Do you have a question you've always wanted answered? Do you have a helpful idea, a solution, or an answer to a problem you've handled successfully that you'd like to share to help your peers? The Questions and Answers section of Teen Time is specifically for you to ask questions about issues in your life and provide inspiration for others.

Note: Make sure you check out previous questions. You may be able to read or give new and helpful answers.

 
     
  Question 17  
 
Q17   I didn't get accepted into the college of my choice, and I'm really bummed. How do I deal with rejection?  
    -- high school senior, Cupertino, CA  
 
     
  BibleWise Staff Answer 17  
 
A17  

It's not fun to get rejection letters of any kind, and certainly not from the college of your choice. But it's important not to get down and out as a result. We all face rejection at some point. One of the best ways to get "over" rejection is to realize that God has not rejected us. Indeed, many individuals who God chooses are rejected by others. Jesus was rejected by his own people. And yet, Jesus did not let that stop him from doing God's work, from being happy, or from healing people. Jesus knew that it was God's view, and not the opinion of other people, that mattered. Jesus said:

And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes? (Mark 12:10, 11)

The corner stone is the most important stone in a building. It is the foundation, the starting point. That's an incredible promise!

There's a saying that follows along the same lines: "When God closes a door, he always opens a window." The college of your choice may not be the college that God would choose for you (or that you would choose if you knew all the variables). God has an incredible plan for each of us, a plan that goes far beyond whatever we can imagine. In order for us to take full advantage of God's all-knowing plan, we have to be willing to let go of our own limited plan. If we keep trying to push what we want, we might miss the plan God has for us.

Just because you didn't get into the college you wanted, doesn't mean that there aren't colleges out there that can provide you with exactly what you need to succeed. Often, less well-known colleges provide smaller classes, more attention to the students, better opportunities, less competition.

So, when we get a rejection letter, we have a choice: to accept rejection and feel down, or to realize that this is an opportunity to turn our lives over to God, to open that window, and to pursue a different path -- the path that God has planned for us.

 
       
    —-MFE  
       
    Note: You may want to read ideas from our Guests of the Month: Helen Elswit talks about colleges; Manette Fairmont and Sharon Moore talk about rejection.  
       
 
     
     
 

Email us your questions, answers, and inspirational comments.

We will answer and post as many Q&As as possible each month. It's always great to include Bible passages that have helped you.

 
 
 

Previous
Questions and Answers

 
  How can you become a better student?  
  Why is the Bible so graphic at times?  
  Are there any Bible stories about relieving stress?  
  Why are the Midianites enslaving the children of Israel around Gideon's time?  
  What if Jesus never lived?  
  Does God really care about us?  
  How do you make good friends?  
  How do you motivate yourself to do things you don't really want to do but you should do?  
  How did the Children of Israel find water in a desert?  
  How do you know what's right to do in different situations?  
  In reference to the question, "Does God exist?" I'd like to learn more about the nature or concept of God.  
  Why did life spans of people go down when the flood happened?  
  How do we know God exists?
 
  I was wondering how to deal with people who speak in a harsh or unkind way unjustly, especially in the work field.
 
  How do you not get caught up in appearances and expectations and still not seem out-of-date, behind the times, or out-of-place?
 
  How can I feel good about myself when I don't like the way I look?  
 
 
     
   
     
  Copyright © 2009, BibleWise. All Rights Reserved.