By Benescke Janse van Rensburg

A reader recently wrote: “I struggle to believe that God has a plan with my life. Can you help? ”I would like to share with you a short section of Ilse Kleyn, Cape artist's testimony that has touched me deeply - and hopefully can help answer this question as well:

Around 20:00, Ilse's mother, Delene, came knocking on their door. She felt an urgency in her heart that they should go and find the baby, that she saw earlier that day on pictures of a colleague at work, in a nearby squatter camp.

Ilse's first response was: "Who walks into a squatter camp at 20:00 in the evening to knock on an unknown woman’s door and ask to see her baby?" However, her mother was convinced that she heard the voice of the Holy Spirit.

Upon their arrival at the shack, the baby was completely dehydrated. It seemed that the child's mother, who works as a prostitute, forgot to give the child something to eat or drink for 24 hours. They immediately rushed to the hospital with the child. There, the doctor said that if they arrived two hours later, the child might have died. He was close to being in a coma.

An intense intervention process with social workers followed to bring the child to a place of safety. After another long process, Ilse and her family finally succeeded in adopting the little blonde haired, blue-eyed boy, Johannes as their own child. Today he is doing well. He is now 6 years old and last year had the privilege to play the role of Racheltjie de Beer's brother in the film, Racheltjie de Beer.

In Psalm 139 we read that God knows about each of us: “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.  How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them!” In Isaiah 49:16, God Himself says: “I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.” Also in Luke 12:7 we read: “. . . the very hairs of your head are all numbered.”

Did God see the neglected boy in the shack? Did it break His heart? Did He hear the prayers of Violet - a woman in the squatter camp who earlier on convinced Johannes’s mother not to do an abortion because she would "buy" him, just so he would live?

God has a plan for each of us. He loves us equally. Just as He has a greater plan with Johannes's life, He also has a plan with each of us. Let's trust Him to bring it to completion. God bless.

Father God, thank you that every person on earth is important to You. Please help me to realize Your acceptance and protection in my own life. I ask this in Jesus’ Name. Amen.

• See photo of Ilse and Johannes at www.benescke.co.za or on Stories of Hope on Facebook.

• Read the full testimony at www.benescke.co.za

• Feedback: Give feedback about the series or share your testimony of God’s goodness in your life at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.