Accepted and Protected!!

I have been standing on these words of wisdom lately, that were shared to me by a dear friend of mine…Sara C. : ) Thank you, Sara. I asked her if I could write a blog on it and she encouraged me to!!

Accepted and Protected….not REJECTED.

We have all heard it said that God accepts us as we are…he died while we were YET sinners. He died for even the men that were drilling huge spikes into his hands and feet. He died for us to be FREE and live a life pleasing to him…a life that is full and healthy…a joyful life that is uplifting to others and encouraging…a life free of addictions and fear…an ABUNDANT life. This is the kind of life that God intended us to live as he created Adam and Eve. It is the kind of life that he had in mind before the foundation of time.

How many of you know that God is a God of LOVE? He corrects us because he LOVES us. Think about an earthly father that tells his son or daughter that she can't go out past ten o'clock…even though her whole group of friends gets to stay out till midnight. The girl could become bitter, angry..even resentful towards her father for making her "miss out." What her earthly Father is actually doing is PROTECTING her. God's love is unfathomable. It is out of our human understanding. It is so much deeper than we could ever possibly think of or imagine. There is no greater love than this: that a man would lay his life down for his friends. WOW. Jesus did this over 2,000 yrs ago…for you and for me.

I was telling Sara that I felt so rejected by just different things in life…people, jobs, situations, etc. Of course, even Jesus was rejected, so it is certain that we too would feel this. Especially for the ones who truly live for and love, God. Sara told me something so profound…she said, "Deb, you are not rejected…you are protected." I said, "you mean accepted?" And she went on to say that God accepts us, yes…but she said that God was telling her that the opposite of rejection is protection. I didn't really get it..always knowing that the opposite of rejection was acceptation. So Sara elaborated. She said that God keeps us from those things that he knows would harm us or cause us to go off track from him.

How many times have you felt rejected? Don't count…I'm sure it would be too many. BUT the Almighty says, "my child, I was not allowing you to do that for your own good." God is soo awesome!! I praise him for ALL the times that I was rejected, because it only meant that he had something BETTER up his sleeve for me…and chances were that he always gave whatever he had to me quickly after the disappointment too. If I had just waited on him a little longer, instead of giving into the flesh…I would have received his best all along. We are human though and therefore, since sin is still present in the world, we fall short. WE ALL DO.

Remember the time that Mom said no to something you REALLY wanted to do?? What about the time that Your Father wouldn't let you go somewhere with a friend? And Grandpa stopped you from being something that you thought you wanted to be? There are SOO many things that I look back on now and I say "wow..thank you Lord….thank you for being a constant in my life…even when I didn't know you like I do now…you still looked out for me." THAT's how much he loves us. Even when we can't see him or feel him or know he is watching…..HE IS!!!

So, next time you feel rejected…look up and smile and thank God, cause it only means that you are PROTECTED and ACCEPTED by him…