overcoming rejection

¹¹He went to his own, and his own did not accept him.

²²Blessed shall you be when men will have hated you, and when they will have separated you and reproached you, and thrown out your name as if evil, because of the Son of man.

²⁸And we know that, for those who love God, all things work together unto good, for those who, in accordance with his purpose, are called to be saints.

³¹So, what should we say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?

¹⁰For my father and my mother have left me behind, but the Lord has taken me up.

¹⁰Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not turn away, for I am your God. I have strengthened you, and I have assisted you, and the right hand of my just one has upheld you.

¹⁴And whoever has neither received you, nor listened to your words, departing from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.

⁴Truly, he has taken away our weaknesses, and he himself has carried our sorrows. And we thought of him as if he were a leper, or as if he had been struck by God and humiliated. ⁵But he himself was wounded because of our iniquities. He was bruised because of our wickedness. The discipline of our peace was upon him. And by his wounds, we are healed. ⁶We have all gone astray like sheep; each one has turned aside to his own way. And the Lord has placed all our iniquity upon him.

⁷Cast all your cares upon him, for he takes care of you.

¹¹For I know the thoughts that I think over you, says the Lord: thoughts of peace and not of affliction, so that I may give you patience and an end.

¹⁵Can a woman forget her infant, so as not to take pity on the child of her womb? But even if she would forget, still I shall never forget you.

⁴And approaching him as if he were a living stone, rejected by men, certainly, but elect and honored by God,

¹A Psalm of David. The Lord directs me, and nothing will be lacking to me. ²He has settled me here, in a place of pasture. He has led me out to the water of refreshment. ³He has converted my soul. He has led me away on the paths of justice, for the sake of his name. ⁴For, even if I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils. For you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they have given me consolation. ⁵You have prepared a table in my sight, opposite those who trouble me. You have anointed my head with oil, and my cup, which inebriates me, how brilliant it is! ⁶And your mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and so may I dwell in the house of the Lord for length of days.

⁵Let your behavior be without avarice; be content with what you are offered. For he himself has said, “I will not abandon you, and I will not neglect you.”

¹³For I am the Lord your God. I take you by your hand, and I say to you: Do not be afraid. I have helped you.

⁵Have confidence in the Lord with all your heart, and do not depend upon your own prudence. ⁶In all your ways, consider him, and he himself will direct your steps.

¹In that hour, the disciples drew near to Jesus, saying, “Whom do you consider to be greater in the kingdom of heaven?” ²And Jesus, calling to himself a little child, placed him in their midst. ³And he said: “Amen I say to you, unless you change and become like little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. ⁴Therefore, whoever will have humbled himself like this little child, such a one is greater in the kingdom of heaven. ⁵And whoever shall accept one such little child in my name, accepts me. ⁶But whoever will have led astray one of these little ones, who trust in me, it would be better for him to have a great millstone hung around his neck, and to be submerged in the depths of the sea.