What do you do when someone keeps hurting you—and shows no signs of stopping? Is "being nice" always the Christian response, or does real love sometimes require a backbone?

As we move through our How to Handle Life series, this episode condenses a lifetime of wisdom into 30 minutes! John Tinnin dives into one of life's toughest challenges: dealing with truly difficult, unrepentant people. You may not know that God responds differently with repentant (soft-hearted, teachable) and unrepentant (hard-hearted, blame-shifting) individuals.

The wisdom of Scripture teaches us to do the same, but too often, Christians default to endless patience and "niceness.” John explains how Jesus modeled kindness with strength, sometimes saying a firm "no" and exposing hurtful behavior which provides the perfect example of how we are to engage with others in love and truth.

The core of the episode offers practical "field tactics" to protect yourself while inviting a difficult person to change from being unrepentant to repentant: 

This episode will help you realize that limits and consequences are loving: They protect the hurt person, they get the offender's attention like a "speed bump," and create conditions for genuine change. As you listen, you will learn how to deal with difficult people by strategically engaging them with clarity and strength.