Dealing with Difficult People … A Lesson in Character

I like to jump right into my topics with little to no fanfare. I tend to start TEAMS chats and text messages the same way. Sometimes I provide no point of reference or context and expect the recipient to fill in the blanks. I attribute this to the fact that I am a bottom-line person, not someone who is overly concerned with fluff and superficial details. At this time, I will jump into my subject. It stems from daily life experiences that remind me that I have not “arrived” and still have a lot of work to improve my character for the sake of Christ.

Dealing with difficult people is never fun or easy, but I need to remind myself often that I am not held accountable for how others respond. I am only held responsible for how I react to others. So, how SHOULD I respond to difficult people (I will include myself as a prime example)? My answer comes from the Bible. God calls believers to display the “fruit of the Spirit” when responding to others. The fruit of the Spirit is described in Galatians 5:22-23 as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. For this BLOG, I am going to focus on gentleness.

“Gentleness (or “meekness”), signifies a humble, compassionate, and tender approach to others, characterized by a soft and calm demeanor, rather than harshness or dominance.”  If you remove the words 'humble,' 'compassionate,' 'tender,' 'soft,' and 'calm,' that describe me without God’s work in my life! I never indicated this would be easy, but it is something I endeavor to cultivate in my life with God’s help. Gentleness is not a sign of weakness, but rather a strength that pleases God. If you disagree with me, try responding gently to a narcissist or someone who asserts their superiority over you. I plan to tackle examples of how we can show compassion to others in my next blog, as I am sure I will be seeking to cultivate this “fruit of the Spirit” for many years to come.