The Pearl of Great Price – I’m Not Like Them
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” — Matthew 13:45-46
I’m not like them.
And I’ve stopped apologizing for that.
I’m as unique as you.
As rare as that pearl the merchant sold everything to possess.
The Pearl of Great Price is more than a parable — it’s a prophetic picture of our value, especially when life’s trials have tried to convince us otherwise. In Matthew 13, Jesus describes a merchant who stumbles upon a pearl so precious, so rare, that he’s willing to give up everything to have it. He knows its worth. That pearl wasn’t ordinary. And neither am I.
How Pearls Are Formed: The Power of the Irritant
Unlike diamonds that are cut from stone, pearls are formed in response to irritation. A grain of sand, a parasite, or some tiny foreign object finds its way inside the oyster’s shell. The oyster doesn’t reject the pain — it responds by coating the irritant over and over with nacre, the very substance that forms the pearl.
That irritant — the very thing that doesn’t belong — becomes the starting point of beauty.
In the same way, I think of my broken pieces blog, and the many experiences I’ve shared on mariemuhammadspeaks.org — seasons of grief, betrayal, abandonment, emotional storms, and spiritual refining. Life didn’t hand me ease, but it did hand me raw material. Irritants.
Like a pearl, those irritants were not signs of failure, but invitations to be formed.
God didn’t waste a single one. He layered them with grace, with healing, with wisdom, until they became beauty.
Adversity Doesn't Diminish Us — It Develops Us
I used to question my worth in relationships — wondering if my scars made me less worthy of love, commitment, or protection. But I’ve learned something deeper:
It’s the very things I’ve overcome that make me valuable, not defective.
The kingdom of God sees value differently. He doesn’t discard the broken; He transforms them. The world may view adversity as a deficit — but heaven sees it as raw potential. When we allow God to touch our pain, He makes everything beautiful in its time (Ecclesiastes 3:11). He gives beauty for ashes (Isaiah 61:3). And He teaches us how to see ourselves through His eyes, not through our history.
You Are Worth the Pursuit
If a merchant was willing to sell everything just to buy one pearl, what does that say about how God sees you?
What does that say about your worth in relationships?
You are not disposable.
You are not common.
You are not "too much" or "not enough."
You are a pearl of great price.
Relationships that require you to shrink, hide your past, or silence your growth are not worthy of the pearl God has formed in you. The right people — whether friends, partners, or mentors — will see the beauty behind your layers, not just the surface.
I’m Not Like Them — And Neither Are You
We weren’t made to be replicas.
We were made to be rare.
We were shaped through adversity, refined by faith, and sealed by God's purpose. The pearl isn’t made in a day. Neither are we. But in the process, we gain something more precious than gold — we gain identity, resilience, and anointing.
So today, I remind you (and myself):
You are the Pearl of Great Price.
You were bought with a price.
You are not like them — you were never meant to be.
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