Bothersome

There will always be people that bother us. It may be what they say, or how they say it, or strange quirks in their personality, or how they treat others, or their apathy, or their naivety, or … The list goes on and on. But if I am a follower of Christ, and if I want to reflect His character in all that I do, I need to listen to His still, small voice and react as He would.

Here’s the bottom line for direction, a good word from the apostle Paul: “I…beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1-3, KJV).

Here’s verse 2 of that passage in other translations. “Accept life with humility and patience, making allowances for each other because you love each other” (J. B. Phillips). “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love” (NIV). “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love” (NLT).

Well, we can’t miss the point here, can we? And what if we do the right thing, as difficult as it may be, and an aggravating person turns on us? What if he or she never realizes how annoying he was? Do I still need to have patience? There were a few times when Jesus lashed out with strong words, but they were aimed at the Pharisees, who were distorting the truth of God and leading others astray. That called for harsh rebuke. But that’s not what I’m talking about here. It’s showing love to the bothersome, annoying people in our lives who just rub us the wrong way. Not just shrinking into the woodwork and avoiding them, but showing acts of love through our kindness.

What did Jesus do? He ministered alongside people who had annoying faults, and he knew that in the end one of them would betray Him, but He showed godly patience over an extended period of time. I wonder what our churches would look like if we all exhibited that kind of love.

Here’s a song I wrote and recorded years ago based on I Corinthians 13, the “love chapter.” I realize that I’ve used it before in a blog a couple of years ago. But songs can bear repeating, right? Can you resonate with it as you listen?

“Love” from “Listen”