playground of rejection...

In the middle of the word rejection stands a word that can separate friendships, stir emotions of never measuring up and will also set isolation in motion.  When I was in elementary school everyday after lunch our class along with 2 or 3 more would come out of the lunchroom in a straight line put our lunch boxes against the brick wall hear the instructions and then boom we would run to the equipment we wanted to claim.  I remember one day in particular.  I ran to the spaceship looking monkey bars and before I could even climb into it a few girls said to me " you can't play on our playground".  I responded "this isn't your playground its the schools and with a whole lot of sass they said words that cut deeply. "Yes it is our playground our parents paid for it and your parents are even on the PTO".  I didn't know what PTO was but I knew that my parents were not together and it was if they knew it and were pointing at me and laughing.  I felt so rejected and because of that I no longer looked at the playground the same and I found myself walking the track with the grade above mine swooning over the boys.  I am not saying that it was their words alone that made want to chase the boys but what if I would have played that day. Would I have snuck off into the woods to kiss the boys? I honestly don't know.  In the middle of the word rejection stands the word EJECT. Webster defines it as; to throw out especially by physical force, authority or influence.  For me I allowed their words to force me out and gain authority in my life.  Here it is over 30 years later and that day seems as if it was yesterday.  Rejection is something that starts within our minds and brings such toxic thoughts and we remove ourselves from our dreams, our marriages, our friendships and what is rightfully ours for the taking.  That playground was just as much mine as theirs but I didn't believe it therefore I allowed that to keep me from experiencing all the fun it offered.  Our marriages are meant to soar and mirror the very heart of God and because the way we view our spouses at times we allow rejection to set in and so we pull out grace, love, patience and our marriages suffer.   I hear teen girls constantly saying that so and so doesn't like them or they wont talk to them.  I know that feeling they are describing and in their minds and hearts they have removed themselves from even wanting to feel anything so they peg those girls as enemies and begin to put walls up.  Its easier to put up walls then to tear them down because it hurts to release emotions that we have allowed to harden around our hearts.  What about your dreams. The hidden fear of not being good enough is rooted in your fear of rejection and because of that you don't try. The enemy wants you to stay still, be without hope, be without passion, be without love, be without Jesus being enough and you need to see clearly all the areas that rejection dictates your next steps because victory will never seem to be in reach.  Rejection is a form of manipulation and we either surrender to the lie or we grasp on to truth.  Those girls did reject me but it was how I responded to their rejection that removed me from experiencing all the other fun.  I could have easily punched them (I kinda wish I would have haha) or I could have ignored them and went to play on the slide, or swings or the other stuff. I could have told on them but instead I removed myself from the entire playground. Don't let words that taunt or feed thoughts of rejection become the truth you set your dreams and your heart to.  John 8:31/32 says this; Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE."  You see its what you do with God's truth that determines where your thoughts end up. Rejection is real and the enemy will use it to derail every area of our lives if we let him.  However the beauty of God's truth is that it is the very thing that makes us free.  To know who we are in Him without any outside influence or distraction.   To abide means; to accept or bear, to stay or live somewhere to remain or continue.  We have to stay hidden in God's word continually allowing it to penetrate our hearts so that we are able to see the enemies lies as well as embrace the Creators truths.  If you go fishing in your thought life you will see that rejection is rooted in so many of your fears.  God wants you to know and embrace that in Him is where FREEDOM exist. Get off the playground of rejection, pull back and see the bigger picture because there is so much more.  Let these truths be what you cling to today. God will never ever reject me. God loves me no matter what. God's grace will never run dry. In Him is my acceptance and my ultimate completion and that is enough.