“But Jesus said, “A prophet is taken for granted in his hometown and his family.” He didn’t do many miracles there because of their hostile indifference.” - Matthew 13:58

Have you ever been in one of those situations, maybe at work, or in a sport you love, where you worked hard and distinguished yourself, only for it to go nowhere? The automatic assumption we tend to jump to is “I’m not good enough.” And sure, sometimes we may be in situations where we still need to grow, or we aren’t yet providing as much value as we think we are, but what about those situations where you KNOW what you’re bringing to the table, and it still isn’t enough? We can’t pretend it doesn’t happen, because you can’t argue Jesus wasn’t good enough, and it still happened to Him. So, what’s going on? Are we just as worthless as we’ve been made to feel, or is something else going on?

We can find a surprising answer by noticing what happened to Jesus in Matthew 13. Jesus returns to His hometown, and because the people there think they know Him, they scoff and laugh at him and give Him the “Who do you think YOU are acting like you’re so special and can do anything worthwhile?” treatment. I’m sure no one here has ever felt that way going home for Thanksgiving though, right? Jesus CLEARLY had value to bring to the table, but because the people there didn’t recognize it, they missed out. The thing is, their failure to recognize Jesus’ value didn’t change it. He’s literally God, for crying out loud. Likewise, you could have $100,000 in US Currency, but if you go to Italy and try to pay with USD instead of Euros, you aren’t going to get very far. What you hold has value, but it isn’t valued where you’re currently at. You’ve got the right currency, but you’re in the wrong location. 

Some of you may be in a place where you feel like what you have to offer isn’t seen, and you’ve begun to question your dream, your worth, or maybe even question yourself entirely. But sometimes, the issue isn’t you; sometimes, the issue is your location.  In Matthew 10, Jesus told the Disciples, “When you knock on a door, be courteous in your greeting. If they welcome you, be gentle in your conversation. If they don’t welcome you, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way.” Sometimes, you must wait it out and earn your seat at the table; that’s just life. But for some of you, you know what you’re bringing to the table, you’ve patiently waited, and like Jesus, you’ve found yourself in a place where you feel overlooked and neglected. If that’s you, maybe it’s time to quietly withdraw, don’t make a scene, shrug your shoulders, and be on your way. You have value and SO much to offer this world, but you have to be in the right place for that value to be recognized and put to use. Don’t get discouraged, don’t get down on yourself, and don’t give up on the dream God put in your heart. Keep working, keep improving, and in due time, don’t be afraid to seek the Lord to discern if it’s time to move on. Because maybe you have the right currency, you’ve just been in the wrong location. 

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