You remember it, don’t you? That moment when someone said something, did something that pierced your heart and suddenly made you aware of your not-enough-ness. Or, worse yet, they missed or dismissed you completely when they should have embraced you fully. You remember how it made you feel, how the pain snaked its way into your soul, and how it sometimes still impacts you today.
Sometimes we feel rejected by circumstances that were never meant to send us such a painful message. Other times, though, someone aims, shoots, and hits the mark, and we’re left with a wound that feels like it may never heal.
Experts say that our brain processes rejection in much the same way it processes physical pain. In other words, the pain is real.
So, what happens when a root of rejection remains unchallenged within us?
We pull inward. We may struggle with depression or anxiety. We begin to see the world and others (and ourselves, even), through a pain filter that lies to us continually. We often make destructive choices and react in ways that are beneath us because the pain of rejection is what drives us. A root of rejection may also impact our physical health because of the strain and stress on our system.
We were not made to live rejected. We were made to live accepted!
God so loves you that He gave His one and only Son to save you (see John 3:16). Jesus faced the ultimate rejection on the Cross, and He won a sound victory over sin, rejection, and every other painful, destructive thing the enemy tries to throw your way. People may reject you, but they don’t have the last say! Circumstances may wound you, but Jesus came to heal you. The enemy may continually reinforce the lie you’re not enough, but remember, he’s a liar and he’s been disarmed! In fact, Scripture says that Jesus actually made a public spectacle out of the powers that continually try to oppose and degrade us.
(Jesus) canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.
Recently on Susie Larson Live, I spoke with author and pastor, Dr. Jon Chasteen. We talked at length about rejection and its power to diminish us unless we deal with it. He writes:
“Here’s the good news: even when our rejection causes us pain and produces bad fruit, we serve a God who redeems and restores…Maybe the key to overcoming the fruit of rejection in our lives is simply coming to terms with not who we are but Whose we are. When we decide to shake off the yoke of bondage that weighs us down, we allow the unending, undeniable, and unrelenting love of Christ to set us free from the spirit of rejection.”
Everyone deals with rejection at some point in their lives. But none us needs to carry it even one more step. Today is a good day to reject rejection. Take the leap of faith with Jesus and dare to accept acceptance. He’s proven He loves you. He’s promised to stay by your side. You are completely and wonderfully secure in Him.