David’s Rejections:

# When Samuel came to Jesse’s home to anoint one of his sons as king of Israel, Jesse called all of his sons to the meeting—except his youngest son David.
# When David was sent by his father to see how his brothers were doing on the battlefield, Eliab, his brother said: “I know your pride and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”
# His father-in-law, King Saul, tried to kill him, REPEATEDLY.
# His wife, Michal, despised him in her heart as he danced before the Lord. He’s even getting rejection from his wife!
# 2 of his very own sons whom he loved deeply (Absalom & Adonijah) attempted on separate occasions to overthrow their father, kill him, and take over his throne.

How did David process all this rejection? He continually withdrew into the secret place and renewed his hope and confidence in God. Because he responded properly to it, it was the rejection that seasoned David’s soul and safeguarded him from tyrannical leadership.

Points to remember:
* God is actually ALLOWS rejection in His sovereign plan for a divine purpose.
*Bigger rejection, bigger DIRECTION.
*Rejection is 1 of God’s specialty tools in the school of the Spirit—reserved for those He ESPECIALLY LIKES. (eg. Jesus, David, the prophets etc.)
*You’ll never grow beyond the need for rejection to tenderize your heart before God.
*When people reject you, but you are fueled on the inside with the profound affections of your Father for you, then you’re able to give yourself to your fellow man in love regardless of how he treats you.

Rejection is a trial—but the acceptance of the Father is the healing ointment.

~references from “Dealing with the Rejection and Praise of Man”, Bob Sorge~

Smile! God loves you :)