You matter. It is as simple and as profound as that. You don’t matter because of what you’ve achieved, how much money you make, or how well you think you’re holding things together. You matter because God made you. He designed you with intention, weaving specific gifts, talents, and unique traits into the very fabric of who you are. Long before the foundations of this earth were laid, you were known by Him (Ephesians 1:4). He didn’t just happen to create you; He is absolutely, deeply in love with you, and He has already done everything necessary to ensure you can live a full, blessed life.
The question is, how do we step into that? All we need to do is walk in what He has already given. That is exactly what faith is for. Faith isn’t a tool to force God’s hand or convince Him to give us something new; faith is the hand that reaches out to receive what He has already provided.
The Thoughts He Cherishes About You
God says clearly in His Word that He knows the thoughts and plans He has for you—thoughts to give you hope, a future, and an expected end (Jeremiah 29:11). In the Afrikaans Bible, it uses a beautiful phrasing, explaining that these are the thoughts God cherishes about you. Think about that for a moment. To cherish means to hold dear, to care for tenderly, and to guard with deep affection. God’s thoughts toward you are affectionate, fiercely protective, and completely good.
“Want Ék weet watter gedagtes Ek aangaande julle koester, spreek die Here…” (Jeremia 29:11)
If God is so absolutely good and loving, why does life often feel so incredibly brutal? We have to realize the distinction between God’s heart and the state of our world. We live in a broken, fallen environment. It is this fallen world—not God—that causes the deep hurt, the crushing pain, the rejection, and the failures we all experience.
When God made the world, it was flawless. He designed the earth to yield its full strength to mankind so we could enjoy good, abundant lives (Genesis 1:28-31). But God also gave authority over the earth to humans. When Adam and Eve disobeyed, they allowed a curse to enter the land and effectively granted Satan access to interfere in this world (Genesis 3:17-19). Because of that initial fall, death, lack, poverty, pain, and sickness forced their way in. This breaks God’s heart because He never intended for His creation to suffer under that weight.
But here is the Good News: Jesus made a way for us to experience God’s original blessings right here on this earth, despite the fact that the world around us is fallen.
The Power of the Blessing
To navigate this broken system, we need faith. The Bible tells us that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). The Word is the catalyst; it builds our faith and grants us direct access into God’s blessing. And when the blessing of God is at work, it makes us rich, and He adds no sorrow to it (Proverbs 10:22). In the original context, that word “sorrow” means painful toil, grueling labor, and sweat. It means the blessing allows you to prosper without the soul-crushing, exhausting grind that the world says is mandatory.
Jesus died to tear down the barrier and restore our connection to the Father, allowing the power of God to make things work beautifully again. This blessing is a tangible force. It is what causes our everyday lives to function—our businesses, our physical bodies, our families, and our relationships. Yes, there is a massive amount of destruction in this world, but God’s Spirit is also moving in this world through believers who willingly let Him work through them, just like Jesus did.
Look at how Jesus operated when He walked the earth. He gave us a perfect demonstration of the blessing in action when He intervened in Peter’s fishing business (Luke 5:1-11).
Three Keys from a Painful Night Turned Around
Peter and his partners had been working relentlessly all night long. They were exhausted, operating in their own strength, using all their professional expertise, and what did they get? Absolutely nothing. It’s a feeling many of us know too well: working down to the bone, through the dark hours, only to come up empty-handed because the system feels rigged against us.
But Jesus showed up and introduced three vital keys that changed everything:
- Key 1: Invest in God’s Business. Jesus asked Peter if He could borrow his boat to use as a floating platform to preach the Gospel. Peter had every reason to say no—he was tired, his nets needed washing, and he had a business to run. But he surrendered his primary business asset to God’s service. When we give our tithes and offerings to the church—supporting ministries that feed orphans, care for widows, and preach the Gospel to save the lost (Malachi 3:10, James 1:27)—we are investing directly in God’s kingdom business.
- Key 2: Listen and Act on His Word. After Jesus finished preaching, He gave Peter a specific command: launch out into the deep and let down the nets for a catch. Peter had to override his own logic and fatigue. He obeyed the specific word Jesus spoke directly to him. The written Word in the Bible gives us general faith, but the Holy Spirit speaking directly to our hearts and minds gives us personal, strategic direction for our specific situations.
- Key 3: The Power of Partnership. When Peter obeyed, the blessing exploded. He caught such a massive corporate breakthrough that his nets began to break. He had to signal to his partners, John and James, to come help. Because John was in partnership with Peter, John’s boat was filled to the brim too. Both boats were so overloaded with blessing that they began to sink.
Peter fished in the exact same water, using the exact same boat and the exact same nets he had used all night. Before Jesus stepped in, there was only painful toil with zero return. After Jesus stepped in, there was less effort and a double, overflowing return.
God does not change; He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8, Malachi 3:6). If He did it for a commercial fishing business on the Sea of Galilee, He will do it for your life, your family, and your business today. We just need to ask, listen, and do.
A Real-Life Example: From a Trailer to Homeschool Laptops
The blessing isn’t just an ancient story; it functions perfectly in the modern world. A while back, my children needed laptops to continue with their homeschooling curriculum. I didn’t have the funds readily available, but I was listening to a message by Gary Keesee. He shared a testimony about a kid in Germany who desperately wanted a PlayStation 2. The boy utilized a powerful spiritual principle: he sowed a seed into a ministry that preaches the Gospel, asked God in faith (truly believing when he prayed), and stood in agreement with his dad. Shortly after, a friend called the boy out of the blue, offered him a paid job cleaning out a garage, and the money earned was exactly what he needed for the console.
Seeing that principle, I decided to apply it to our need. I sowed a financial seed into Andrew Wommack Ministries, specifically targeting the spread of the Gospel, and I asked God for two laptops for the kids’ schooling. My children stood in complete agreement with me (Matthew 18:19).
About two weeks later, I was paying at a local shop, and the cashier casually suggested I enter a competition to win a utility trailer. I didn’t think much of it, but I filled out the form and tossed it in. Another week or two passed, and my phone rang. I had won the trailer!
At first, I was completely confused. I remember thinking, “Lord, I asked for laptops, not a trailer!” I realized I would need to sell the trailer to convert it into the cash we needed, but selling things on the open market isn’t my natural skill set. As I was worrying about it, the Lord spoke clearly to my heart:
“If I can give you the trailer, I can give you the buyer.”
Peace hit me. I listed the trailer on Facebook Marketplace. I received all kinds of strange offers and lowballs, but soon enough, a guy came along with a great, solid offer. There was the buyer, just like God promised.
But there was another hurdle: the organizers had handed over the physical trailer, but none of the registration papers. To get them, I had to drive 200 kilometers out to the manufacturer’s factory. When I arrived, instead of just handing me a manila envelope, the staff gave me a full, personal tour of the entire manufacturing plant. I’ve always been incredibly curious about how things are made and why they work the way they do, so getting to see the machinery and production lines up close was an absolute joy for me. To make it even sweeter, that entire trip happened right on my birthday. It felt like a personal gift from God.
I sold the trailer, bought the laptops, and the kids got exactly what they needed for school. That is what the blessing looks like in real life. It takes our practical, everyday needs, bypasses the limitations of a rigged system, and makes a way where there is no way—all while reminding us just how much we matter to Him.