The Mourning of Rejection

Just the other day I told my daughter it really meant a lot to me that she wasn’t embarrassed by me telling her goodbye with a hug and a kiss on the head in the morning when I dropped her off at school. Today was a sad morning. This cold Friday in November became a bit colder at the drop off line.

I pulled my daughter close towards me, as I always do, only this morning she pulled away. She looked at the kid getting out of the vehicle in front of us. I said, “Leah, you’re not going to let me give you a kiss this morning?” She didn’t respond. It ripped my heart out.

I guess she was like a lot of other teenagers this morning – too cool to let Mom say goodbye in the usual way. That’s not the way my daughter is supposed to be though; she’s supposed to be different from them! She isn’t supposed to be ashamed of her mother! I told her years ago I’m way cooler than she’ll ever think about being 😅. And another thing – I’m always there when no one else is and she knows this. It’s been proven time and again.

So she looked at the world this morning and worried what they’d think if they saw she loved her mother?

Let’s think about this from a spiritual perspective. You’re out in the world, not of it but in it, as we are called to be. As a child of God you’re feeling the pressure of walking the narrow way. It’s easier to push that away and take the broad path, right?

So you have an opportunity to share the love of your Father and the love you also have for Him, but instead you pass on it. After all, you don’t want people running from you when they see you coming. You don’t want people to laugh or talk about you, right? So you reject Him.

That’s not the best choice, and even when you feel that feeling of guilt inside, you can push it away but you can’t push the people away.

While it’s not the same as my daughter rejecting me this morning, it’s something relatable to the Word of God. A good reminder and a crucial warning from the mouth of our Savior Himself, Jesus Christ.

Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny be before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. Matthew 10:32-33

Of course as children of God, we know how much He loves us. We should also know how much the world hates us. If we are His children, our hearts have been pierced with the reality of the sacrifices Jesus made for us throughout His life and with His death. (Not leaving out His resurrection which shows the power of God and the hope He brings.)

It shouldn’t matter what the world thinks of our relationship with our Father. We know He’s always faithful to us, never leaving us, always loving us, even when He knows us better than we know our own children. He’s more faithful than any human could ever be.

The world is always trying to draw our children away from us, while the enemy is always trying to draw us away from our heavenly Father.

I can’t say anything about my daughter when in a split second I can allow my mind, my heart, to wander away from the Lord. In the blink of an eye I can be enticed by something besides Him and pull away from His embrace. The embrace I always run back to when I come to my senses.

Dear Lord,

Thank You for Your love towards us. Help us to accept that great love You offer to us, whether anyone’s looking or not. Please forgive us for the times we don’t. Thank you for Your mercy and grace and for taking the time for us to catch just a glimpse of how You may feel when we reject You.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.