through the work of Tim LaHaye, who had written a book on the four personality types. Not long after, a cousin shared with Ken and Linda her work with DISC (Dominance, Influencing, Steadiness and Conscientious), another way to understand personality and behavior. Ken and Linda discovered that they had the exact opposite personality types. Because of DISC, they began to communicate with each other in ways that worked for the other. To hear Ken tell the story, behavioral assessment (specifically the DISC model), together with their faith in the Lord, helped save their marriage.
New Inspiration
Ken was so excited about this new behavioral information that he decided he wanted to teach it at his church in an adult Sunday School class. However, when he approached the church elders, their first question was “where do you read about DISC and personality in the Bible?”. So Ken began a journey of equating the 16 most common DISC behavioral blends with men and women in the Bible. He was excited to see that the way God the Father and Jesus related to different characters was very different, depending on their personality or behavioral style.
One example of these styles in scripture is that of Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus from Bethany. In John 11, we see that Jesus came to the village after Lazarus’s death. Martha approached Him directly with the admonition: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:21) Jesus spoke quickly and directly to Martha, appealing to her direct and bold nature. But when Mary approached him with the very same words (John 11:32), His response to her was very different. In response to the softer and gentler Mary, the Bible records that “Jesus wept”! (John 11:35) Jesus was the perfect role model in showing us how to respond to different styles of behavior in the appropriate way.
The more Ken read and studied Scripture with this new lens of personality and behavior, the more excited he became. He put together a Biblical DISC™ profile, eventually won over his church elders, and began teaching the material at his church. This led to his teaching Biblical DISC at Dallas Theological Seminary in their Doctor of Ministry program and sharing this information with pastors and ministry leaders all across North America. God has certainly blessed Ken’s journey in an unexpected way!
Looking Ahead
In 2016, Ken partnered with Lead Like Jesus to publish the Biblical DISC Assessment and began to certify pastors and ministry leaders to use and teach this material in their spheres of influence. Lead Like Jesus offers the Biblical Disc Assessment through its network of Certified DISC Practitioners throughout North America and continues certifying new Practitioners. Ken is also the author of several books on this topic, including DISCovering the Leadership Styles of Jesus and Understanding How Others MisUnderstand You. Ken and Linda have recently passed the 50-year mark in their marriage. Ken likes to say, “I think it’s going to work.” They are the proud grandparents of five beloved grandchildren. For more than thirty years now, Ken has made his living teaching and consulting to businesses, churches, nonprofits, and ministries with the Biblical DISC model. What could God reveal to you through Biblical DISC?
