In 2013 there was no such thing as a “Christian Influencer”. I remember in September 2013 I felt the Lord calling me out of a relationship I had no business in. I accepted Jesus as my Lord in 2009 and a few years later my heart begin to drift. How? Why? I have no idea. It could have been many things, one thing is although I found a bible teaching church, I did not have Christian community, I was not getting discipled, I had no accountability. So my heart was divided between wanting God and wanting the world. Looking back, I can see that I wasn't necessarily running away from God altogether. I wanted God, but I also wanted things that competed with Him. My heart was divided. I wanted the Lord, but I also wanted to maintain control over my desires, relationships, and outcomes.
Scripture would later give language to what I was experiencing
“friendship with the world is enmity with God” -James 4:4.
God wasn't simply calling me to change my circumstances; He was calling me to surrender my heart.
After a while it became exhausting and the Holy Spirit bought me to a place of surrender. I was ready to lay down and release my right to control my life, desires and outcomes. I was ready to walk in complete trust, surrender through obedience in whatever that looked like.
I just wanted God.
“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.” Psalm 73:25
I got rid of that man!
Not to mention I had been praying for a husband, I was just caught up in entertaining sin and distractions that I was not in alignment to receive what I had been praying for. God wasn't withholding a husband from me as punishment, He was showing me that I couldn't ask Him to lead my life while insisting on holding onto what He was asking me to release. When I disconnected myself from this man I had no business with, Im not going to lie, it hurt a little, but God begin to heal me immediately.
I didn't have a five-step plan for my spiritual life. I didn't know exactly what surrender would require of me. I just knew that I wanted God more than I wanted to continue living divided. Years later, I would come to understand Paul's words in Philippians 3:8–10 in a deeper way, the greatest treasure is knowing Christ Himself.
My heart for the Lord and my desire for Him increased in a way that I never knew could exist. And by God’s grace it has not changed still today.
At this time I was immediately drawn to the secret place.
Jesus says:
“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.” Matthew 6:6
When I say “the secret place,” I'm not talking about a physical location or a formula for experiencing God. I'm talking about that intentional place of meeting with God privately away from the noise, performance, and distractions of everyday life.
I would go to work and look forward to 5pm to clock out so that I can go home, go to my room and meet with the Lord through opening and reading the Holy Scripture, through prayer and sitting still with the Lord.
One day I came up with this idea (by what I believe was the prompting of the Holy Spirit) to create an Instagram page.
I wanted to call it “Alexis’ Love For Jesus” because I felt this space would be personal. A place where I could hold myself accountable to show up daily in the Word, share what I was learning, and encourage others to build an intimate relationship with the Lord.
But somewhere between the idea and actually creating the page, I decided to simply call it “A Love For Jesus.”
Looking back, I think there was something significant about that change. I initially thought of it as my love for Jesus, but the name became A Love For Jesus, something that could extend beyond me.
What started as a personal declaration became an invitation. It wasn't just about Alexis loving Jesus; it was about creating a space where other women could cultivate, strengthen, and express their own love for Jesus.
At the time, I had no idea what God would eventually do with those few words. I wasn't trying to build a ministry, become a Christian influencer, or create a brand. I simply wanted a space that would keep me in the Word and encourage other women to seek the Lord too.
And, surprisingly, it worked.
That little Instagram page held me accountable to reading Scripture in a season when I desperately needed deeper roots in God. But it also began encouraging other women to do the same.
It’s amazing to see how far A Love For Jesus has come.
What began as an Instagram page eventually became a women's conference in 2017. Then came the book club. Then a spontaneous trip to Washington D.C. to visit the Museum of the Bible. And somewhere along the way, something even more meaningful happened, women who initially connected through a shared love for Jesus began building genuine friendships and sisterhood. Who would have thought? Girl, not me!
The platform grew, but more importantly, the people grew.
When ALFJ first started I was hungry for God not knowing where to start, but I started.
Years later, I now know how to steward that hunger, inviting others into that hunger without losing the intimacy that started it.
I have learned that spiritual hunger isn't something we simply satisfy once and move on from. It is something we continue to cultivate through Scripture, prayer, obedience, biblical community, sound theology, and a life continually turned toward Christ.
And that is a huge part of why A Love For Jesus exists today.
I love the Lord. That desire for Him still burns in me, and I pray it is a thirst that will never be quenched.
I believe A Love For Jesus exists to invite women into that same pursuit, to know God, love Jesus, understand His Word, grow in sound theology, cultivate intimacy with Him, and live lives that are surrendered to Him.
You may be just beginning your surrender to God, and you may not know where to start. Start where I started, start with Jesus. Open your Bible, pray, find biblical community, ask questions, study, obey. And when you stumble, my girl, keep coming back to Him.
