the
believers'
garden
i hate religion...but i love jesus
About
I Hate Religion...but I Love Jesus is a book that speaks about a relationship with God. This entire process was prompted by God. He wanted me to write about how Christianity, recognized and treated like a religion, ruins the relationship God desperately wants with each one of us. Therefore destroying Jesus's original intention of dying for us. Rules, "do's and don'ts", fake loyalty, and half-baked attempts to spend time with Him were never the way God wanted us to live. Social media can make being a believer much harder than it needs to be. Comparison and judgment can easily destroy a genuine relationship led by God. The reality? A relationship with Him has ups, downs, and all arounds. Sometimes you feel far and sometimes you feel close. Sometimes you follow Him closely and sometimes you slip up. Luckily, God doesn't move off of feelings nor does He compare your relationship with Him to His relationship with any of His other children. Overcome seeing God as a feeling. Overcome seeing God as a ruthless dictator. Overcome seeing God as an authoritarian parental figure, punishing for every wrong step. Reveal the truth of who He is and see Him as your loving Father and Friend. Learn how to follow and hear His voice. Transform your distorted view of Christianity into a clear and freeing relationship with the God who just wants to love you completely.
How it came to be.
I Hate Religion...but I Love Jesus originally was not a book. It started with a God-sent passion to spread the truth about how God wants us to have a relationship with Him. It first was just an idea, then a video on TikTok, then it turned into a Christian planner, then an ebook. I didn't think it would go any farther than this. After all, I didn't have the money let alone the knowledge of how to publish a book. I borrowed money just to learn how to make a digital product.
Despite all this, I continued to write over the next months. The words flowed and I was drawing wisdom I didn't even know I had from my experiences. As the book started to wrap up, I wondered "What's next God?". I began to doubt that was what He wanted me to do. So every morning I started to walk around my neighborhood and pray. I asked God to open the doors that needed to be opened and close the doors that needed to be closed.
Then one morning I checked my email and saw an email that announced a short story writing competition and the winner got a free publishing package with a publishing company I was looking at. My initial excitement quickly turned to fear, worry, and doubt. I immediately dismissed any possibility of winning the contest and moved on with my day. A couple of weeks passed and I saw yet another email announcing there were only a couple of days left before the submission deadline, but instead of fear, hope and confidence rose within me. Once again I began to write. The woman with the issue of blood had been on my heart and mind, so I wrote about her.
When I went to look at how to submit I saw it was $50 just for one story. I had just enough in my bank account...so I had to take a leap of faith. I had to trust that following through with God's prompting would bless me anyway. I went to submit a few minutes before the deadline...and my laptop died before it even hit 1%. I was panicked. I scrambled to find my charger and plug in my laptop. At this point, I had about three minutes and of course, my laptop started to glitch. I knew it was the enemy, but he couldn't stop me. I submitted my short story. It was in God's hands and I'd know His will in about two days.
Two Days Later
I fasted and prayed while I waited. I asked God to validate me and show me this was what He wanted me to do. The night came and I went to check for results for the last time. I opened the website and couldn't believe my eyes. E'lia Brown, first place! I ran downstairs and told my family the news. I would soon be a published author! And here I am now, so excited to present this gift to you! I hope and pray you get exactly what God wants you to get from this book.
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