REJECTION : THE GAME IS ON

 

WE REGRET TO INFORM YOU THAT….

…your application was unsuccessful

…your results did not meet the requirements

…your proposal was not selected

…your submission was not accepted

…we have decided to decline the opportunity to work with you

…we are unable to offer you admission

…we are unable to accommodate your request to attend

I have no doubt that the longer you have lived on this side of eternity, the better acquainted you are with the above-mentioned statements.  The disappointment of learning that you have been turned down for something which you have set your hope and heart on can, undoubtedly, cause you a great deal of pain.  While it is true and commendable that some organisations make every effort to show kindness and courtesy in the careful wording of their rejection letters to applicants, it is also equally true that others are either unceremoniously blunt or blatantly unresponsive.  While the blow from a respectfully worded rejection letter is still painful, the disrespect from blunt dismissal or the disregard from unresponsiveness are both devious sucker punches, intentionally aimed at inflicting more pain.  The painful blow from a kind rejection letter simply indicates that you could work on improving WHAT YOU DO, while a sucker punch may indirectly imply improvements, but it directly takes a stab at WHO YOU ARE.  A sucker punch is inherently underhanded in nature, it reveals the lack of integrity of the punch thrower and, essentially, nothing about the recipient of the punch.

Rejection is a slam dunk certainty in the life of every living human being.  This is the very peculiar playing field in life where, unlike in realms of success and favour, those individuals with the Midas* touch are the amateurs while those with the Murphy** touch are the professionals.  The proverbial middle children of the Midas-Murphy union (those without definitive traits of either) find themselves somewhere between amateur and professional.

….but, does the Midas/Murphy-skill REALLY matter when neither the match you play nor the field you play on is optional?  I would like to suggest that, when playing on the field of rejection, fitness matters significantly more than skill.  Taking into account that you are on this field as a result of a blow or a sucker punch, and that fitness refers to your athletic acuity, it would be reasonably accurate to postulate that recovery from injury is of utmost importance.

One of my dearest friends has the incredible ability to switch to stealth mode, completely undetectable by any human interference/interception-seeking radar while she also possesses the innate ability to NOT sweat the small stuff.   With quiet dignity and humble confidence she displays her expert proficiency in sweat-defying, sway-resistant stealth so effortlessly.  In stark contrast to her, I tend to switch to the all-guns-blazing-intercontinental-ballistic-missile mode, detectable by every human interference/interception-seeking radar while I, indeed, NOT ONLY profusely sweat the small stuff, but I get completely bent out of shape by it.  Could this difference in our game-face approach be the result of our Madiba-prison-sentence age difference, I’m a rookie-veteran and she’s a seasoned veteran?  Or perhaps our different temperaments, I’m a pitbull and she’s a border collie?  I do NOT believe that it has anything to do with our age difference NOR do I believe it has anything to do with our operational tactics.  Rather, from the indescribable depth of our precious friendship amidst our differences, I simply KNOW that the ONLY plausible explanation has to be rooted in a realm of timeless simplicity.  Unwavering steadfast security in the ONLY Absolute Constant in a complicated world filled with non-absolute variables.  With his eyes on Jesus, Peter got out of the boat on a stormy sea and walked on the water towards Jesus.  My friend knows how to walk on water towards Jesus even when she plays on the field of rejection.

I am in no way implying that the pain from rejection is something insignificant or small, because it most certainly is NOT.  I am, however, reminded of the nature of the vantage point from where we view specific situations.  Zooming in makes even small things appear large.  Zooming out makes even large things appear small.   In this world where devastating storms of uncertainty are a reality, as followers of Jesus, our vantage point has to continually shift to a place where He comes into our focus.  We fix our eyes on Him (zooming in), because He will NEVER reject us (zooming out).

“fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“However, those the Father has given Me will come to Me, and I will never reject them.”  

John‬ ‭6‬:‭37‬ ‭NLT‬‬

*Midas refers to King Midas in Greek mythology who was granted the power to turn anything he touches into gold.  The modern day implication thereof, the Midas touch, refers to people who have the ability to, effortlessly, make a success of everything they engage in.

**Murphy refers to Edward A. Murphy, a 20th-century engineer who openly cautioned about planning for unexpected problems.  There are two modern day implications thereof.  The first is Murphy’s Law which states that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.  The second is the Murphy touch which refers to people who encounter misfortune in everything they engage in.