(13) From the fear of being despised, deliver me, Jesus.
Despised.
Not shouted down.
Not debated.
Just quietly, coldly rejected.
Dismissed. Looked through. Judged as… less.
Not impressive enough.
Not polished enough.
Not agreeable enough.
Not whatever they decided I should’ve been.
And here’s what hurts more:
Sometimes the people who despise us are the ones we wanted to impress.
The ones we wanted to love us.
Or at least respect us.
So we start shape-shifting.
We try to anticipate the room.
We soften our voice. Edit our opinions. Apologize for existing just a little.
You’ve done it.
I’ve done it.
We don’t want to admit we’re afraid of being despised, but that’s what all the over-functioning, perfectionism, people-pleasing really is, isn’t it?
It’s fear in makeup.
It’s self-protection dressed as humility.
And Jesus… You see it all.
You see the places where we twist ourselves to avoid that look.
That tone.
That rejection.
And You don’t shame us.
You pull us close.
Because You know what it feels like.
“He was despised and rejected by men—
a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering.”
—Isaiah 53:3
You lived this.
They called You a glutton and a drunkard.
They said You were demon-possessed.
They laughed at You. Walked away from You. Hated You without cause.
And yet—You never let their disdain distort Your identity.
That’s what You want for us, isn’t it?
Not to fight for approval.
Not to shrink in fear.
But to live steady. Loved. Rooted.
You whisper it, still:
“I was despised. But I was never alone.”
“You won’t be either.”
“Come sit with Me. Let their rejection fall off you like dust from your sandals.”
Because You don’t just tolerate us.
You treasure us.
You don’t roll Your eyes.
You reach out Your hand.
So Jesus… deliver us.
From the fear of being quietly discarded.
From the lie that says we’re only valuable if we’re accepted.
From the subtle way we water ourselves down to stay safe.
You’re our refuge.
You’re the lover of our souls.
And in You—we are never despised.
Amen.
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