Important (by Cathe Laurie)

“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” (Psalm 139:16 NLT).

Everyone Wants to Matter

More than anything, people want to know that they matter. “Make me feel important” is wired into us. No one likes to be overlooked or pushed aside. No one wants to be just another face in the crowd. We all crave significance and recognition.

Deep down, every single one of us is still that kid on the playground who just wants to feel like we count.

I can still remember my third-grade teacher in Princeton, New Jersey. Not because of how she taught or some ground-breaking lesson. It’s because one day, she called me up to her desk and asked me to help her draw daisies and cut them out for the bulletin board. That was it—my big moment.

Even sixty years later, I still remember it. For that one brief afternoon, she made me feel like I mattered. Not because I did something amazing or aced the test, but just because I was there.

The Truth Is Every Person Matters

Here’s the grounding truth: You are important.

Not because of your achievements, your friend circle, the number of Instagram likes you get, or how high you climb the ladder. You are important because you are made in the image of God.

Point blank. Period.

We All Matter Simply Because We’re a Person

You don’t need to do anything to be important; you are important because God made you. You are eternally significant to the One who matters most.

If you need a reminder of just how precious you are to your Heavenly Father, I encourage you to read through Psalm 139. The whole chapter is filled with God’s heart for us!

Psalm 139’s Reminder of Your Importance

“How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered!” (Psalm 139:17 NLT).

“You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” (Psalm 139:16 NLT).

“You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it” (Psalm 139:13–14 NLT).

The Lord Know You Personally

Before you even took a breath, the Lord knew you intimately. He formed your very being; He wrote the story of your life before even a moment of it came to be. His thoughts about you are too numerous to ever count. If that doesn’t scream “treasured” and “important,” I don’t know what does!

Wake Up to the Truth of Your Significance 

Today, I pray you see and feel the Lord’s heart for you. I pray that you see yourself as important because God spent time forming you, creating you, and developing you into exactly who you were meant to be.

There’s nothing you can or should do to “prove yourself.” Instead, soak in the fact that you bear the image of God! You were created to reflect His divine glory!

You. Are. Important.

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Cathe Laurie is the founder and director of the Virtue women’s ministry. She is also a featured speaker on The Virtue Podcast, at Harvest events, and the author of As I See It. You can find her weekly articles here on harvest.org.