Responding to Difficult People

Good, Happy Monday Morning! Are you ready to have a great week in the Lord? I pray you are, because in the Lord, that’s what’s available to you.

Ok. There’s something at this point we could probably all do just as well without talking about. I mean, I am concerned after tomorrow I am going to go through withdrawal from not getting anymore VOTE for me, send me money, text messages. Yes, tomorrow is Election Day and I will speak for us all, thank God it is over - 1 way or another.

However this thing turns out, 51% of the country will be happy and 49% won’t. Whoever the Lord leads you to vote for, as a rule as Christ followers, the mindset is simple - don’t divide, keep loving people you love, keep loving people you disagree with 😄. I could explain “don’t divide” further, but let me jump right to a fave passage that has shaped how I treat, view and think about people.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 

2 Corinthians 5:16

What makes 2 Cor 5:16 so powerful is that it is right after verses 14 and 15 (Captain Obvious👩‍✈️). Those verses make it clear believers are controlled by their love for Christ. And that whatever condition we are in - we belong to and are controlled by Christ.

Then on the other side of 2 Corinthinans 5:16, is verse 17 (again, obvious), Verse 17 , Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. is one of the most quoted verses from the Bible

I joked about being profound earlier, but really God’s truth here really is actually pretty profound, because…from now, controlled by our love of Christ, we are to be more concerned for the soul of a person that lies than the twinge of personal insult that they would lie to me. Or concerned for the soul of a coworker that would steal credit for work we did, rather than stew in anger and exact a get even plan.

3 Points of Prayer

1. Pray for Me: 2 Cor 5:16 like a play action pass in football, the receiver’s already in motion before the ball is snapped. It’s all timing and when the ball is snapped, the receiver’s already at full speed - and running ahead of the play. Pray now, ahead of time, for godly perspective so that when people do what people do, you replace flashes of anger with flashes of godly perspective.

2. Reaction Time: Yesterday, Saquan Barkley of my Philly Eagles jumped over a defender - backwards. No way that was rehearsed, that was pure reaction! You can’t prepare for every everything, ask God to give you amazing reaction time in the heat of life’s insulting moment.

3. Get Help: 2 Corinthians 5:16 changes the game because It’s not natural to think of the spiritual walk or soul condition of others. If you ask me, I am really nice 🤣, but —- Lord, help me look beyond the insult and my feelings to respond in ways that bring “them” closer to you.

Interacting with people isnt easy, but controlled by our love for Christ and being new in Christ, God gives us ability & strength not to regard people according to what they say and do but according to their spiritual needs.

Guys, that’s it! Have a great week in the Lord. Whatever this week brings in your life, may God give us all strength to respond - spiritually.

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