Forever Beloved

Faith, Love & Truth

The Day is Finally Here

We are leaving for our vaca!  I cannot wait to spend an entire week with my loves.  I have big plans of laying on the beach daily, shark free please.  I can’t wait to do my morning devotions while sitting by the ocean watching the sun rise.  And walking the boardwalk every evening, while enjoying super yummy food.  I made the executive decision that this is a fam vacation to spend time together, technology free. Although I’m sure there will be an Instagram pic here or there!

PS…what I won’t be doing this vaca is riding those willy nilly bikes that you can rent on the boardwalk in the early morning.  I had a bad experience with those when I was little.  I may or may not have knocked down a little Chinese man.  And peddled away quickly while he yelled at me in a different language.  No desire to go through that again.  None.

HELLO. GOODBYE.

Hello July, goodbye June
Hello much needed vacation, goodbye stress
Hello {hopefully} some new hens laying

Hello fireworks, bbq’s and sparklers
Hello editing wedding pics, goodbye life
Hello vacation goal of feeding seagulls out of our hands {it’s normal, right}

Hello roadtrips, goodbye sitting at home
Hello new season of Big Brother, goodbye boring TV
What are you saying hello and goodbye to this month?

When Someone Doesn’t Like You

Before I begin, you need to know something about me.

I’m a Type-A, listing making, notebook keeping, people pleasing kind of girl.  I have a huge desire to make a good impression, be liked and be accepted.  I want the parties I throw, the relationships and friendships I have and my business to all run perfectly perfect.

And the thought of rejection makes my heart race.

The thought of not being liked, wanted or welcome makes it hard to breathe.

Those are the times when I have to force myself to step back and gain perspective.  Not because I want to.  But because I need to.

Rejection is hard.  Babies even cry when they’re rejected.  I can tell you first hand, being an adult doesn’t make that rejection any easier.  We are created with the desire to be loved and accepted just as we are.  But we will all experience rejection at some point in our lives.  People hurl flaming arrows of rejection at their family members, co-workers, and peers without a second thought not realizing the depths of their damage.  Damage that can reach throughout generations.

People didn’t like Jesus either.

I know, it sounds like a Sunday School lesson on the flannelgraph right?  But it’s actually not only encouraging but comforting to read the countless stories of Jesus being rejected too.  He gets it y’all.  He understands what it feels like to be rejected.  The sting and the hurt.  Not only that, but He dealt with it perfectly.  1 Peter 2:21 says For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps.

There are things about you that are unlikeable.

Whew, that’s a hard one y’all especially for this girl.  It takes a good bit of humilty to realize I’m not perfect.  I have to be honest and realize there are things about me that are pretty unlikeable.  My loudness, my stubbornness and my quick temper sure aren’t my strong points.  When we feel rejected, it give us an opportunity to ask God to make those areas visible to us, to help us work on them and to trust His promise that He will completely restore every single ugly and broken area of my life, in His timing.

Let it lead you to Jesus.

We have to choices when we feel rejected, feel sorry for ourselves and get angry or go to the cross.  We can choose to move away from Him or towards Him.  And I remind myself that God will never reject me.  God is not rejecting me just because someone else has.  One of Satan’s favorite lies is that because someone is rejecting me, so is God.  The truth is God loves me no matter how people treat me.

Don’t respond out of anger.

When I am rejected, and hurting, I can assure you my first response isn’t godly.  I’m the first to admit I have a hot head and a fat mouth.  This, my friends, has taken a lot of prayer on my end.

And with gentle prompts from Him, I’ve heard be silent and keep your eyes on Me.  My first response was the opposite.  My goal was to hurt them just as they hurt me.  God is showing me how to let mercy and grace lead the way.

Forgive.

I’m going to be honest, I’m not a good forgiver.  If there is one thing I’m good at, it’s holding a grudge.  Actually, I might even be considered a professional grudge holder.  Forgiveness, no matter who it is directed to, is something that just doesn’t come easily to me.  Add in someone rejecting, and hurting, and it’s doubly as hard.

How do you forgive the one who caused such pain and created those deep, searing wounds.

What does Jesus say about holding a grudge?  He commands us to overlook sins and forgive those who hurt us.  He doesn’t ask us to do that, the Lord commands us to do that.

Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Ephesians 4:31-32

But somewhere buried in our subconscious, we think the rules don’t apply to us.  The pain we know doesn’t fit the requirements of forgiveness.  We {read this as me} rationalize and justify our pain over and over again, talking ourselves out of forgiving.

And then we become resentful, angry, unforgiving and cold.

I am beginning with one simple statement…this is my opportunity to show them Jesus through me.  To be kind and tenderhearted, expecting nothing in return.

Healing is possible.

When we find ourselves in the midst of ripped pages and the reflection of a broken heart, it’s comforting to know He is already there.  In all my broken places, God has turned a my mess into a holy offering by pouring Himself right in.  He has never left me down.  And now those cracks allow Him to pour right out.

I know in the middle of my messy mascara days, He’s busy writing an amazing story.

Beth Moore, in Praying God’s Word, said:

The rejected person who turns entirely to God and His Word can find glorious restoration and acceptance in Christ no matter what happens.

The Bible never tells us to please other people.  You can search through the Bible verse by verse, front to back, and you’ll never find those words in it.  But what you will find is instruction to please God.  He is the most important element in our lives.  And when we live to please God that may mean not pleasing everyone around us.  God is reminding me that He didn’t call me to live a happy life, but a life that honors Him.  And while I’m going to fail over and over again, my desire is to live the life He has called me to live.

In this world we will no doubt experience the rejection of someone not liking us again and again.  But if we keep our eyes on Him, He will restore our broken hearts and turn our troubles into triumph.

Today I’m celebrating God’s faithfulness in bringing me through every rejection in my life and keeping me vitally connected to Him.  Oh how He loves me – and you.

Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
Galatians 1:10