Author: pastorpete51

I Love Being Rejected!

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For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. James 1:3

If you are a writer, then you know that the most dreaded response from a publisher begins with the words, ā€œThank you for your submission, butā€¦ā€ We cringe because we know that those nice words invariably begin every rejection letter! However, if your first novel, article or poetry was jubilantly accepted by a large highly acclaimed publisher, then read no further. But, if like many of us, you have written several novels, articles, or oodles of poems and have little to show for it beyond a few meager acceptances and an inbox filled with rejections, then letā€™s see what the Bible has to say. In today’s verse, James, tells us that it is neither our acceptances, nor our successes that increase our faith but our tests. When our best efforts are challenged, just as heavy work pushes our muscles to the breaking point, so our rejections cause us to dig deeper and focus more clearly on our writing goals. They bring us face to face with the whyā€™s of our ambitions, and the purpose of our message. Are we writing so that we can become popular, or is our true motivation to serve God and our readers? Rejection has pushed me to keep going beyond my frustration, when what I thought was a great poem or article, wasn’t something anyone wanted to read, or a publisher was willing to pay for. But to be honest, it has been my rejections that have motivated me to work towards becoming a better writer, a better editor and most of all a better follower of Jesus. So, I love being rejected! It is those wonderful rejections that have drawn me closer to the heart of Jesus: Who is The Word of God, and the best-selling message of all time!

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The Ballad of Sister Robin

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My little verse is far from being a classic ballad like that of Chaucer’s friendly rooster, Chanticleer. Neither will I lay claim to Coleridge’s vivid imagery in his Rime of the Ancient Mariner, or even Bobby Gentry’s Ode to Billy Joel! But I do hope that with Sister Robin’s happy tale, you will start to smile, hum a little tune and start off your week with Jesus on your mind!

Sister Robin had no worries
As she few off from her nest
She just trusted her Creator
Would provide as He knows best

Then, while her chicks were sleeping
She went searching for their need
Till returning home at lunchtime
Their wide-open mouths to feed

So, we must wait for Jesus
Who has off to Heaven flown
Where He our pardon purchased
At our Holy Fatherā€™s throne

For now in Christ weā€™re resting
With our hope built on His grace
As we wait with hearts wide-open
Till we meet Him face to face!



Look at the birds. They donā€™t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And arenā€™t you far more valuable to him than they are? Matthew 6:26 NLT

The Ballad of Sister Robin
Copyright Ā© 2025
By Peter Caligiuri
All rights reserved


Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

God’s Everlasting Arms

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The eternal God is your refuge, and his everlasting arms are under you. He drives out the enemy before you; He cries out, ā€˜Destroy them!ā€™ Deuteronomy 33:23 NLT

In his last speech before he died, Moses began giving both words of warning and blessing to the people. He wanted them to remember after forty long years of living in tents in the desert, that God had been their refuge all along. From their escape through the Red Sea, along the journey to Mount Sinai, where Moses went up to receive the Ten Commandments, God had not abandoned them. Every morning, He had fed them with manna that miraculously appeared and every day He had made fresh delicious water to flow out of a rock. Though they had fallen into sin time after time, God wanted them to realize that at their lowest point, His arms were still underneath them. Yes, there were sometimes severe consequences, yes, they had to repent and pray, but through it all, they remained His people. In so many ways, we are just like them. We who call ourselves Christians have all passed through a Red Sea of the blood of Jesus. And every morning we have access to the manna His words, when we take the time to read them. And every time we go through deserts in our lives, Godā€™s Holy Spirit stays right by our side. In the midst of the hardest and most difficult circumstances, we can be refreshed in His presence that freely flows, as we bow in prayer. Last of all, He assures us, that when we face enemies, whether they be death, doubt, or despair, that He will drive them out, keep us safe and destroy them. Then, because He loves us, we can always count on the fact that everywhere we go that underneath are His everlasting arms!