Rejection--how to deal with it

How to Deal with Rejection

           When I was a pastor of a little Baptist church and my wife was suffering with pancreatic cancer, I told our congregation that one of Satan's principal weapons against us was discouragement. As a roaring lion he seeks to devour us with discouragement so that we will throw in the towel and say, “Oh, what's the use?” He works on our motivation. I didn't realize it but C.S.Lewis said the same thing many years ago, “If Satan's arsenal of weapons were restricted to a single one, it would be discouragement.”

          And Steven Lawson described it this way: “A discouraged person loses all sense of perspective, choosing to believe the worst rather than the best. At the center of a discouraged heart is always an ungrateful spirit—one that has lost sight of God's blessings and focuses instead on the burdens.” “A thankful spirit is never overcome with despair.”

          And then he showed how to deal with rejection, which is one of the principal causes of discouragement.   “How does a person overcome being rejected? We are all subject to discouragement and despondency. How do we rise above such a low spirit?

“1. Rest in God's greatness. No matter how great our trial or suffering may be, God remains greater still. As Jesus came walking on the waves to the disciples, so He comes to us as sovereign over our storms. Even in the midst of life's greatest strugglews, God remains infinitely greater as Lord over all. Nothing is beyond His control. 

“2. Rest in God's goodness. Faith must remain confident in God, who is always working for the good of His people. Never will God deviate from His eternal purpose. Even when times are tough and difficulties are many, we must remain unwavering in the assurance that God is working all things after the counsel of His own will. Eph. 1:11 No matter how threatening the circumstancesor how painful our losses, God remains enthroned in the heavens and is committed to working through our trials. . . .

“3. Rest in God's grace. In the midst of life's threatening storms, know and believe that God gives a greater grace. In our weakness His strength is made perfect. It is when discouragement threatens to overwhelm us that God's grace is multiplied in lives that are yielded to Him. No matter how great our disappointments, God's grace is greater still.

         “Prayer. God, our Father, we praise you for your sovereign, providential watchcare over every detail of our lives. Thank you for your infinite love that carries us through the refining fires of affliction as you purify us and present us faultless to stand in your presence. In Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.”

                           --Steven Lawson, Commentary on Job, pp. 64-65