Five years ago, I was lost. Not the kind of lost where you miss a turn. The kind where you forget who you are, where you’re going and why it even matters.

I didn’t have faith to fall back on. Growing up, my family would go to church or synagogue a few times a year — my mom’s side is Jewish, my dad’s Presbyterian — but it was more about tradition than belief. Religion was something we acknowledged, not something we lived.

For most of my life, I wasn’t a believer. I believed in hard work, discipline, and figuring things out on my own. And for a while, that seemed like enough.

But over the past five years, something shifted. At first, I didn’t think much of it — a lucky break here, the right door opening there. I chalked it up to effort, timing, or strange coincidence.

But the more it happened, the less random it felt. It was too specific, too aligned, too personal. Looking back, I see it clearly - it wasn’t chance, it was God; quietly, patiently, intentionally coming after me until I was finally ready to notice. I didn’t go searching for Jesus. He came looking for me.

And after everything I’ve seen, everything I’ve experienced...I just can’t not believe.

Here’s how it happened.

OCTOBER 2019 — Rock Bottom

It started on the floor of my apartment.

I was burnt out. Exhausted, anxious, frustrated, and alone. I had done everything I knew to do and had optimized every part of my life I could control… and still, it all felt empty.

There was this ache. Loud and relentless. Like I was meant for something more, but had no idea how to reach it. Every path I tried led to a dead end. And eventually, I hit mine.

This was my rock bottom. I wasn’t just tired, I was desperate. I didn’t know what to do next. For the first time, I had no plan. So I laid down on the floor. Not in surrender to God (I didn’t know Him yet) but because I had nothing left.

And in that stillness, in that quiet moment of finally admitting I couldn’t do it all on my own, something shifted. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was the moment I let go. And the moment I let go, God began orchestrating miracles in my life.

NOVEMBER 2019 — A Tattoo With No Known Meaning

A few weeks later, something unexpected came up — a tattoo appointment I had scheduled (and forgotten about) eight months earlier.

I was finishing a sleeve on my arm to honor my dad and grandad. Up to that point, every tattoo on my body had carried deep significance — each one tied directly to a family member. Nothing was random. But now I was out of ideas. And with the appointment coming up in a few days, I started searching online for inspiration.

That’s when I saw it — an image of this beautiful guardian angel. Wings wide open. A cross around her neck. A glowing heart at the center. I wasn’t a believer. The cross didn’t mean anything to me at the time. It wasn’t personal, I couldn’t explain it but something about the image just felt right. So I chose it. No deep meaning. No story behind it. At the time, it was just a way to fill the space. I had no idea then just how much that image would come to mean.

JANUARY 2020 — My Purpose Starts to Take Shape

For years, I had been trying to break out. I was chasing my own real estate development projects, trying to escape the grip of corporate life and build something that actually meant something — something with heart, excitement, impact, and purpose.

Then, at the beginning of 2020, an opportunity finally came. A big project in Logan Heights landed in front of me, and this time, I was ready. I formed my own company and went all in.

At first, the project felt like just another series of real estate deals. But it quickly became something much more. Spaces to support artists. A way to help breathe life into a neighborhood. A chance to create something exciting and impactful.

And something in me came alive. For the first time, I felt like I was doing the work I was meant to do. It wasn’t just business. It was calling. It felt like an answered prayer, even though I had never prayed in a formal sense.

DECEMBER 2021 — A Voice I Couldn’t Ignore

Two years into the Logan Heights project, we were down to our final renovation — the fifth and last warehouse space in our project to activate. I had poured so much of myself into this neighborhood development, and now I was trying to figure out how to bring this last piece to life.

A production studio felt like the right fit. Something that could anchor the creative energy of the whole block. But I was in search of the right partner to help bring it to life.

One night, I was in my office with my friend and collaborator Martha, talking through the possibilities. I mentioned the vision and how I just needed the right person to help make it real. Without hesitation, Martha said, “You’ve got to meet my friend Aly. She runs a production company, she’d be perfect.”

