Yep. That’s right. Some people just aren’t easy to love.
And yet it is often the people who aren’t easy to love that need love the most.
I have someone in my life like that right now. Tough to love. We saw this person in a restaurant a couple of weeks ago and I found myself eating with my head down… hoping this person wouldn’t see me.
This person has an annoying personality. This person lingers to long, laughs to loud, and has the unbelievable characteristic of showing up at the most inconvenient times.
I am sad.
I am sad that I feel this way.
I am sad because this person is lonely. This person’s spouse died two years ago and the bank sent this person a foreclosure letter the next day. This person is tolerated at best by most people… and knows it. This person has no one with whom to create a budget, watch a movie, eat a meal, take a walk, or pray with. This person is alone.
This person has turned to me and my family. I have been polite but much like what is normal for this person, I have simply tolerated this person.
Jesus is not happy about this. He won’t let me alone.
He keeps whispering to me that I should love this person. I should allow love for this person to inconvenience me. I should allow love to open the door to my home, give access to my heart, and mess up my perfect little plan if need be.
This week I’m going to spend some time with some friends who are easy to love. Their lives aren’t so messy. They’re a little more socially composed. They’re not so needy. At least I don’t see it. I don’t mind hanging out with them… but then again neither does anyone else.
We all want to hang out with and love on people who are easy to hang out with and love on, but often the people who need it the most are the ones who are the least likely to get it. Why? Because they are the hardest to love.
I want to be like Jesus. I want to love people like He does. So now I need to go. I need to go love that person who is not so easy to love.
paulpetersonlive.com 
This message has been popping up more and more in my life as of late.. Words about reaching out to people who may be inconvenient, who have “messy” problems, or as you put it, “are just hard to love”. Puts me in mind of Jesus – His life was filled with inconvenient, loud, obnoxious, needy and messy people.. If He is the one we are to model our lives after how could we behave any differently?
Wow, are you inside my head, or what??? I think we all know people like this and are all dismayed that our feelings don’t seem to stretch enough to include them. A good question to ask yourself………do people see ME this way?? Good time for an evaluation!!
This reminds us of the story of “Norman”..if you haven’t listened to the CD you should, not sure if there is a DVD of it, got it from Focus on the Family….awesome. Welcome little Riley to the Peterson clan…Blessings, Howie and Sue
Last night after I read your post I was listening to this:
The song from Jesus Christ Superstar-“I don’t know how to love Him”
The song just spoke to me on so many levels.
I also struggle with my own vulnerablity and patience with others.
Sue and Howie are right on with Norman!!!
Blessings to all of your family- Welcome to Riley Peterson.
I’m going to play a little bit of a devil’s advocate. In principle, I agree with your thinking and those who have made comments. However, my “real-life” experience with many of the “unlovables” is that when I started out with good intentions to love them I found myself being sucked into co-dependency, where the more I gave the more they wanted. And eventually this drained me to the point I had to terminate the relationship because they refused to take responsibility for their own lives and take positive steps forward. So if you’re going to do this, one must establish clear boundaries, otherwise the person will be calling you at all hours and talk your ear off with all their problems. I know this may sound “un-Christian” but I’m attempting to bring some real-life reality to this issue.