Charles M. Schulz wrote this line for his cartoon character Linus -“I love mankind; it’s people I can’t stand.” The thought that you can love humans but not like people makes you want to go grab your security blanket before you step outside.
I’m sure all of us have our own personal stories on healthy and unhealthy relationships and the lasting effects these relationships can have on you. We all fall short of our full potential when we begin to interact with others either on a short-term basis or for a lifetime.
Ask the server at the restaurant when your order got mixed up or the shoe clerk at the store where your size was out of stock or the hairdresser in your salon or a member of your WhatsApp group. We all love humans but it’s the people we can’t stand. What a paradox.
No rolling of eyes or no surprise looks from you until you see where I am going with this thought. The older we get is the more we should want to enjoy life and walk away from anything that threatens your peace. What does it profit if you live in a nice cozy home, have good food and your stress level and hostility towards people make you feel vulnerable?
Is it time to check in with the people in your community? Some people will make you laugh a little louder. Some will test your resiliency. Some will bring out the best in you. Some bring out the worse in you. Some will use you. Some will love you. Some will hate you. Some will remind you that there are still wonderful people around.
Everyone that comes into your life has a reason, a season, or a lifetime. It’s up to you to figure out each person’s role and don’t lose hope in humanity if and when it expires.
God is so generous with His kindness even when we do not deserve it. He teaches us by His example how to extend random acts of kindness even when others may not deserve it.
Here are some of the people that were meant to be in our life and it’s important that we hold ourselves accountable for how we deal with them:
Some people can be difficult but with a little care and extra prayer they will not require long term care. Finding a haven in you they cling to you so with good mentoring their issues can be resolved in the proper environment.
Then there are people who you will meet at the crossroads of life because they have run out of options. They are now ready to get help because there are serious and sensitive matters at stake. They require an immediate intervention and your prayers are the only connection they have to Heaven.
Other people come along in your life to be nursed back to health. They need critical care and cannot be left alone. This requires teamwork to make the dream work. In critical care, crisis is an everyday occurrence so many hands make the work light. Their miracle is credited to the team and God gets the glory.
The older I get the more I realize what really matters in life. You are never too important to be nice to people. It doesn’t matter if people like you, love you, hate you, understand you or validate you just must be nice to everyone because everyone is fighting a battle that no one knows about.
Just grab your security blanket before heading outside.
Amazing Grace 