REJECTION HAS COMPANY
- DAY 291
- FEAR FILE: JEPHTHAH
- SCRIPTURES: JUDGES 11:2-3
Gilead’s wife bore sons; and when his wife’s sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out, and said to him, “You shall have no inheritance in our father’s house, for you are the son of another woman.” Then Jephthah fled from his brothers and dwelt in the land of Tob; and worthless men banded together with Jephthah and went out raiding with him.
judges 11:2-3
Imagine being rejected for something you had no control over; that was the reality of Jephthah. In our text today, his brothers sent him out of his father’s house because he was considered illegitimate and therefore not good enough to partake of their father’s property, being born of a harlot.
Let me just say this before we continue, because somebody has a flawed origin does not mean that their existence is flawed. A failed beginning does not always mean a failed future. We have to extend grace to people who didn’t have a great start and assess them by their present and not by their origin. Because somebody’s past cannot be changed, but their present can be formed to produce a better future. But I digress.
Birds Of Same Feather
Jephthah was completely devastated when his own brothers cast him aside and rejected him. This crushing blow to his self-worth affected him deeply. When someone experiences rejection, it can be an incredibly painful and challenging ordeal and it has the power to shape a person’s behavior in negative ways. In Jephthah’s case, the rejection he endured fueled his desire for validation and acceptance. He longed to belong somewhere, where he’d be accepted and valued, which drove him to individuals who had experienced rejection. They understood the pain and struggles associated with being cast aside and together they formed a companion of fools and became a menace to society.
Rejection has company, and so do pain, unforgiveness, courage, faith, and strength. What’s in you is what you attract. If you feel forgotten, you’ll attract those who feel the same. Your company reveals your content. A fool is found in the company of fools but a wise man is found in the company of the wise.
Pray
Today, if you feel rejected, hurt, or broken in your life, if you feel like you’ve been pushed aside, or cast away, you can find healing in the Lord. You can go to God and say, “God, heal me in my broken places.” Because brokenness attracts brokenness. Hurt attracts hurt. Heal me O Lord, in my hurt places. So that I can have the capacity to attract that which you have prepared for me. In Jesus name
Shalom.
