It is a Saturday, and I’m sitting in a home fellowship. We just wrapped up prayers, and we were in the sharing session when my phone dinged with an incoming email. I’ve been expecting the email for weeks, so I quickly navigate to my inbox, but I do not open it up just yet. A part of me is sad to realise that, because of the numerous rejection emails I have received, I can almost immediately tell when it’s going to be a rejection, as they almost always start with “Thank you for…”
Still, I open up the email and immediately scroll to the end and just like I had dreaded, it was a rejection. I can feel the hot tears prickling behind my eyelids, and they almost fall when the guy next to me asks what the email is about. I felt really bad for two major reasons: first, it was something I really wanted, and secondly, I had been rejected from everything I had applied for this year, except for one.
Immediately I saw the email, only one thought came into my heart: failure. And I almost believed it because it felt so true! Why were all these people rejecting me? Especially because I had been pouring all my heart and soul into my applications and sincerely felt like I was a strong candidate, but my assessors obviously did not feel the same.
However, it was as if God knew the plan the devil had for me and immediately thwarted it, because tell me why were they rejecting me on the same Saturday that I had home fellowship and the speaker at that moment was sharing about identity and desiring the same things God desires for us.
That, ladies and gentlemen, was how I was able to quickly recover from something that probably could have sent me into a spiral. Because when I say I really wanted it, I meant it felt like destiny, like they had put the programme together just because of me. When I saw the rejection, it was a rude shock; I could not believe it.
Things that have helped me to cope and forge on is the assurance that God is with me and the words of Apostle Iren in his book ‘Love Code’ when he said that rejection is not a reflection of your abilities but rather, the inability of the beholder to appreciate your potential.
Not to brag, but I’m a pretty awesome person, and so are you. There is the place for continuous improvement, of course. A friend and I both applied somewhere in August, and she got invited to the next stage, and I didn’t. I was bummed, but more than that, I wanted to understand what happened, so I asked to see her cover letter and discovered that not only did she have more experience than me, she had written her application in a way that was direct and competitive. That experience taught me a lesson I won’t be forgetting soon.
So, as an applicant for either something professionally or relationally, it may be that you genuinely need to grow, or it may just be that it’s not yet time. I remember during my job search, all I needed was just one yes, and it turned out to be the only yes that mattered.
Rejection is, sadly, a part of life. Just ask Walt Disney and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. What you need to do is not let it define you like it almost did me. I remember one rejection email I received in August; I felt so tempted to reply and say, “Your Loss!” because it genuinely was. Keep growing and putting yourself out there, and always remember, success is inevitable for the tenacious. Something will eventually give way, and it will not be you.
As the year begins to draw to a close, I’m in full reflection mode! I know this is a post about rejection, but trust me, 2025 has been a genuinely great year! I will miss it, but at the same time, I am really looking forward to 2026. But before then, I have a major announcement coming next month! Watch this space, or how do they say it?
Photo Credit: Nick Fewings on Unsplash.