How You Can Remain Unshaken in the Face of Rejection and Criticism
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The only way you will be able to remain strong and unshaken in the face of criticism, rejection, condemnation and ultimately persecution is by seeing yourself as God sees you.
However, in order to see yourself as God sees you, first you must see God as He truly is. You will only know your true identity and worth when you first know God—as He has revealed Himself, not how the culture, church or you have defined Him.
When you grasp how holy and loving and merciful He is—all at the same time—it gives you an incredibly deep appreciation for what Jesus did for you on the cross. The same God, who is so holy that nothing even remotely associated with death could come near His manifest presence in the temple, actually took death upon Himself because He wanted you so intensely, because you're so valuable to Him. In the Torah, there was nothing more contaminating than a corpse, yet He became a corpse to have a relationship with you. What does that say about your worth, value, identity and security? It's simply off the charts.
When you picture the throne room scene in Revelation 4 that is described with diamonds, emeralds, fire, and a sea of glass surrounded by nonstop worship, adoration and elders falling on their faces because He is worthy to receive all glory, honor, and power—and then realize that the same God who is worthy of 24/7 praise and worship would become a man and die for you because He wanted you so badly, because you're so valuable to Him, because He desires you and enjoys being with you—what does that say about your worth, value, identity, and security?
God's 'Insane' Love
I call it an "insane love," and He did it all because He wanted intimate relationship with you! Getting that truth down into your heart is the key to healing any strongholds you may have of being unwanted, worthless, or fearing rejection and disapproval. I can proclaim this with much boldness and confidence because I personally have experienced deep healing of those very strongholds in my own life through these truths.
For example, recently I was down on myself and condemning myself for not getting my work done and for being so far behind schedule. I confessed the self-condemnation as sin (it's aligning with how the enemy sees me) and God spoke these words to me, "You are beautiful to me even in your weakness,"—which is from Song of Solomon 4:7—"You are altogether fair, my love; there is no flaw in you" (MEV). I also looked up the NIV version: "You are altogether beautiful, my darling! There is no flaw in you!"
This verse reminded me that even when I am behind, even when I am not meeting everyone's expectations, God still sees me as beautiful! How He sees me needs to determine how I feel and how I see myself, not how everyone else sees me. He died so that I could have intimate relationship with Him. He just wants to spend time with me. He enjoys being with me. I bring Him delight.
It's the heart knowledge of being so intensely desired, wanted, accepted and valued by God that you are going to need to stand strong and unshaken in the face of criticism, rejection and persecution. All of these are increasing and will continue to intensify in these end times.
Otherwise, you will be controlled by fears of rejection, disapproval, not being liked or accepted, being criticized, or being unfairly judged. We are all human and we all have the need to be liked, accepted, have friends and feel wanted.
I've never met anyone who actually enjoys being rejected. It's the way we were all wired and designed by God. But again, those needs can only be fully met by God Himself and by seeing ourselves as He sees us.
I sincerely believe that seeing yourself as God sees you is no longer a "nice to know," or something you need to know for your own healing or happiness, or even what you need in order to fulfill God's purposes for you. In these last days as darkness increases and believers are seen as barriers to world peace and love, with more and more being accused of hate crimes, it is going to be absolutely critical for standing strong with the Lord!
Don't wait until times get tougher; get it into your heart now. Ask God to show you what lies you are believing about yourself or about Him. Experience who He is and how He sees you now, before the real pressure comes, and then you will be able to stand strong with Him and for Him, no matter what happens in your own personal life or in the world! 
Jeanne Nigro is a frequent speaker at conferences, churches, and retreats worldwide. Her teachings are relevant, practical and life-transforming, whether she is bringing Old Testament truths to life, healing strongholds of the heart, or preparing believers for Jesus' return. Her latest book, Unshaken: Standing Strong in Uncertain Times, will be released by Destiny Image in October of 2016. All of Jeanne's teachings and blogs are available on her website at www.jeannenigro.com.
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