This past week I was blessed with the opportunity to speak with one of my mentors. As they poured into me sharing wisdom about navigating in Corporate America, they shared a story that deeply resonated with me. The story was about a man and a watch.
One day, a man on a beach found this unique old watch buried in the sand and he had never seen anything like it before. He knew, simply by looking at the watch, that it was priceless. The man immediately took the watch to a jeweler to have it appraised. After the jeweler looked at the watch he told the man “you know, you got sand in the watch, and the watch is not working anymore. I took a look at the watch and I don’t think I can fix the watch either so the watch really isn’t worth anything”. The man took the same watch over to a pawn shop and the pawn shop told him “I can’t give you anything for this watch, it’s completely worthless and it seems like what that person told you over at the jewelry shop was right”. The man took the same watch over to a museum and the museum gave the man a half a million dollars for the watch.
After sharing this story, my mentor explained to me, “you have to find the place that sees your value. The jeweler may not see your value, the person at the pawn shop may not see your value, but the person at the museum will realize how much of a classic watch you are and the tremendous value that you represent even without you working or functioning at your full potential. There is a place for you that represents and will respect your value. Don’t forget that.”
One day, a man on a beach found this unique old watch buried in the sand and he had never seen anything like it before. He knew, simply by looking at the watch, that it was priceless. The man immediately took the watch to a jeweler to have it appraised. After the jeweler looked at the watch he told the man “you know, you got sand in the watch, and the watch is not working anymore. I took a look at the watch and I don’t think I can fix the watch either so the watch really isn’t worth anything”. The man took the same watch over to a pawn shop and the pawn shop told him “I can’t give you anything for this watch, it’s completely worthless and it seems like what that person told you over at the jewelry shop was right”. The man took the same watch over to a museum and the museum gave the man a half a million dollars for the watch.
After sharing this story, my mentor explained to me, “you have to find the place that sees your value. The jeweler may not see your value, the person at the pawn shop may not see your value, but the person at the museum will realize how much of a classic watch you are and the tremendous value that you represent even without you working or functioning at your full potential. There is a place for you that represents and will respect your value. Don’t forget that.”
This month, I believe that God wants everyone reading this blog to know that you are invaluable. Being invaluable means that you’re far beyond an appraised value defined by man because your worth to God is inestimable. Your performance, position, status, class, popularity, influence, accomplishments, gains, losses, failures, or mistakes have no power to change your self worth. Your self worth and value stems from God and God alone.
You are God’s prized possession (James 1:18 NLT), the apple of his eye (Zechariah 2:8 NIV). The Lord has declared that you are his own special treasure” (Deuteronomy 26:18 NLT). In the bible there’s a parable that Jesus tells about the hidden treasure and the pearl in Matthew 13:44-46 NLT: “44 The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. 45 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. 46 When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!
You are the classic watch, the treasure and the choice pearls. God, like the museum, like the man who discovered the hidden treasure in the field and like the man who discovered choice pearls knows your worth. That’s why Jesus paid the ultimate price for you and I by laying down his life for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8 NIV, Titus 3:4-5 NIV). You are so valuable to God, that you’re beyond calculable for the bible itself to have an exact number to define your worth but instead it tells us that we were bought with a high price (1 Corinthians 6:20 NLT). There is even a part of the bible that talks about five sparrows being sold for two pennies and how not one of them is forgotten before God. The bible goes on and tells us that even the hairs of our head are all numbered and we are of more value than many sparrows (Luke 12:6-7 ESV).
You are God’s prized possession (James 1:18 NLT), the apple of his eye (Zechariah 2:8 NIV). The Lord has declared that you are his own special treasure” (Deuteronomy 26:18 NLT). In the bible there’s a parable that Jesus tells about the hidden treasure and the pearl in Matthew 13:44-46 NLT: “44 The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. 45 “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. 46 When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!
You are the classic watch, the treasure and the choice pearls. God, like the museum, like the man who discovered the hidden treasure in the field and like the man who discovered choice pearls knows your worth. That’s why Jesus paid the ultimate price for you and I by laying down his life for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8 NIV, Titus 3:4-5 NIV). You are so valuable to God, that you’re beyond calculable for the bible itself to have an exact number to define your worth but instead it tells us that we were bought with a high price (1 Corinthians 6:20 NLT). There is even a part of the bible that talks about five sparrows being sold for two pennies and how not one of them is forgotten before God. The bible goes on and tells us that even the hairs of our head are all numbered and we are of more value than many sparrows (Luke 12:6-7 ESV).
