“Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud
or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it
keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice
but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never
loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.”
-1 Cor 13:4-7 NLT
Have you ever been rejected? I think all of us have experienced
rejection at some point in our lives. If you’re an actor or musician,
you might experience much more rejection than the rest of us. But most
people who experience a lot of success in any field have experienced
much rejection. That’s what makes their success more rare than the
average person - they worked hard and endured more rejection than most
of us are willing to tolerate.
The story of Hosea and Gomer is an unusual one. God instructs Hosea
the prophet to chose a prostitute and marry her - and continue to be
faithful even though she continued to be unfaithful. (Hosea 1:3) He did
this as a symbol of the nation of Israel at that time who had been
unfaithful to their true God, rejecting Him, His love, and His decrees.
Jesus also did something that we never deserved - He died on a cross for
our sins - in spite of the fact that the people during that time
persecuted Him and put Him on the cross. He loved them (and us) in spite
of their (and our) complete rejection of His love.
Every day, we have the choice to reject as the world rejects, or
love and accept as Jesus has loved us. If we are really seeking our
calling we will likely experience a lot of rejection, but the benefits
to fulfilling our calling will far outweigh the rejection and opinions
of man. It is essential that we keep our hearts pure and seek God
first, so that we know our affirmation and worth comes from Him and
those He has put in our lives to confirm His plans for us.
Jesus calls us to love in spite of rejection. Even when life gives
us hard blows, we are still to love and accept, let go and protect. Are
you able to love in spite of rejection today?
"His Spirit made the heavens beautiful, and his power pierced the gliding serpent. These are just the beginning of all that he does, merely a whisper of his power. Who, then, can comprehend the thunder of his power?" -Job 26:13-14
Every time I go to the mountains I am enamored by God's creation. The sun, the sky, the rivers and lakes, the sunset and sunrise - it's all so amazing and awe-inspiring. I am amazed by the "bigness" of God.
The sun, for example, is 875,000 miles across. It is so big, in fact, that 64 million of our moon could fit inside it.* Wow. Our God created that sun. (See Genesis 1:3) Our God is that big!
We are not aware of this majesty most days, stuck in the grind of our daily routines. And yet, although we might think of ourselves as insignificant in the grand scheme of things, we can have the most awesome, intimate, and most fulfilling relationship with the God who created the universe.
I don't think we as a culture or even as a Christian sub-culture spend enough time focusing on how magnificent God really is. We make little idols out of problems in relationships, the things we have to get done for the day, and our adversities, or whatever it is we think takes us away from our adversity, if only for a moment. But our God is so much bigger! And we are His children, made in His image, saved by His grace.
Have you received this revelation of kinship to God and of His "bigness"?
"Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.
Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
You, LORD, preserve both people and animals.
How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house;
you give them drink from your river of delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light." -Psalm 36:5-9
Why not focus on the bigness of God in your life today?
*Source: http://ds9.ssl.berkeley.edu/solarweek/DISCUSSION/howbig.html
