Grounded to Grow: How Job Rejection Led Me to Purpose
I used to dread checking my email. Another “We’ve decided to move forward with other candidates” message. Another unopened door. Another wave of frustration. I’d spend hours tailoring résumés, rehearsing interview answers, and praying for an opportunity that never came. It was hard not to take it personally. I started asking myself, “What am I doing wrong?”
But the truth is — closed doors are sometimes divine protection. And for me, those rejections were redirections.
Every “no” was pushing me away from comfort and toward calling. The jobs I was applying to? They weren’t fulfilling. They were safe. Familiar. But something in me kept whispering: *you were made for more.* And deep down, I knew it. I just didn’t know how to step into it.
I started journaling again. I got honest with myself. What lights me up? What challenges me and gives me peace all at the same time? The answer had always been there: aviation. Flying. Freedom. Purpose.
Becoming a pilot wasn’t a sudden decision — it was a realization. One that had been forming through childhood flights, through late-night reflections, through long seasons of “waiting.” I stopped applying to jobs I didn’t love and started applying faith to the vision God placed in my heart.
Don’t get me wrong — the pivot wasn’t easy. I had to take on new work, save money relentlessly, study like crazy, and battle the voice in my head that said I was “starting too late.” But what I’ve learned is that purpose isn’t always loud. Sometimes it whispers. And when you’re quiet enough — it calls you by name.
For me, purpose sounded like spinning propellers. It looked like 5AM preflights, fueling aircraft in the rain, studying VOR navigation after long shifts. Purpose didn’t come gift-wrapped — it came through grind, grit, and grace.
If you’re in a season of rejection, don’t mistake it for failure. Maybe you're not stuck — maybe you’re being planted. And with time, faith, and perseverance, you’ll grow in ways you never imagined.
I’m not just learning to fly. I’m learning to trust. To listen. To move when God says move. And to rest when He says, “Not yet.” Because when you walk in purpose, the job isn’t the destination — it’s the vehicle.
You weren’t created to sit in a waiting room your whole life. So get up. Start where you are. And soar where you’re called.