Annoying People: Whaddaya Do?

by Mike Gibson

"What About Bob" is one of my all-time favorite movies. In this flick, Bill Murray plays the role of a guy who
drives his psychiatrist insane. Bob was a pain. He was annoying… He was familiar. Most of us have a
"Bob" in our life, and (s)he drives us crazy!

"Bobs" can come in various forms:

 Some are enemies who watch your every move looking for a way to nail you.
 Some are friends who abuse your relationship and mistreat you.
 Some are needy people who never seem to get enough of you.

Whatever the situation, the "Bobs" will prove themselves to be both annoying and challenging. So what do
you do?

Two thousand years ago, a great Teacher was speaking to a crowd. That crowd was made up of people like
you and me.

They were people who struggled with relationships. They were people who had "Bobs" in their life. They
had enemies. They had abusive relationships. They had acquaintances that seemed to drain the life out of
them.

And they had a question: "What do you do with people like this? What do you do with 'Bob'?"

Listen to what the Teacher said:

"To you who are ready for the truth I say this: Love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not
the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer for that person. If
someone slaps you in the face, stand there and take it. If someone grabs your shirt, giftwrap your best coat
and make a present of it. If someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the
servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.

"Here is a simple rule of thumb for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you; then
grab the initiative and do it for them! If you only love the lovable, do you expect a pat on the back? Run-
of-the-mill sinners do that. If you only help those who help you, do you expect a medal? Garden-variety
sinners do that. If you only give for what you hope to get out of it, do you think that's charity? The stingiest
of pawnbrokers does that.

"I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You'll never-I promise-regret it. Live
out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when
we're at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

"Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults-unless, of course, you want the same
treatment. Don't condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you'll
find life a lot easier. Give away your life; you'll find life given back, but not merely given back-given back
with bonus and blessing. Giving, not getting, is the way. Generosity begets generosity."

Luke 6:27-38 from The Message

Wow! That is tough stuff!

Love our enemies? Do good to those who mistreat us? Give to those who never seem to get enough? How
could we possibly do this?

It goes against everything that our instincts tell us to do! We want to fight the enemy. Get revenge for
mistreatments. And get rid of the needy whiners. What is this Teacher talking about? We are just as
surprised as the crowds were 2000 years ago.

The Teacher shocks us. He leaves us reeling. But He does not leave us helpless.

The Teacher's name is Jesus. He is more than a Teacher. He is a Creator. A Cosmic Artist, He is the One
who made us and gave us life. He is God.

We are the "Bobs."

We are the people who think of God as an enemy. He is the One who wants to ruin our fun. He is the One
we blame for all the pain in the world. He is the One who makes the rules. He is the opponent. ... At least
that is what we think.

In reality, we are the fickle friends who have abused our relationship with Him. We feign affection for Him
when we are around other people who love Him, but we reject Him when we are around those who have no
respect for Him. Worse than a Junior High clique, we include and exclude Him at our leisure.

We are the needy ones who cannot get enough of Him… especially when we want something. When things
are going great, we pretend that it is all due to our own brilliance, our own inborn goodness. But when
things are going bad… we run to Him for help.

In my preteen years, I had a cat named Possum. Possum was a stupid cat. It was not unusual for Possum
to pick a fight, get whupped, and run to the closest human for assistance. The human, usually my mom,
would try to chase off the other cat. I say "try" because as soon as the other cat would begin to retreat,
Possum would jump out from behind my mother and want to fight some more. Until, of course, he started to
lose. Then he would run behind mom and the cycle would start over again. Possum was a "Bob."

And so are we.

Anyone else would find us annoying. Anyone else except the Teacher. Anyone else would give up on us.
Anyone else except the Creator… Anyone else except God.