Overcoming Rejection by Frank D. Hammond

Suggested Reading Sunday

I gave my life to Christ 8 years ago when I was 18 years old. At the start of my Christian walk I became very interested in understanding myself in relation to Christ. I wanted to live my life in fullness and wanted to understand the impact that demonic influence had on my life and how to break free. I’ve always had a desire to walk in wholeness in body, soul, and spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:23 KJV). I’ve also had a great desire to see myself and others work out our soul salvation (Philipians 2:12 KJV). The earliest writings I added to my library included books by Richard Ing, Derek Prince, Frank D. and Ida Mae Hammond and John Eckhardt. The titles included Identifying and Breaking Curses, Spiritual Warfare, and Pigs in the Palor. One of my favorite books of that collection was Overcoming Rejection by Frank D. Hammond.

The book begins addressing the need to heal inner wounds. It compared the urgent care we take to treat physical wounds in order to prevent infection. However, according to Hammond, inner wounds required the same immediate response with forgiveness to the offending party to avoid the infection of resentment, bitterness, and/or hatred. Hammond continued in identifying the root of rejection with the denial of love and its impact to healthy development. Hammond continued that rejection could have its earliest roots in children at conception either by an unwanted pregnancy (conceived early in marriage, financial strains on family, mother-to-be fears, and attempted and/or contemplated abortion.) Hammond also identified other causes of rejection to included children born with disabilities, victims of abuse, peer rejection, marital separation/divorce, and church related hurts.

The remainder of the book addressed how one can react to their experienced rejection, and their attempt to make error-full readjustments to the wound. The reactions can include, as indicated above, responses of resentment, bitterness, and hatred. According to Hammond, it could also include self-pity, inferiority, insecurity, and hopelessness. In order to compensate for one’s experienced rejection, Hammond notes, many would attempt to fulfill the voids in their life through perfectionism, lust of material goods, sexual lust, self-promotion, and more. Hammond completed the book by explaining the ramifications of responding and making wrong readjustments to rejection. The conclusion of the book identified the restoration process to overcoming rejection. Hammond suggested that overcoming rejection should come from forgiveness, repentance, reconciliation, learning and receiving God’s love, and learning how to provide and expect healthy love to and from others.

This is truly a great book!!! My life, at that point 8 years ago, was experienced through a lens of being confused, misunderstood, and rejected. I wanted to understand what rejection was and how to break free from it. I remember reading this book in one day, and I remember crying and experiencing great breakthroughs in relation to my experience. I began to identify some potential causes for my experience of rejection. I’d learned how I’d responded through insecurity, inferiority, and resentment, and coped by attempting to be perfect and appear perfect. I began to experience freedom. I know I will be rereading this book very soon and suggest you should give it a read, too. I’m telling ya’ll it’s a page turner and a life changer.