None of us like to be rejected or experience verbal abuse. How do we react to rejection and verbal abuse? Most of us try to retaliate either in kind or in a way that brings us false satisfaction. We seek an eye for eye approach. But usually we want more. How did Jesus respond to rejection and verbal abuse? Recall when Jesus was going from Galilee to Jerusalem for the fulfillment of his ministry as Messiah. As he and his disciples were passing through Samaria on the way to Jerusalem, a certain Samarian town refused him entry, because he was a Jew. Two of his disciples wanted revenge. They wanted to call down fire on the people and destroy them. What did Jesus do? He rejected retaliation by rebuking his disciples. He went on to the next village. This is the way of a true disciple of Jesus, not retaliation or revenge, but move on in life because there is something greater ahead, something more important. This Samaritan village was a bump on the journey to Jerusalem. Jesus refused to stumble and fall. What would happened if we approach rejection and verbal abuse this way? We would keep our eyes fixed on the eternal prize rather than find our face on the ground.