Sometimes people can make us feel worthless or ashamed. Maybe your own family members are constantly putting you down and aren’t helping you succeed in life. It can be hard to be around people sometimes. But does being around angry or negative people affect the way you see them?

I know that in my life it has been difficult to love people who are not loving me back. Sometimes it may feel hard not to get bitter when somebody is making fun of you in front of others or showing hatred towards you. But is there a way to see people for who they TRULY are, even when they are at their worst?

Have you ever had a mentor or person in your life who believed in you before you believed in yourself? In the movie, The Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi was training Daniel. But Daniel was told to do things that didn’t seem to have anything to do with karate. He was waxing cars and painting fences. He got frustrated at his teacher, Mr. Miyagi, because he didn’t feel like what he was doing was preparing him for karate.

 Mr. Miyagi then asked Daniel to show him what he does when he waxes cars and paints fences. The same moves he did to paint fences and wax cars were the same moves that are used in karate. Mr. Miyagi told Daniel to show up the next day for more lessons. He didn’t let Daniel get frustrated and give up. He showed him that what he was doing was actually counting for something.

Mr. Miyagi could have easily given up on Daniel because of his frustration and complaining. But he didn’t. He saw the best in him and helped him get to where he wanted to be. What if we lived as Mr. Miyagi’s in people’s lives? What if we saw the best, even in our enemies?!

This doesn’t mean we need to mentor people or be best friends with everyone. It simply means that we see the best in people. We look past their failures and shortcomings so that we can pull out the best in them. We can see their talents, gifts, aspirations etc. instead of their anger, frustration, complaining, hurt, hatred etc. Will we see the best in people and make an impact that may change their life or will we see the worst in them? It’s our decision!

We would love to hear your thoughts on this subject!