Victory

We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. – Romans 8:37

On the competitiveness scale, from one to ten, where would you place yourself?

While playing a card game called “VICTORY” this week in Bible Study, I watched grown women grab, shout, and throw themselves across the table.  Like “spoons,” the game of Victory involves handing out cards until the moment when all the players lunge at once for some rocks in the middle of the table.  There is one less rock than there are women, so each round ends with one woman wondering what happened, while the others laugh and shout “Victory.”       

This was a fun way to begin great conversations about what if feels like to be one left out, rejected, or uninvited, which are the key concepts we’re tackling in Lysa TerKeurst’s latest book, Uninvited.

This crazy-busy month, groups of woman are gathering together to wrestle with the reality of rejection.  We’ve come to the conclusion that while rejection is a part of life, being rejected doesn’t have to define us or hold us back from living loved by God.

Would you agree that what we pay attention to monopolizes our minds and eventually ripples down into our hearts?  When our hearts are focused on rejection, we’re often left feeling like a victim.  What if we decided instead to fix our minds on being the victors, rather than victims? 

God has given us victory over sin through our faith in Jesus (1 Cor. 15:57). He also promises that nothing can separate us from His love.  Even when others reject us, forget us, or leave us behind, God’s love is steadfast and unwavering.  God sees us as victorious, so why do we tend to see ourselves as victims who’ve been rejected?

Life is like the card game.  After you lose one round, you have the choice to get back in there and keep playing or sit and wallow in your loss.  The women who got back in there focused much more on the rocks in the middle then on the cards in their hands. 

Jesus is our Rock.  As the waves of rejection wash over us, He steadies our hearts and minds.  If we give Him our hurt and ask Him to heal us, He will help us move forward.  It’s amazing what can happen in our lives if we place our rejections in God’s hands!

Years ago, when a ministry I was leading in a church was cancelled, my heart was overwhelmed with rejection.  It took a while, but in time God healed and moved me forward into forgiving the person who made the decision.  God eventually nudged me to visit her office.  It still took me a few days after that to muster up the courage to go, but when I did, I parked along the street and climbed the stairs to her office, with flowers and a card in hand.

Wouldn’t you know it?  It was her day off.  Deflated and asking God why I was so nervousness for nothing, I ventured back to my car.  There on the sidewalk, I found a man sorting through his suitcase in search of something.  When he looked up and our eyes locked, I smiled and said hello.  He began a conversation about how sunny in was in Colorado.  In Seattle, he hadn’t needed sunglasses but here they were essential.  As I unlocked my car, still chatting with the man I now knew as Sam, I felt prompted to open my glove compartment and look for a pair of sunglasses.  Sure enough, a brand new pair I have no recollection of purchasing was right on top.  As I handed them over, he asked what I was doing at the church.  I told him I was bringing flowers to a “friend” and that I use to run a ministry there.

He jumped to the conclusion that I was a minister.  Sam shared that today was his 50^th birthday, and that he felt like it would be the perfect day to accept God’s love for the first time.  He looked at me and asked if I’d pray for him so he could invite Jesus into his heart and life.  With one hand on his arm and staring into his new sunglasses, I prayed for Sam’s salvation.  I then knew so clearly why God had healed my heart and directed me to forgive her.  I needed to be there, on that day, for a very important assignment.

After Sam and I prayed, I wasn’t the victim of rejection anymore, I was loved by God and given the awesome privilege of leading another soul into God’s family.  We were both made victorious that day.

Only God can take our rejections and bring redemption.  Only God can restore our hearts and use our hurts to help others.  Only God can ignite our souls to live loved and victorious.  Only God!

The Power of Giving God Thanks Will Ignite Your Faith and Change Your World!

Thank You for Being a Part of the 
3 O’Clock Wake Up Movement