A Year of Choices…
By Barbara Dahlgren from Barbara’s Banter at www.barbdahlgren.com
We live in a world of rejection. All of us have experienced it in one way or another. Maybe as a shy boy you were turned down for a date. Maybe you applied but didn’t get the scholarship for college. Maybe you interviewed but didn’t get the job. Maybe you got the job but the company president laughed at your re-org idea. Maybe your dad walked out on your family. Maybe your mom constantly berated you. Maybe you were always the last one chosen for the team. Even worse, maybe they wouldn’t even let you play on the team. We can go through life pretty much feeling like losers.
Rejection is nothing new. Jesus was rejected – by those in his hometown (Matthew 13:54-58), by many of his disciples (John 6:66), and by those he came to save (Isaiah 53:3). God was rejected. After everything God had done for the Israelites they wanted to be ruled by a king instead of Him (1 Samuel 10:19).
Enough rejection can lead to disorders like unwarranted fear, feelings of inferiority, anxiety or depression. Rejection can make us feel unwanted, unappreciated, and unloved. It can even lead to perceived rejection in other areas of our lives. In other words, we think people are rejecting us when they aren’t. This perception becomes our reality – if we think we’re losers, we act like losers.
Consider this… God created us for acceptance not rejection. That’s why He will never reject us. We might reject God, but He won’t reject us.
God accepts us. (Acts 10:34, 35) Jesus loves us so much He died for us before we even acknowledged Him. (Romans 5:8) He came not to condemn us but to save us. (John 3:17) He will never leave or forsake us. (Hebrews 13:5) All we have to do is embrace God and he embraces us.
We cannot afford to base our self worth on the opinions of others, our perceived ideas of what we think others feel about us, or even our misconceptions about ourselves. How God sees us is more important than how others see us or even how we might see ourselves. Our self worth should be based on how God sees us. And God thinks we’re pretty special!!!!
Suggestions for practicing this choice…
- Don’t assume others are slighting or rejecting you. Most people are too preoccupied with themselves to even give us a second thought. We are not the center of the universe.
- Don’t assume you know what others think about you. We don’t really know what others think. Half the time most of us don’t even know what we think.
- Since most of us want to be accepted, we should strive to be more accepting of others.
- Sometimes we want to lose weight or get cosmetic surgery so others will more readily accept us. However, psychologists tell us that even the most beautiful people in the world feel ugly, insecure, and unacceptable. Studies show that if we accept ourselves, others are more likely to accept us. So work on having a positive self image.
- Focus on what God thinks about you. He thinks you are pretty special. He made you in His image, redeemed you, loves you, and accepts you unconditionally.
