Monday, April 22, 2013

Self-Rejection



Be careful about rejecting what God has accepted. If you are in a relationship with Jesus, then I’m talking about you! You are a beloved daughter of God or a beloved son of God.

Too often we want to reject ourselves, run ourselves down. Maybe it’s because of a failure or the hurtful words of others. Maybe it’s because we play in our mind "video clips" of past sins, even sins forgiven. Whatever its source, self-rejection is unhealthy.

Henri Nouwen writes these helpful words:

One of the greatest dangers in the spiritual life is self-rejection. When we say, "If people really knew me, they wouldn't love me," we choose the road toward darkness. Often we are made to believe that self-deprecation is a virtue, called humility. But humility is in reality the opposite of self-deprecation. It is the grateful recognition that we are precious in God’s eyes and that all we are is pure gift. To grow beyond self-rejection we must have the courage to listen to the voice calling us God's beloved sons and daughters, and the determination always to live our lives according to this truth.

Now, that’s something to think about!

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