Have you lived with someone who is very nervous? It is not easy, is it? There are people who are like that, and there are others who are just nervous sometimes. But after all, how do you deal with nervous people according to the Bible? This is a difficult question to answer, because each person has a different way of reacting.
Fortunately in the bible we find the answer to everything, and in today’s text we will see what the bible has to tell us about the subject, remembering that we also get nervous with others, so as you read this text reflect not only on how to deal with others, but how you can improve yourself as well.
Dealing with nervousness is an exercise in love, patience, and grace
To begin with I would like to bring up a situation that we went through here at home recently. Well, my 10-year-old brother’s behavior had been changing for some time. More closed, quiet and irreverent as well. He entered in that complicated phase, when his mother speaks (or his sister) and immediately he retorts or questions.
“Why do I have to take a bath?”, “I’ll go soon”, “this is boring”, “I don’t want to go out” and so on, always sulking. He had never been a disobedient child as he was now, until my mother lost patience and his nervousness flared up everywhere.
After a poorly crafted response, everyone’s voices got louder, there was an ugly fight, and guess what solved it? Nothing. The situation only improved when we all calmed down and said what we were feeling. And then we listened to each other with love and patience.
We stayed in the room for about four hours talking, my brother was exhorted with love, there was true repentance and asking for forgiveness. In the same way that my brother apologized, my mother also apologized, something that is missing in many homes. Many parents think that they should not apologize to their children. However, they are not free to make mistakes, in this case my mother, because she works a lot and has a busy schedule, could not see that the little one was not well.
The conclusion of this story and the verse that summarizes it is Proverbs 15:1: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. If my brother had been obedient and given good answers, he would not have made my mother nervous and she would not have fought with him. However, no one is perfect, we are going to make mistakes and when we make mistakes being willing to change is essential.
How did Jesus deal with nervous and difficult people?
Jesus certainly dealt with many difficult people during His time here on earth and never showed an attitude of superiority or disdainful pride. He rebuked when necessary (John 8:47), was silent John 8:6), asked questions (Mark 11:28-29), pointed to Scripture (Mark 10:2- 3), and told stories to exemplify situations
So how we deal with each one is different, but if there is one thing that is needed, it is the message of 1 Peter 3:9: “not rendering evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, for to this you have been called, that you may receive blessing for inheritance.
When we deal with nervous people, or are in a fight, our first reaction is often to defend ourselves by being proud, or even by pointing out the mistakes and failures of the other, but it is not because a person has adopted a bad attitude towards us that we should act the same way.
Conclusion
This book is not a “cake recipe” for how you will never have to deal with someone nervous again, because there is no single way to deal with people like that. But I want you to keep two things in mind – number one is: a soft word deflects anger. And number 2 is: don’t be proud either, recognize your mistakes. I suggest you read Proverbs, a book full of wisdom to put into practice.
God bless you!
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