Martha picked up the phone and called her right then. Aly happened to be in town, and free. So we jumped in the car and headed down the street to meet her at the space.

It was already dark when we pulled up. Martha and Aly chatted by the entrance while I fumbled with the keys, trying to find the right one in the dim light. Once inside, I flipped on the lights and led the group through the front of the building, then down the hallway to the large open warehouse in the back —the space I envisioned becoming a production studio.

And that’s when it happened. I looked across the room and saw Aly for the first time. In that moment, something shifted. A voice came over me – clear, unmistakable, something I’d never experienced before: “this is someone very important that you're meant to get to know. Cherish her.”

I didn’t know what it meant. I couldn’t explain it but I knew it was real and that the search for a partner on this project was over. Now I just had to get my other business partners on board. A few weeks later, we officially brought Aly on to the team and we began working together.

FEBRURARY 2022 — A Shared Vision

In the first few weeks of working together, I started to feel a real connection with Aly. It went beyond her talent and presence. I was drawn to her personality, her curiosity, her sense of humor — the way she carried herself. There was something deeper there, I could feel it.

And then a few strange coincidences came to surface.

Aly had spent most of her adult life in San Diego, yet at that exact time, she happened to be living in the DC area — where I grew up. Not only that, she was staying just ten minutes from my sister’s house. It felt like our paths were already crossing, long before we met.

One night, we were on the phone and she began to open up. She told me about a group she had started years earlier called Society Art — a series of artistic gatherings where people came together each week to create. It was a diverse set of mediums, from painting to photography, fashion, to film. A space for exploration, expression, and community. From Aly’s voice I could hear that this wasn’t just a hobby, it was her passion. Then she shared her dream to one day build a physical space where all of this could exist under one roof – a place where people from all walks of life could gather, create, and inspire each other — a permanent creative hub. I was stunned. Not because I admired the idea but because I had just spent the last two years building my own version of this.

Aly didn’t know it at the time but my team’s first project just a few blocks away (1835 Studios) was almost the exact vision that she had just described to me. A 20,000-square-foot creative hub we had imagined and brought to life for that exact purpose.

It wasn’t just a common interest, it was a shared purpose. At the time, my whole world — my work, my mission, my identity — was rooted in building creative spaces that bring people together. And suddenly, I wasn’t doing it alone.

Hearing Aly describe that same vision, in her own words, without knowing any of it — It stopped me. It felt like confirmation that something much bigger was starting to unfold.

MARCH 2022 — A Kiss

Aly invited me out with some of her friends for a St. Patrick’s Day drink. Just a casual night out.

But somewhere between the tacos and tequila, something shifted. We were having a great time, and for the first time, the energy between us turned openly flirty. When the night ended with a passionate kiss, I couldn’t stop smiling. It felt like the start of something big.

But the next morning reality hit hard. Aly pulled me aside. She shared that she’d recently been through a long and difficult separation — and she just wasn’t ready for something new. She said, “You’re great… but I think we should just be friends. And coworkers.”

I nodded. Tried to play it cool. But inside, I was crushed because I already knew — I wasn’t just interested in Aly. I was completely in love with her. I’d never met anyone like her. And I’d never felt anything like this.

Still, we had work to do. So I gave her a hug, took a breath, and we got back to it. But the truth is, every part of me kept hoping things would change, that she would see what I saw – that there was something magical between us.

APRIL 2022 — A Tattoo Revealed

One morning, just a few weeks later, I stepped out of the shower and caught a glimpse of the guardian angel tattoo on the back of my forearm — the one I’d gotten a few years earlier, without really knowing why. I rarely see it — it’s in an odd spot, hard to catch unless the mirror hits just right. But that morning, it did.

And suddenly, I saw it. The features. The necklace. The glow. It was her.

I asked a few close friends what they thought. I showed a reference picture next to the tattoo, itself, and they all gave me the same response, “Chip… that’s Aly.”

What I once thought was just a beautiful image on my arm, a way to fill space, was something else entirely. A message. A seed. A glimpse of the story that was already being written.

