The Test of Rejection
The following is a text conversation between a man and woman in the aftermath of a 45-minute date over a single drink somewhere in London earlier this year. Despite the woman’s rejection of the man's request for a second meeting, the man is not willing to give up and offers to cook her dinner. She replies as follows:
'Very kind of you but as I said, I don't think we are right for each other, so would not want to waste your time.'
However, he persists:
'I think we have some potential, and we should explore it. Let's meet up one more time, have dinner at mine and if it doesn't work we can leave it. You don't seem to be someone who gives up too easily. So when can you make it? I'll cook something delicious and treat you well for dessert...'
Standing firm, she texts back:
'Thanks but I don't share your view, sorry! Am sure you will find someone else to cook for!'
As it finally begins to sink in that she is not interested, the man shows his true colors.
'You're unfair and I'm now sorry that I paid for your drink tonight. Can I ask you to pay me back for it? It would just be fair.
The woman agrees to reimburse the spurned Romeo, and asks for bank details and the cost of the drink. Not convinced that she’ll follow through, the world’s cheapest date actually checks up on her to make sure she has paid him back.
Ouch! Rejection is like a cold slap to the face, a blow and a bruise to the ego. In the moment of upset we tend to lose our motivation to continue with pretenses, wanting instead to hurt back. Whether we realize it or not, these moments test our character to the core. Rejection asks the dejected person, “Do you have it in you to be loving, kind and generous when it is no longer to your benefit to be loving, kind and generous?”
When it comes to revealing one’s true character, there are few tests as effective as rejection. No man ever passed this test like Jesus. He was abandoned and rejected, not by just one but by all. Nevertheless, He remained loving, kind and generous. In fact, He insisted on paying our debt!
“He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted” (Isaiah 53:3-4)
Don't Run Roughshod Over A Fallen Brother
Why you say it … “Ride Roughshod”
“Medieval blacksmiths experimented with making horseshoes of a special kind. Instead of the smooth metal oval used to protect the foot of a draft animal, a war horse might be equipped with shoes that had projecting points or cutting edges…
There is perhaps no group of people more capable of riding roughshod over another than Christians, especially when one of their own is already “down.” At the first sign of weakness, we rush in to judge, to gossip, to rebuke and to reject. Our pointed and sharp edges inflict undue injury. Don’t run roughshod over a fallen brother.
"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32).
"Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself" (Galatians 6:1).
Illustration Exchange
People Aren't Baseballs
The average life span of a Major League baseball is only 7 pitches. In tennis, balls are changed out after every 7 games. The reasons are similar for both. Dirt, moisture, the oil from the players’ hands all serve to effect the way the balls handle and perform. Seems some things in life lose their usefulness pretty quickly.
Sadly, the same can be said for people. As soon as they fail to perform to our specs we quickly toss them aside. Don’t treat the people in your life like a baseball, discarding them after just 7 pitches.