Hometown

Over a decade ago, I moved 900 miles away from my hometown in Kansas. Although I miss my family, I have enjoyed the anonymity I have gained since I left. However, I’ve always wondered why it was so hard for me reconnect with my family and friends when I returned home. It seemed like I would visit my hometown and everyone would see me as the little high school cheerleader I once was instead of the educated Christian woman I have worked so hard to become.

It frustrated me. I always questioned why my family and friends would not take me seriously. Then one day I was reading the Bible and a passage concerning Jesus hit me so hard that I had to read it aloud to my husband. The passage explained that when the people of Jesus’ hometown heard Him speak, “they took offense at him.”

Jesus even healed people in His hometown, and yet they still lacked faith. The people that Jesus had grown up with could not see past the carpenter’s son to the Savior He had become. I learned that night that even Jesus could not be taken seriously in his own hometown.

I’ve realized that I can not fault my family and friends for remembering me as the person I was when I lived there. The image people have of me does not make who I’ve become any less real. I am secure in my walk with Christ, and I will not allow the opinions of others to weaken me.

Memory Verse:
“Jesus said to them, ‘Only in his hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor.’”
– Mark 6: 4 (NIV)

Prayer Prompt:
“Dear Jesus, thank You for helping me understand that I am not alone in my struggles to earn respect from my family and friends in my hometown. Today, help me to remember that You also faced similar barriers. Show me how to not allow my past to limit my future….”

Contributing Writer:
Liette Ocker