“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”
Galatians 2:20
On October 31, 2010, I made the single most important decision of my life. At seven years old, I decided to follow Jesus and get baptised. Of all the things that I ever wanted to be at that age–a writer, an illustrator, a doctor–a child of God and a follower of Jesus Christ was the one identity that gripped me beyond all others.
Ever since I was little, I wanted to follow the One who made me and loved me with a love far outside my comprehension. Childlike faith does not demand a fairytale–it is merely simple trust in profound truth.
In 2013, I embarked on a new chapter in life. On the eve of leaving for Colombia to meet my new adopted siblings, I started a blog. That has been through many seasons, eventually becoming the place you are visiting today. Initially, this was going to be simply the story of how this all came to be. But I now believe that would miss the mark.
This is not going to be that story. Rather, I want to pull on the thread of God’s faithfulness through so many of life’s chapters. To show, just for a moment, how the goodness of the Lord has been with me throughout the journey, throughout the wrestle, and throughout the creative process.
Childlike
Like all stories, mine started small. I have been writing ever since I learned how. Even when I didn’t know how to write, I dictated to my mum and made all the illustrations for my own stories.
Looking back at the things I created when I was little, I was always proud of what I posted, whether it be goofy or deep and raw. But the older I got, the more self-conscious I became about the things I posted. I started to care more about the opinions of the world or of people thinking I was silly for doing stuff that not everyone does.
So instead of viewing that as something that makes me unique, something that God gave me a unique passion for, I started to see it as something to be ashamed of, since I wasn’t doing the same thing as everyone else. But those gifts and passions that God gave me are meant to be used for His glory, and I don’t have to be ashamed of that! Just because my path might not look the same as everyone else’s, doesn’t mean it’s a bad path. Sometimes God sets us on a journey that seems lonely, but we are never alone. He always has good plans.
Allow God to Reshape Your Dreams
This is one I’ve been learning more these past couple years. I’m a dreamer. I always have been. But what’s so cool about that is how God takes your dreams, and, as you seek Him, He reshapes them into something that honours Him. I’ve always loved to create, whether that’s storytelling, sketching, making videos, blogging, piano, etc. But when I was eighteen, I started to slip into this mindset of wanting to create content for the money and the fame. But God is always so good, and He has this way of course-correcting us that redirects our passions and gifts to be used for His glory, rather than ours.
And so these past two or three years have been so cool because God’s just been working and showing me how instead of just creating content for the algorithm and for money and recognition, I can follow His lead and start to create things very intentionally, in the hopes of making something meaningful that causes people to think, seek the Lord, and live a more thoughtful, joy-filled life. And what’s so cool is that those dreams aren’t gone. But they’re not the same. They’re changed to better reflect God’s heart for my life and my future. And I think that’s the best.
All-Consuming Fire
‘Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.“‘
Hebrews 12:28-29
For the longest time, I tried to brainstorm the best ways to try to encapsulate what God has done over the course of the past several years of my life. I’m twenty-two now, and as I sit here with my hands to the keyboard, I struggle to know quite what to say to capture all God’s faithfulness.
I think of John’s words that he penned at the very end of his account of the good news of Jesus: ‘Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.’
Our God is a consuming fire. There is no other like Him. He saved me from depression, addiction to pornography, lust, anxiety, hopelessness, self-sufficiency, bitterness, suicidal ideation, brokenness, loneliness, and despair. Our God reigns. He alone can save. And if He can save me, I know He can save you.
Through all of life’s seasons, this one thing I know to be true–Jesus is worthy. As we round the corner on a new chapter for this blog and a kind of fresh start, may Jesus be the constant. We may go a few different directions together, but it’s all in pursuit of Jesus. In Him, the old is gone, and the new is come. May He be honoured and magnified by every step of the journey.
Come what may, may it all be for His glory.
The Treehouse 
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