“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17
Have you ever had someone rub you the wrong way? Most of us probably have. No matter how hard we try to like them as a brother or sister in Christ, our personalities clash. We may even pray for God to help us see them as He does, hoping our attitude will be altered. But each and every time they put us on edge and our back teeth clench.
We are to love one another, right? That is the second commandment of Jesus (Mark 12: 31). So why can’t we “just get over it” and love this abrasive person? Perhaps because God is still sharpening us or them.
Often times we see the speck in someone else’s eye because it is similar to the log in our own (Matthew 7:3). People can bring out the worse in us. We see our faults magnified in them without realizing it. Or they may remind us of someone who hurt us in the past. Maybe that irritating trait they exhibit is exactly what God plans to use to help mold us, correct our misunderstanding, or build His love into our hearts, which doesn’t hinge on actions or words. He may use the personality that sets us on edge as a sword to cut away something in us that is keeping us from growing spiritually.
So if someone rubs you the wrong way, perhaps that is a good thing. Even better, it may be a God-thing.
Father God, when someone rubs us the wrong way, let us turn to You for discernment. Because Your son, Jesus, commanded us to love, let us call upon Your Holy Spirit to guide us, sharpen us, and mold us so we may indeed act instead of react. Amen.