This month, it is important that you never underestimate your value because even when you’re at the bottom of the barrel, at the back of the line, unsought by others, hidden in the field, buried in the sand, underperforming, not functioning at your greatest potential, or go unnoticed and overlooked, your value still remains. God paid a high price for you because you are of great value, so do not be enslaved by the world and how it tries to define worth by placing emphasis on things that are worthless (1 Corinthians 7:23 NLT).
As we have officially entered into the second half of 2020, navigate throughout the last semester of this year knowing that you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9 NIV). You are a citizen of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives (Philippians 3:20 NLT), which means that everywhere you go, the kingdom of heaven will always be connected to you. You are the prize, you are the favor, you are the increase, you are the upgrade, you are the enhancer, you’re priceless. You are invaluable.
As we have officially entered into the second half of 2020, navigate throughout the last semester of this year knowing that you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9 NIV). You are a citizen of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives (Philippians 3:20 NLT), which means that everywhere you go, the kingdom of heaven will always be connected to you. You are the prize, you are the favor, you are the increase, you are the upgrade, you are the enhancer, you’re priceless. You are invaluable.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your everlasting love, mercy, kindness and grace. The depths of your unconditional love bring us joy, gratitude, and honor. We give honor to a Father who loves us so much that He would send His one and only son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. You loved us in our own pollution, and you still love us today in our mess. You fight for us, you provide for us, you make ways for us, you save us creating rescue right in the nick of time. It is you who constantly blesses us with chance, after chance, after chance, after chance. You are exceptional, in every way that our minds can fathom. Glory to your matchless name God! We lift you up and magnify you for being blemish free, royal and supreme yet still finding a way to deem us as invaluable. Us, your clay, that you constantly have to mold with your hands (Isaiah 64:8 NIV), us, your treasure and prized possession that you constantly have to refine in the fire extracting impurities. Lord we thank you for blessing us with so much self worth and value though we are so undeserving. As we navigate throughout the second half of this year, never allow anything of this world or of a demonic nature to swindle us into thinking that our value can depreciate. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Scriptures to Feed Yourself & Reflect On:
James 1:18 NLT
Zechariah 2:8 NIV
Deuteronomy 26:18 NLT
Matthew 13:44-46 NLT
Romans 5:8 NIV
Titus 3:4-5 NIV
1 Corinthians 6:20 NLT
Luke 12:6-7 ESV
1 Corinthians 7:23 NLT
1 Peter 2:9 NIV
Philippians 3:20 NLT
Isaiah 64:8 NIV
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your everlasting love, mercy, kindness and grace. The depths of your unconditional love bring us joy, gratitude, and honor. We give honor to a Father who loves us so much that He would send His one and only son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins. You loved us in our own pollution, and you still love us today in our mess. You fight for us, you provide for us, you make ways for us, you save us creating rescue right in the nick of time. It is you who constantly blesses us with chance, after chance, after chance, after chance. You are exceptional, in every way that our minds can fathom. Glory to your matchless name God! We lift you up and magnify you for being blemish free, royal and supreme yet still finding a way to deem us as invaluable. Us, your clay, that you constantly have to mold with your hands (Isaiah 64:8 NIV), us, your treasure and prized possession that you constantly have to refine in the fire extracting impurities. Lord we thank you for blessing us with so much self worth and value though we are so undeserving. As we navigate throughout the second half of this year, never allow anything of this world or of a demonic nature to swindle us into thinking that our value can depreciate. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Scriptures to Feed Yourself & Reflect On:
James 1:18 NLT
Zechariah 2:8 NIV
Deuteronomy 26:18 NLT
Matthew 13:44-46 NLT
Romans 5:8 NIV
Titus 3:4-5 NIV
1 Corinthians 6:20 NLT
Luke 12:6-7 ESV
1 Corinthians 7:23 NLT
1 Peter 2:9 NIV
Philippians 3:20 NLT
Isaiah 64:8 NIV