Synopsis: How do you turn the emotion of love into the motion of love for someone who’s getting under your skin? How can you act lovingly toward a chronic irritant? One of the most powerful motivations for loving that person who is not too loveable at the moment is to realize that what irritates you about them is truly the pathway for you to discover what God desires to change in you. Whoever is irritating you today, leverage that irritation for personal growth. The famous Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung was right, “Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.” For that reason, thank God for the growth opportunity He is providing you through that irritating friend!
Make Love Work // 1 Corinthians 13:5 (TLB)
Love is not irritable or touchy.
Irritable people … you have them in your life; I do, too! Yet true love, God’s love flowing through us, is never irritable; instead, it is always patient and kind…and grateful! So how do you turn the emotion of love you feel for the one who is getting under your skin into the motion of love … how can you act lovingly toward them?
One of the most powerful motivations for loving that unlovely person is to realize that what irritates you about others is truly the pathway for you to discover what God desires to change in you. Whoever or whatever is irritating you today, leverage it for change and growth in yourself…and thank God for the opportunity! As CarlJung noted,
Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.
Who is irritating you today? Take a moment to think about what Nancy Pearcey writes, “In today’s grievance culture, it seems that some new group is always coming forward to complain that they are offended. It can be easy for Christians to pick up the same victim language. But our motivation for speaking out should not be only that we are offended. After all, we are called to share in the offense of the Cross. We are called to love the offender. Christians will be effective in reaching out to others only when they reflect biblical truth in their message, their method, and their manners.”
So today, remember that the one who is irritating you so much is likely the very person God has chosen to perfect His will in you. Since that is true, consider that they are truly a gift from God to you!
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