I eagerly awaited dessert, which were assortments of cheesecakes, after I devoured the main course of a banquet I attended not too long ago. Despite the variety of cheesecakes, I was disappointed that I was served a plain old-fashioned cheesecake topped with a dab of caramel. I secretly coveted the chocolate flavored cheesecake that was flirting with the imagination of my taste buds, posing on the saucer placed before the lady sitting beside me. I wished they had given me her cheesecake; but I kept the thought to myself. However, the lady sitting beside me didn’t keep her thoughts to herself.
To my surprise and delight, she asked me if I wouldn’t mind switching cheesecakes with her. I gladly gave her my boring cheesecake and received her chocolate flavored cheesecake with open mouth…oops, I mean, with open arms. I was elated; not just because I received the dessert I desired, but because a truth I had learned about rejection was reinforced. We are like the cheesecakes. Someone may not want you, but someone else does.
As unappealing as the cheesecake originally placed before me was to me, the lady beside me desired it in the expense of the one that she was served. She rejected the chocolate flavored cheesecake in favor of the cheesecake with a hint of caramel. The dessert I refused ended up with her, and the one she refused ended up with me. We were both happy and fulfilled; and so were the cheesecakes per se. It was a win-win for us and the cheesecakes.
Likewise, as unappealing as you might be to someone, there is someone else praying to have you in his or her life. Make no mistake about it, one company may not want you, but there is another that craves your services. Your team might not value what you bring to the table, but there is another that will deem your talents invaluable.
Rejection is a vehicle that drives you from someone who thinks that you’re useless to someone else who perceives your usefulness. It’s a bridge that takes you from people who treat you as worthless to others who’ll see you as worthwhile. Being rejected is not the end of your life; it’s just a means to an end for your life. That end is your destiny. Despite this truth, instead of allowing rejection to help them reach this end, too many people get upended by it.
How you respond to rejection will determine if it’s an asset or a liability. Responding the right way to being overlooked will help you reach your end; your destiny. Responding the wrong way will destine you to be ended; offended, dejected and depressed, just to mention a few. The first step to dealing with rejection and getting a great deal out of it is by forgiving the person that rejected you, and understanding that God uses rejection for your benefit and not for your detriment.
What was meant to harm you, God uses to arm you. What was meant for evil, God uses for your good. Armed with this knowledge, have faith that God is closing that door to redirect you to a better door; one that leads you to your destiny. And if you are like that chocolate flavored cheesecake, that destiny is my gut. The next time someone turns you down, simply respond by saying “cheese.” In other words, smile, as you know that God is using the rejection to stir you to another person, another project, or another place better for you.