What do you do after you are rejected again and again? Hvad gør man, efter at du er blevet afvist igen og igen? How do you pick up the pieces and continue on? Hvordan vil du afhente stykker og fortsætte på? “It must be me or that wouldn’t happen so many times.” This is not true. "Det skal være mig eller, der ikke ville ske så mange gange." Dette er ikke sandt. There are many factors that come into play with relationships. Der er mange faktorer, der spiller ind med relationer. It isn’t that cut and dry. Det er ikke at skære og tørre. Rejected and Torn! Afvist og revet!

There were so many times in my life that I was rejected. Der var så mange gange i mit liv, at jeg blev afvist. It happened first with my father and then continued on year after year. Det skete først med min far og derefter fortsatte med år efter år. It seemed like the more I wanted to be accepted, the further I got from it. Det virkede ligesom mere jeg ønskede at blive accepteret, yderligere jeg kom fra det. There was a song called, “Looking for love in all the wrong places.” This was me. Der var en sang kaldet "Looking for kærlighed i alle de forkerte steder." Det var mig. What was worse was the places I didn’t look was where it actually existed. Hvad der var værre, var de steder, jeg ikke se var, hvor det faktisk eksisterede.

I was this scared kid growing up. Jeg var denne skræmt barn vokser op. I think I coped by overachieving in school. Jeg tror, jeg klaret ved en overopfyldelse i skolen. I found something I was good at and just kept going. Jeg fandt noget, jeg var god til og bare holdes i gang. I became good at a lot of things and then I couldn’t figure out what I liked the best. Jeg blev god til en masse ting, og så kunne jeg ikke finde ud af, hvad jeg kunne lide det bedste. I got bored real easy when things were no longer challenging. Jeg fik kede reelle nemt, når tingene ikke længere var udfordrende. I tried so many things but I’d usually quit before I’d reach the top. Jeg forsøgte så mange ting, men jeg vil som regel holde op, før jeg ville nå toppen. Each path I went down didn’t have the destiny I wanted. Hver vej, jeg gik ned havde ikke den skæbne, jeg ville. Most of them were just illusions. De fleste af dem var blot illusioner. They made you feel good for a while, but my heart was still empty inside. De gjorde du føler dig godt i et stykke tid, men mit hjerte var stadig tom indeni.

I remember talking to the Lord as a child about 5 years old and then occasionally throughout my childhood. Jeg kan huske at tale med Herren, som et barn om 5 år gamle, og derefter lejlighedsvis hele min barndom. My parents took me to church, but they didn’t live the life. Mine forældre tog mig til kirken, men de ikke leve det liv. The preachers preached about this Jesus, but I don’t think they knew much of Him. Den prædikanter prædikes om denne Jesus, men jeg tror ikke, at de vidste meget af ham. When I was sixteen, I gave my heart to Him and he became real to me. Da jeg var seksten, jeg gav mit hjerte til ham og han blev reelt til mig. I still didn’t understand much though and so I still went my own way. Jeg stadig ikke har forstået meget om, og så jeg stadig gik min egen måde. I was very trusting of people when I was young, but then things changed. Jeg var meget tillidsfulde mennesker da jeg var ung, men så skal tingene ændres. I guess the more people let you down the less trusting you become. Jeg gætte flere mennesker lade dig ned mindre tillidsfuld du bliver. Yet, through it all I knew the Lord would never let me down. Men gennem det hele Jeg vidste Herren vil aldrig lade mig ned. I was to need this conviction to make it through many storms to come. Jeg var til brug for denne overbevisning om at gøre det gennem mange storme, der kommer.

The most interesting thing about growing up is that the Lord never rejected me. De mest interessante ting ved at vokse op, er, at Herren aldrig afvist mig. I always knew He was near. Jeg altid vidste, at han var nær. I didn’t do things the right way. Jeg har ikke gør tingene på den rigtige måde. I went down some wrong paths, but He was always with me. Jeg gik ned nogle forkerte stier, men han var altid med mig. I’ve experienced some things and I can say, “I’ve been there.” I also found out that most of the rejections had absolutely nothing to do with me. Jeg har oplevet nogle ting, og jeg kan sige, "Jeg har været der." Jeg har også fundet ud af at de fleste af de afvisninger havde absolut intet at gøre med mig. I was okay. Jeg var okay. The Lord created me just the way He desired. Herren skabt mig blot den måde, han ønskede. Who was I to tell Him otherwise. Hvem var jeg at fortælle ham noget andet.

