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Speaker 1: Life Audio. Welcome to the Crosswalk devotional. We're glad to

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Speaker 1: have you listening. Today's topic is about rejection. We'll return

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Speaker 1: with the devotional after a brief message from one of

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Speaker 1: our sponsors. Not Rejected but Accepted in The Beloved, written

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Speaker 1: and read by Emily Rose Massey, just as He chose

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Speaker 1: us in him before the foundation of the world, that

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Speaker 1: we should be holy and without blame, before him in love,

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Speaker 1: having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ

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Speaker 1: to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

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Speaker 1: to the praise of the glory of his grace, by

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Speaker 1: which he made us accepted. In The Beloved Ephesians, Chapter one,

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Speaker 1: verses four through six, it happened again. The tears began

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Speaker 1: to flow as the familiar feeling of rejection overcame me

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Speaker 1: in an instant. There was another mom's hangout over the

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Speaker 1: weekend that I wasn't invited to. When I saw the

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Speaker 1: group photo on Instagram, I was cut to the heart.

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Speaker 1: I felt so left out and ignored. I sat in

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Speaker 1: my bedroom and wept. It was clear to me that

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Speaker 1: this emotional reaction was more than not being invited. We

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Speaker 1: moved our family to a brand new state five years ago,

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Speaker 1: where we didn't know a soul. And although I'm so

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Speaker 1: incredibly grateful for the community I've found, I still have

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Speaker 1: struggled finding my place regarding relationships with women. I'm often

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Speaker 1: left asking the questions, let's roll with me? Am I

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Speaker 1: not outgoing enough? Am I not approachable? Are people intimidated

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Speaker 1: by me? Do they see my confidence as arrogance? I

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Speaker 1: confide it in a dear friend and sister in Christ,

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Speaker 1: who was also not invited to the gathering, and she

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Speaker 1: encouraged me with the simple yet very important truths that

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Speaker 1: even though I may feel the sting of rejection, in

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Speaker 1: this instance, God Almighty has embraced me as his daughter,

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Speaker 1: I am accepted in the Beloved. The Apostle Paul begins

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Speaker 1: his letter to the Ephesians in chapter one with the

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Speaker 1: same encouragement, just as He chose us in him before

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Speaker 1: the foundation of the world, that we should be holy

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Speaker 1: and without blame before Him and Love, having predestined us

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Speaker 1: to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to himself according

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Speaker 1: to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise

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Speaker 1: of the glory of His grace, by which he made

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Speaker 1: us accepted in the Beloved Ephesians Chapter one, verses four

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Speaker 1: through six, intersecting faith and life. What wonderful news In

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Speaker 1: Christ you are made righteous before God and are accepted

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Speaker 1: into his beloved family. He has chosen you to be

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Speaker 1: his daughter. The cross is a symbol of God's great

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Speaker 1: love for you. It has brought those who are far

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Speaker 1: off nearer to him. Jesus died and paid the price

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Speaker 1: for our sin so that we would forever experience a

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Speaker 1: relation with our heavenly Father. Without a relationship with Jesus,

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Speaker 1: you're a sinner in God's holy eyes. But embracing Jesus

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Speaker 1: ushers in the greatest relationship you will ever know from

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Speaker 1: now on into eternity. He wants to walk with you,

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Speaker 1: He wants to sanctify you and make you holy. He

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Speaker 1: won't reject you, and will stick close forever and always.

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Speaker 1: Jesus will always be there for you, even when everyone

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Speaker 1: else fails you, because people will fell us. People will

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Speaker 1: reject us and disappoint us, even our Christian brothers and sisters,

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Speaker 1: This of which I struggle with understanding the most. Do

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Speaker 1: you struggle with the pain of rejection? Do you often

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Speaker 1: feel misunderstood by others. You must remember that although you

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Speaker 1: may feel lonely, you are never truly alone. Jesus understands

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Speaker 1: your pain, beloved daughter of the King. When we face

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Speaker 1: rejection from others, we must remember that Jesus understands more

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Speaker 1: than anyone what rejection feels like, as he is very

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Speaker 1: familiar with it himself. Many people rejected Jesus and continue

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Speaker 1: to do so while he was here on earth. Even

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Speaker 1: one of his very own disciples, Judas, rejected him and

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Speaker 1: betrayed him, and just a couple of hours later, another

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Speaker 1: one of his closest disciples, Peter, rejected knowing him three

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Speaker 1: times to be exact. Aren't you so thankful for Jesus's

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Speaker 1: forgiveness when we turn our backs on him. He gives

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Speaker 1: us so many opportunities to repent and make things right

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Speaker 1: in our relationship with him. His mercies towards us are

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Speaker 1: knew every single morning all what love. The Lord understands

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Speaker 1: our pain regarding rejection, and his arms are open wide,

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Speaker 1: So let us be quick to draw near to him. Lo,

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Speaker 1: he is always with you, even to the end of

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Speaker 1: the age. What a friend we have in Jesus. Further

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Speaker 1: reading Romans chapter eight, verses fourteen through seventeen. Elatians chapter four,

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Speaker 1: verses four through five. First John Chapter three, verses one

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Speaker 1: through two. Thanks for listening to today's devotional. If you

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Speaker 1: liked what you heard today, we want to make sure

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Speaker 1: you know about our sister podcast, Your Daily Prayer. When

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Speaker 1: so your days begin in conversation with God. If you're

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Speaker 1: looking to grow in prayer or start your day with

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Speaker 1: your heart focused on the right things, search for you

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