Is there someone you just don’t like? Not someone who did something terrible to you. Not a bully. Just a person who rubs you the wrong way or gets on your nerves? You can’t even explain exactly why they bother you. They just do. It’s kind of hard to admit it, but there’s probably someone like that in your life that you can picture.

Now here’s the part that’s not easy to hear: those are the very people God asks us to love, pray for, and be kind to. It may not be easy, but it’s what God asks you to do. But think about this: Jesus somehow managed to love every kind of person. Yes, even the loud ones, the quiet ones, the annoying ones, the rude ones, and the people everyone else avoided. Jesus never once said, “Sorry, that person is just too much to be kind to.”

Guess what? If Jesus could do it, He can help you do it. You don’t have to fake it, either. You don’t have to pretend they’re your favorite person. That’s not really what God asked you to do either. He wants you to genuinely care about that person (no matter how hard it is!).

Here’s how: pray and ask God for help and then act on it. It’s a short prayer: “God, I don’t have enough love for this person. Please give me some of Yours.” That prayer works, by the way. Not always instantly. But it works.

Think About It: Picture the person who bugs you the most. Now ask yourself two questions: What’s one genuinely good thing about them? And is there anything going on in their life that might explain why they act the way they do? People are often more interesting than our first impression of them. Then, be sure to pray for them!