“But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.” 1 Peter 2:9-10 The Message

Rejection seems to be a theme these days – at least in the circles I travel. Many friends and I have received very nice thank-you-but-no-thank-you notifications from publishers we recently submitted book proposals to for consideration.


I am also in the throes of professional rejection. Hitting the 6-month mark for unemployment just feels weird. Thinking about how my other former co-workers and I are coping/trying to cope has been on my mind a lot lately. There are multiple layers here. There’s the initial rejection of our former employer coupled with being looked over for positions we are more than qualified to take on as a next job.

Am I the only one who struggles with this? I don’t think so. For me, these past months have forced me to look a little deeper at my heart. Why is it that rejection hurts me so much? Why do I let the opinions of other humans impact who I am when there is only one opinion that truly matters?

As I wrestle this battle, I read The Message interpretation of 1Peter 2:9-10 and just go, wow! Think about it. Jesus was rejected by nearly everyone. His rejection was necessary for Him to complete the task for which He came to Earth in the first place. He willingly accepted that rejection with a grace that none of us could ever muster. In the midst of it all, He still loved and asked His Father to forgive those whose rejection brought about His death.

• So, what if I need the process of rejection to refine me?
• How about looking at those doing the rejecting with fresh eyes and pray for them instead of feeling hurt or personally attacked by them?
• What if this is truly a process to mold us into the person God wants us to be?
• What if He uses these times in our lives to bring about a bigger result down the road?

Makes it a little easier to take when you shift perspective just a bit. What do you think?