Recently I had to deal with rejection, and it hit me hard. I was praying and seeking God to help me complete a chapter in my life by helping me pass a class I needed to further my education. Unfortunately, all my prayer and expectation did not come through for me and I have to take the class again. Although, I was devastated, because I sacrificed many things; time, enjoying summer with friends and family, sleep. It was a huge blow I was not prepared for, but then I was reminded that things don’t always work out as planned.
So, I wanted to write about this as it relates to relationships, because I have also experienced rejection in that area as well. As I thought about my current situation, I remembered how rejection felt and how hurt I was when it happened in my relationship. That past experience, helped me to deal with what I was feeling currently. I want to share with you a few things I’ve learned about rejection and I pray it blesses you.
Rejection is not a bad thing! Yes, it may sting when you first experience it, but that pain does not last forever. So, when it happens, feel it, acknowledge it, but do not let it define who you are. It is only a moment in your life and that’s the way you should look at it. If you truly believe, then you know rejection is for your protection, among other things. I cannot identify what that may look like for you, but for me that looked like God saying, I have better for you.
In the relationship I was in, there were many red flags and I choose to ignore them because I truly believed I found the guy “I” wanted to be with, not the man that GOD had assigned to me. So as time went on, the person I thought was good for me was not and no matter how much I tried to hold on, this person was emotionally unavailable. Then it hit me, I felt the rejection that I wasn’t expecting, and it hurt, I cried, I cursed, I was mad!!
Now you might be thinking, well how does you not passing a class relate to this relationship you were rejected in. Well, it was made very clear to me that rejection can mean many things, but we have to look at it in the sense of what are we learning from this? In the relationship, I learned that the rejection for me was to wake up and realize you are putting up with way too much. It allowed me to see myself in a way that I will never present myself to someone else again. It also removed the blinders off my eyes to truly see this person for who they were and recognize that their morals and standards did not align with mine.
As for the rejection that came with not passing this class the way I expected, it just means try again. When you have to go through something more than once, there is always something that you’re supposed to get out of it. God will keep putting you through that test until you pass it but remember that rejection doesn’t mean you were not enough. Just because I experienced rejection, doesn’t mean I should never date again, or never apply to take the course again. Rejection simply means to ask yourself, what can I learn from this and how can I make some adjustments for a better outcome. Believe that and I promise it will help you to operate on a different level.
