How To Minister To Those Who Don't Like You

I received a rather interesting email devotional today from Building Church Leaders. All of us have dealt with difficult people in our lifetime be on a job, in our homes, at school, in the church, or just driving down the street. But according to Gary Preston author of "Dealing with Difficult People", he says; "Being a leader is hard enough. But what about leading those who don't like you? I'll take a step further, being a Christian, ministering to those who don't like is tough as well. Here are few pointers to overcome the difficulty of ministering to difficult people:

Resist What Comes Naturally- In ministry, doing what comes naturally is often the best approach. That's not true, however, when it comes to minstering difficult people. One of our natural responses is to distance ourselves from difficult people. But, we must learn to make it a point to seek out difficult people and spend a few moments talking together. Even if our contact with the person doesn't solve the problem, it builds a bridge rather than a wall between us. There is something positive and healing about face-to-face contact with people at odds with us.

Invite Talks About Sensitive Subjects - It's important to let people know that even subjects of conflict can be discussed; they don't end the relationship.

Keep Private Battles Private - Gary Preston illustrates this point; "One person had battled me repeatedly about my emphasis on evangelism. At a business meeting, the subject of evangelism came up, and several people expressed excitement about how the church was finally reaching out. I took the opportunity to point out that one of my most vocal critics was part of a shrinking minority. I had scored a major victory on this issue, and a public one at that—or so I thought. Ultimately, the statement came back to haunt me. Just as a negative political ad campaign can generate sympathy for the opponent, so too can a public attack against someone in the church. Even though people didn't agree with this man's position, they disagreed even more with my public attack of him. Some things are best left unsaid". Don't make private battles public. It's easy to go public with personal battles from the pulpit and on the phone. But often times it does more harm than good.

Practice Kindness - It is amazing what acts of kindness can do to build bridges to people.

When Best Efforts Fall Short - Of course, no approach to dealing with difficult people will be successful with all the people all the time. But, the more we seek to love difficult people, the more God uses them to refine us into the image of Christ. After all, learning to love people is one of the ways we become like Christ.

Thanks Gary Preston.
I pray you today is better than yesterday.