Y’all and here I am again, stepping into something new.
It feels so significant that A Love For Jesus began in September 2013, and now, in September 2026, God is birthing something new in me once again.
I am so excited for this space and for the opportunity to share what the Lord is teaching me
And I can't wait to see what He does next!
All for His Glory.
Alexis Ashley
Scripture would later give language to what I was experiencing
“friendship with the world is enmity with God” -James 4:4.
God wasn't simply calling me to change my circumstances; He was calling me to surrender my heart.
After a while it became exhausting and the Holy Spirit bought me to a place of surrender. I was ready to lay down and release my right to control my life, desires and outcomes. I was ready to walk in complete trust, surrender through obedience in whatever that looked like.
I just wanted God.
“Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.” Psalm 73:25
I got rid of that man!
Not to mention I had been praying for a husband, I was just caught up in entertaining sin and distractions that I was not in alignment to receive what I had been praying for. God wasn't withholding a husband from me as punishment, He was showing me that I couldn't ask Him to lead my life while insisting on holding onto what He was asking me to release. When I disconnected myself from this man I had no business with, Im not going to lie, it hurt a little, but God begin to heal me immediately.
I didn't have a five-step plan for my spiritual life. I didn't know exactly what surrender would require of me. I just knew that I wanted God more than I wanted to continue living divided. Years later, I would come to understand Paul's words in Philippians 3:8–10 in a deeper way, the greatest treasure is knowing Christ Himself.
My heart for the Lord and my desire for Him increased in a way that I never knew could exist. And by God’s grace it has not changed still today.
At this time I was immediately drawn to the secret place.
Jesus says:
“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.” Matthew 6:6
When I say “the secret place,” I'm not talking about a physical location or a formula for experiencing God. I'm talking about that intentional place of meeting with God privately away from the noise, performance, and distractions of everyday life.
I would go to work and look forward to 5pm to clock out so that I can go home, go to my room and meet with the Lord through opening and reading the Holy Scripture, through prayer and sitting still with the Lord.
One day I came up with this idea (by what I believe was the prompting of the Holy Spirit) to create an Instagram page.
I wanted to call it “Alexis’ Love For Jesus” because I felt this space would be personal. A place where I could hold myself accountable to show up daily in the Word, share what I was learning, and encourage others to build an intimate relationship with the Lord.
But somewhere between the idea and actually creating the page, I decided to simply call it “A Love For Jesus.”
Looking back, I think there was something significant about that change. I initially thought of it as my love for Jesus, but the name became A Love For Jesus, something that could extend beyond me.
What started as a personal declaration became an invitation. It wasn't just about Alexis loving Jesus; it was about creating a space where other women could cultivate, strengthen, and express their own love for Jesus.
At the time, I had no idea what God would eventually do with those few words. I wasn't trying to build a ministry, become a Christian influencer, or create a brand. I simply wanted a space that would keep me in the Word and encourage other women to seek the Lord too.
And, surprisingly, it worked.
That little Instagram page held me accountable to reading Scripture in a season when I desperately needed deeper roots in God. But it also began encouraging other women to do the same.
It’s amazing to see how far A Love For Jesus has come.
What began as an Instagram page eventually became a women's conference in 2017. Then came the book club. Then a spontaneous trip to Washington D.C. to visit the Museum of the Bible. And somewhere along the way, something even more meaningful happened, women who initially connected through a shared love for Jesus began building genuine friendships and sisterhood. Who would have thought? Girl, not me!
The platform grew, but more importantly, the people grew.
When ALFJ first started I was hungry for God not knowing where to start, but I started.
Years later, I now know how to steward that hunger, inviting others into that hunger without losing the intimacy that started it.
I have learned that spiritual hunger isn't something we simply satisfy once and move on from. It is something we continue to cultivate through Scripture, prayer, obedience, biblical community, sound theology, and a life continually turned toward Christ.
And that is a huge part of why A Love For Jesus exists today.
I love the Lord. That desire for Him still burns in me, and I pray it is a thirst that will never be quenched.
I believe A Love For Jesus exists to invite women into that same pursuit, to know God, love Jesus, understand His Word, grow in sound theology, cultivate intimacy with Him, and live lives that are surrendered to Him.
You may be just beginning your surrender to God, and you may not know where to start. Start where I started, start with Jesus. Open your Bible, pray, find biblical community, ask questions, study, obey. And when you stumble, my girl, keep coming back to Him.
Y’all and here I am again, stepping into something new.
It feels so significant that A Love For Jesus began in September 2013, and now, in September 2026, God is birthing something new in me once again.
I am so excited for this space and for the opportunity to share what the Lord is teaching me
And I can't wait to see what He does next!
All for His Glory.
Alexis Ashley