Work at living in peace

Drama confuses me. No, not stage drama. Life drama. Life drama is an incredible waste of time, emotional resources, and opportunity. I don’t care for it, and I have a hard time feeling compassion for people who thrive in it.

You know those people in your life. You know who they are. They’re the ones who can make mountains out of mole hills. They’re the ones who are only content if their life is in a crisis of some kind or another. Having those people in my life makes me appreciate the understated friends I have. Those understated friends are the ones who can be in crisis but you wouldn’t know it. They’re the ones who are experiencing all sorts of difficulty in their lives, but they don’t focus on it.

A peaceful spot at the Dallas Arboretum, Dallas, TX

Today’s verse is Hebrews 12:14.

Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.

Which camp do you fall into? It’s okay to admit it if you tend toward the drama queen side of the coin. In some cases, being dramatic about stuff is helpful. Those personalities can be valuable in many circumstances because they tend to get stuff done. They tend to prod others into action. They tend to be ferocious doers.

I’m not dramatic. I’m dry. And sarcastic. And I have this awful tendency … when people nag me about something, I usually go out of my way to avoid doing it. It’s not a very Christ-like response, and I’ll admit it. I’m a work in progress. But nothing gets under my skin like nagging. But part of my non-dramatic reactions to things is a disadvantage because I tend to minimize situations that probably need to be maximized.

So both personalities need each other, the dramatics to spur the non-dramatics into action and the non-dramatics to keep the dramatics planted on the ground instead of whirling around like crazy people. It’s absolutely possible to work together, but it takes effort on both sides.

Working together is harder than it sounds. If you’ve ever been part of a team, you understand what I mean, but no one person is sufficient on his or her own. We all need each other.

Mainly, we just need to be patient with each other. We need to take a moment, take a step back, and remind ourselves what the point is. The vast majority of the time whatever is causing the drama isn’t personal. It’s just different personalities clashing, different points of view crashing into each other, different ways of communicating muddying the waters.

If you’re a dramatic person, recognize it and embrace it. Your intense emotions are a gift, but understand that not everyone around you feels with the same intensity you do. So ease up!

If you’re a non-dramatic person, do the same thing. Realize that your penchant toward the more logical side of life is also a gift. It’s just not as loud. So lighten up!

God made each of us with our own personalities and our own hang ups and our own special gifts. Don’t discount someone just because they burst with emotion over every tiny little thing. And don’t shun someone because they barely react at all either.

Try to see the best in each other. Try to learn from each other. They’re in your life for a reason, and even if you think you escape having a relationship with them, God will bring another one just like them into your life to take their place. He’ll keep doing it until you learn the lesson you need to learn.

So don’t be stubborn. Trust me, you may think you’re the most stubborn person on the planet, but God can match you any day.