Last Updated on November 20, 2021 by Pastor Ikechukwu Chinedum
Today we will be dealing with the 5 Ways believers can cope with people. As Christians, people naturally expect us to possess the attributes of Christ. You hear people say “how can she call herself a Christian when she insults people and rude to the elders?”
The Apostles showed us how important it was to relate with people in our environments . Let’s take for instance, Tabitha, when she died, because of her good deeds and her kind of person in the environment people wanted her back to life so bad and she was resurrected too and the bible called her To Tabitha a good woman. I will like us to focus more on humility while talking about today’s topic which is ways we can cope with difficult people in our society. It’s important we relate with everyone in a good way and manner. Truly I know there are some people in your neighborhood that naturally hates you, even our Lord Jesus was hated for no reasons.
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So I believe we can’t be friends with everyone but we can try to be friendly with everyone too, we meet different types of people everyday, in our offices, compounds, on our way to work, at the bus stop etc..
Humility is in fact, one of the most powerful and important attributes of growth. Being humble helps to build trust and facilitates learning, which are key aspects of leadership and personal development. The definition of humility is the feeling or attitude that you have no special importance that makes you better than others or having a lack of pride. At first glance, humility seems like a negative quality, almost like a sign of weakness rather than a strength. In reality, humility is a type of modesty that will get you very far in your life as a person, a contender, and a leader. Let’s look at it another way.
A person who lacks humility is arrogant. It is a person who only thinks of themselves and sees themselves as higher and better than others. There is no room for an arrogant person to improve themselves because they do not recognize their flaws. A person who is not humble does not have a growth mindset. In this our present world where everyone is starting to claim “woke generation” it’s rare to find one who is totally humble.
Take for instance I read a story while surfing the net on a particular day and the lady was like she boarded a bus to her place of abode and when she got to her destination , she said she have the cab man her transport fare with her left hand, and according to her the man told her in a very polite manner that it’s against his culture and value. The lady was so rude to the driver and his beliefs and she still brought it online for the issued to be judged by her fellow “woke” people. She feels there’s nothing wrong with using either of her hands to pay the man’s money, truly I agree with her too but let’s see the reasons she might be wrong:
- Would she have disrespected her parents at home if they demand she give them money with her right hand
- What happened to respecting people’s belief even if it doesn’t suit yours
The lesson here is we meet different people everyday, let’s respect their belief even if we don’t agree with them. Simple courtesy and showing that you’re well brought up in Christ matters too in dealing with people around you. If you do something wrong people will refer you back to your Sunday school teacher if they’re not teaching you well or you’re probably a church goer with no morals and respec
The Points below will show us how to live our life to showcase that we are God’s own child and also how to deal with difficult people as a Christian.
5 Ways Believers Can Cope With Difficult People
1. Do not judge, condemn or insult people
Carnegie writes, “Any fool can criticize, condemn or complain- and most fools do.” Even the bible says “do not judge so that you will not be judged too” . Your actions might annoy people around you so you have to be careful when dealing with people, if at all you must correct anyone that’s something called a constructive criticism, you correct someone so much that they won’t see it as you insulting them but see it as you trying to get them to do their best.
Do not condemn people around you remember that we were not created in the same manner and ways, some of us are slow witted while some if us grab things very fast , because you have more advantage over a person doesn’t make you better than that person. Remember God said there’s no one on this earth that is not indispensable. It takes character and self-control to be forgiving, this discipline will pay major role in your relationships with people. Even in church if you are holding a higher position, thread softly even the bible says beware because the powerful can be brought down easily
2. Acknowledge people’s effort and be generous with your praise
Acknowledging people’s effort is the beginning of a good relationship, because my Sunday school teacher will praise me for every small effort I do in church , I will be encouraged to do more because I don’t want to let my teacher down. We will notice that a student that was rewarded for a task will want to do more task and get better at it because the student will want to be praised the more. Praise is the foundation of all of relationships, “In bigger associations we notice that even people in higher positions want to be praised and acknowledged too though many might not show it but a simple form of appreciation will bring a smile to their faces.
Even when people do something wrong, there’s a way we can call them to order, dealing with someone stubborn you first talk about the person’s good side and some of the good works the person have done for the church or environment, that’s giving out acknowledgment even when it’s not necessary but just to get the good side and soft side of the person you use it as a way of getting that person to do well. Remember Jesus caught so many fishes for His disciples before He promised to make them fishers of men. Your act of kindness can go a long way and remember that people no longer read the scripture they read the lives of Christians because they expect us to live like Christ
3. Show sincere and genuine interest in people
Remembering a person’s name, asking them questions that encourage them to talk about themselves so you discover their interests and passions are what make people believe you like them, so they in turn like you. Remembering their names , and your discussion with them will make them see you in a good light , imagine having a visitor in church and you’re assigned to be the one to take care of the person, then you go into discussion with the person and they tell you their likes and dislikes, few minutes later when you’re to offer them food, you brought in their favourite food, do you know how happy that person will be, just to know that you actually listened and paid attention to their conversation with you. This will make them happy. Any difficult person will go soft just by your own show of Love and act of kindness.
Remember that even at work you try to please your boss so that he can promote you or increase your salary, this same energy should be applied to people around you. Do we remember the story of the man in the bible who owed a king a sum of money and pleased with the king to give him sometime to get his money so he can pay the king back, on getting back home, the man went out to meet his debtor and locked his debtor in prison and didn’t forgive him, very bad right ? The king got aware of the situation and called the man in to question him that if a whole king can forgive you of your debt and an ordinary man like you can’t even forgive your debtor too. That’s so bad. The king then ordered that the man be thrown in prison. Be good to people always. Do not let people’s behavior towards you determine how you will behave towards others. Be kind regardless
4. Admit when you’re wrong and apologize
Nothing will make people less defensive and more agreeable than you being humble and reasonable enough to admit your own mistakes. Having strong and stable personal and professional relationships relies on you taking responsibility for your actions, especially your mistakes. Nothing will help end tension or a disagreement more than a swift acknowledgment and apology on your part. When dealing with difficult people as a Christian, admit you’re wrong quickly to keep matters from escalating and going bad, try to see things from their points of view ,who knows you might be wrong and they might be right, and vice versa.
5. Share The Scripture With People
Lastly, the bible says the word of God is sharper than the edges of a sword, you can try to win souls with;
- Reading and explaining the scriptures with them
- Praying with them
- Share their burden with the
- Lead by example
- Buying gifts as a form of appreciation.
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