How to Deal With Difficult Peopleنموونە

The more time we spend focusing on how crazy people can be, the less time we are focused on how we can point them to Christ. God calls us to be vessels of the Holy Spirit. When you are in the heat of an argument, have you ever stopped to think if the Holy Spirit is the one speaking?

My two daughters and I were on a plane headed home from a fun Disney vacation a few years back. The girls had to sit next to a grumpy older man who had the aisle seat, while I had to sit in front of them. The plane had just taken off. The man appeared very hungry (some might say hangry) and ready to get after his sub sandwich. Well, my timid daughter had to pee, so with her best manners, she asked to get up, to which the grumpy old man with absolutely no manners replied with a nasty “no” and then questioned why she couldn’t wait until he was finished eating, amongst other nasty comments.

Overhearing all of this, with all kinds of Momma-bear rage, I calmly turned around and told him that she couldn’t wait until he was finished eating because she was a child unable to hold it that long. I wanted to offer up the idea of her peeing in her leather seat as she sat closely next to him, but I refrained.

What I know about that moment is that it was a great opportunity for my daughters to see how to keep their cool when others are crazy. Even when we have a cause, we still need to pause. Speaking out of unbridled emotions and reacting in our flesh is rarely helpful. Words and actions are like toothpaste - once they come out, there’s no stuffing them back into the tube. Practicing the pause helps us to invite the Holy Spirit into the situation and allows us to seek the best way to handle it.

Maybe God aligned your paths with difficult people to allow THEM to see the Holy Spirit in action. Or to allow YOU to lean on the Holy Spirit, grow, and accept his peace as enough.