Raise your hand if you like conflict. Anyone? I avoid it at all costs, sometimes even to my detriment. However, I know people who enjoy the drama of conflict. It’s like they search it out. If they can’t find it, they create it.  

I will admit though at one point in time, I welcomed high drama people into my life not knowing how much trouble their “friendship” would eventually cause. This leads me to question how I missed the now obvious “red flags” they brought with them. Why didn’t I notice who they really were before the damage was done?

Time of reflection

While reflecting on these past relationships, I discovered a few things about myself.

I tend to take people at face value. I want to believe people are who they seem to be. Of course, that’s not always the case. High drama people are very good at hiding their true selves in the beginning. These people can be found anywhere, and in places you’d least expect. 

I also want to believe the people who call themselves Christian live up to a higher standard, that they would be the least likely to purposefully cause tension in a relationship. But again, it’s not always the case. I found that out the hard way.

True friendship

In Matthew 10:16, Jesus says to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves,” because He understood the true nature of men. The obvious high drama people in Jesus’ day were the religious leaders who set out to kill Him. The least obvious one was in His circle, someone who walked with Him every day, saw the miracles Jesus performed and yet still betrayed Him. 

It’s nice to have a level of trust in people but at the same time we must be careful who we allow in our lives. A true friend will add something to your life, not leave a void. And in turn, we need to be the one who does the same for someone else.