To be honest, from the moment this blog blew up back in 2015, this has been one of the things I have always wanted to say. This was something I constantly expressed to my friends, but somehow had a difficult time putting it into words considering how ironic it would be to come from someone like me.

But even for the past two years as I wrote and stopped writing, this remained in my heart:

Beloved, you deserve more than secondhand love.

And I don’t mean that in the romantic sense. I’m talking about how you deserve more than secondhand love from me. I’m talking about how you have the right to access the source of all the love and knowledge that I get to share to you.

You know, my every blog post has been theologically searched out, because more than the advice and the extra-biblical stuff, I want to be faithful to what He has said first. Every word here that got to touch you, that got to minister to you, only came to be, only came to me, because God was gracious enough to enlighten me.

What you hear from your favorite Christian speakers and authors, you should know that all those insights came from God. And more than wanting to point you back to God through not-so-many-pretty-words, at this time, I want to straight out encourage you to go right to the source so that you will experience that kind of direct revelation as well.

Please don’t mistake this as me telling you to not read other books or listen to podcasts. I for one personally enjoy doing so. They really help and guide and God uses those things to bring to light and for people to see more of Him. I mean, really, I’m saying this as one who blogs.

It’s just that, more than anything, I want to tell you that rather than waiting on every word that comes from the mouth of a blogger, you can choose to wait and meditate on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Nothing could substitute that – no matter how seemingly well-written or timely. Every other source should be secondary.

Now, don’t even get me started on the famous speakers who gain so much acclamation because they say things that seem right, but are actually laced with wrong. That’s one of the reasons why numbers of Christians get into this, because we want to point you back to the right path, we want to lead you into the truth.

But more than the “guidelines” through what we say, you’re going to need discernment for yourself to sift through what you get to hear even when it sounds nice. And that’s not something anyone can teach you.

As much as we try, we can’t filter and sort through everything for you. There are things you have to personally hold His Word up to, so then you will see what is truly sound advice from that which is deceitful.

Maybe, the reason why there are still certain struggles with our identity and security no matter how many affirming articles we’ve read is because we only ever get to hear secondhand what God has said about us. Maybe it’s time you stop wanting to keep on hearing and hearing from others what God has already said about you and hear what He has to say for yourself.

Reading the Bible may sound daunting to you. Talking to God and learning to hear from Him may seem unfamiliar. It may seem boring. It may seem like it’s “too spiritual and that’s not for me.” You may not really know how to go about it. But if you want to, you can reach out to me and I can go through the process with you and help you as you figure things out. ☺

I promise you, as you stay faithful to that, you will hear Him speak to you in ways you never thought you will. You will experience how He targets specifically the situations you scour advice for, and you will find that His words are inexhaustible and still relevant.

For far more than anything I ever get to say that touches you, it is keeping His words in your heart that will change you. More than me shining His light this way, I want to see you reflect His light too.

It’s about time you get to know Him and experience Him firsthand, don’t you think? Trust me, He has been waiting for you. He has some things to say – words handpicked and chosen especially just for you, directly to your heart and to your situation.

Note: I guess at this point, I can say I’m shifting gears about how I’m going to go about this blog. I won’t in any way stop sharing my revelations and insights and I won’t stop with my “pretty words”, but I will probably get more personal about this now.

I want to look back to this one day as a testimony of His faithfulness in my life, a place where I can be reminded of how He has marked my every step with His fingerprints. It’s a new season for me and I’m still navigating it all, but I’ll let Him guide me every step of the way and I do hope you stay for the ride. ❤️