We are each unique. Vi er hver især unikke. There is no one else like us. Der er ingen andre ligesom os. If we are rejected, we can get comfort in the fact that He was too. Hvis vi er forkastet, vi kan få trøst i det faktum, at han var for. The world doesn’t understand His love. Verden har ikke forstår hans kærlighed. It is foolishness to them. Det er dumhed til dem. They don’t understand the power of true love. De ikke forstår magt ægte kærlighed. The Lord watches over us. The Lord ure over os. We are the apple of His eye. Vi er æblet af øjet.

We have something they don’t have. Vi har noget, de ikke har. We are loved. Vi er elsket. We have purpose and a destiny. Vi har formål og en skæbne. We are accepted. Vi er accepteret. We don’t have to be right. Vi behøver ikke at være rigtigt. We don’t have to perform. Vi behøver ikke at udføre. It doesn’t matter if someone else wins. Det betyder ikke noget, hvis en anden vinder. We are secure in who we are. Vi er sikre på, hvem vi er. We are at rest and we have someone we can trust with our lives. Vi er i hvile, og vi har nogen, vi kan have tillid til vores liv.

So, if someone wants to reject us, let them. Så hvis nogen ønsker at afvise os, så lad dem. I will still love them. Jeg vil stadig elske dem. They need to find this love. De er nødt til at finde denne kærlighed. I hope I’ve somehow given them a taste. Jeg håber, jeg har noget givet dem en smag. I can’t make them want Him. Jeg kan ikke få dem til at ønske ham. I can only introduce them. Jeg kan kun indføre dem. Jesus doesn’t push Himself on anyone. Jesus ikke skubbe sig selv på nogen. He is a gentleman. Han er en gentleman. He stands at the door of each person’s heart just waiting to be invited in. Han står i døren af hver person hjerte bare venter på at blive inviteret ind

If you don’t know Him, will you be the one to let Him in? Hvis du ikke kender ham, vil du være en til at lade ham i? Will you dare to find out who He really is? Vil du vover at finde ud af, hvem han egentlig er? Will you dare to believe that maybe there is a better way? Vil du vover at tro, at måske er der en bedre måde? There really is truth out here, but you can only find it if you search for it with all of your heart. Der er virkelig sandheden ud her, men du kan kun finde den, hvis du søger efter det alle i dit hjerte. Is it worth it? Kan det betale sig? Only you can answer that question. Kun du kan besvare dette spørgsmål. As for me, the answer is simply, “yes!” Do I have everything I want or desire? Som for mig, er svaret ganske enkelt, "ja!" Må jeg have alt det, jeg ønsker, eller ønsker? “No.” I do have everything I need. "Nej!" Jeg har alt, hvad jeg har brug for. I have His love. Jeg har Hans kærlighed. He has mended so many fences. Han har anbefalet så mange hegn. I have my family and though its been broken and separated, there is still the love. Jeg har min familie, og selv om dens blevet brudt og adskilt, er der stadig kærligheden. I have a ways to go and I look forward to the journey. Jeg har en måde at gå og jeg ser frem til turen. I would like to meet each one who reads these posts one day, and maybe someday I will. Jeg vil gerne mødes hver en, der læser disse stillinger en dag, og måske en dag vil jeg. I just want you to know, “YOU are worth it.” There is a reason you are reading this. Jeg vil bare du at vide: "Du er det værd." Der er en grund du læser dette. It isn’t coincidence. Det er ikke tilfældigt. No matter what has or is happening in your life, tomorrow can be a brand new day. Uanset hvad har eller der sker i dit liv, i morgen kan være en helt ny dag. It all starts with what you do next. Det hele starter med, hvad du gør næste. Tell Jesus you want to get to know Him. Fortæl Jesus, du ønsker at lære at kende ham. Ask Him to be your friend. Bede ham om at være din ven. Ask Him to teach you and guide you the way He wants you to go. Bede ham om at lære dig og vejlede dig, hvordan han ønsker du at gå. Become His friend and share your heart with Him. Bliv Hans ven og deler dit hjerte med ham. It is worth it and you’ll never regret it. Det er det værd, og du vil aldrig fortryde det. We may not always understand, but if we endure, time will prove He has His best in store for us. Vi kan ikke altid forstå, men hvis vi udholde, tiden vil vise han har sit bedste i vente for os. Rejected and torn. Afvist og revet. No, accepted and healed! Nej, accepteret og helbredt!

Joseph