MAY 2022 — The Moment Everything Changed

Just a few days later.

We were racing to finish phase one of our new studio — over budget, behind schedule, and pushing through a weekend build with just me, Aly, and her dad.

The days were long. The work was hard. But something about doing it together made it meaningful and special.

Day # 2 of Final Buildout

On the second day of construction, I had been sanding the freshly plastered walls for hours. Dust was everywhere — covering me from head to toe.

I stepped back to catch my breath, grabbed some water, and that’s when Aly walked over. She came up and brushed off just the back of my forearm, of all places, then paused… and stared. Then she looked at me and asked, half-laughing, “You got a tattoo of me?”

I froze. Not because of what she said but because of how it happened. That tattoo had been visible countless times before. She’d never noticed it. And now, somehow, she wiped off that exact spot… just days after I’d realized how much it looked like her.

The tattoo — the one I’d gotten more than two years earlier — had always symbolized a guardian angel to me, even though I had no idea who or what it represented at the time. But that week was the first time I saw it clearly… and saw her in it.

I hadn’t told anyone connected to her. Only a few close friends who had zero connection to her world. So when Aly wiped the drywall dust off the back of my forearm — of all places — and recognized herself in it… it didn’t feel like coincidence. It felt like something was being revealed. Gently. Undeniably. Like the universe was trying to get my attention.

Which made it all the more confusing. If this connection was real — if it was showing up in ways I couldn’t explain — then why wasn’t she feeling it too? Why did it feel so one-sided?

I only had a few days left before she was heading back to DC, and I kept thinking If I could just get one moment alone with her… just one chance to share what was in my heart… maybe she’d feel it too.

Day # 4 of Final Buildout

Our last day on the buildout. But for me, it felt like a door was closing — and I wasn’t ready.

I came in that day completely wrecked, it felt like this might be one of the last times I’d see Aly and that my opportunity had slipped away. And despite everything I felt — all the connection, the unspoken moments, the insane signs — I was sure she didn’t feel the same.

Our mutual friend Martha noticed something was off. She pulled me aside and asked what was going on. I told her the truth, “I’ve never met anyone like Aly. And it’s killing me that I might never see her again.”

A few minutes later, Martha went over to Aly. And somehow, she convinced her to let me give her a ride to the airport.

During the drive, Aly opened up. She told me she wasn’t ready — that she was still healing from the past and couldn’t jump into something new, especially something so serious (as she now knew my feelings for her). She said I was a great guy. I told her I understood, and I meant it. I also told her I’d be there — not to pressure her, but because I cared.

When we got to the airport, I got out, grabbed her bag, and went in for a hug.

That’s when she kissed me. It caught me completely off guard. But in that instant, everything changed. I saw it in her eyes, all in that moment — the same depth of feeling I had been carrying for months. It was like something clicked, and suddenly, I wasn’t alone in it anymore. She felt it too.

The entire flight home, we texted nonstop. What started as a working relationship had turned into something undeniable. And neither of us saw it coming.

JUNE 2022 — Total Bliss

From that moment forward, everything accelerated. What started with a single, unexpected kiss became eight-hour phone calls, day after day. It felt like the dam had broken. All the feelings I’d been holding in — the connection, the chemistry, the sense that something bigger was happening — were finally mutual.

The love between us was unlike anything I’d ever known. It wasn’t just electric, it was cosmic. Unmistakable. Like our hearts had been waiting to find each other all along.

And just when I thought it couldn’t get more surreal, the signs started showing up — everywhere. Butterflies that seemed to follow us. Ladybugs landing on our cars. Repeating numbers. Perfectly timed songs. Moments that were too specific, too aligned, to write off as coincidence. It felt like the universe was underlining what we already knew - that this was something rare, something magical.

And for the first time in my life… I stopped trying to drive. Things were happening that I wasn’t orchestrating — moments that felt bigger than me. Almost daily, I found myself in what could only be described as out-of-body experiences. I didn’t have a name for what was guiding me, I just knew that it wasn’t me. Whatever it was, it felt like it knew better. And I was finally willing to trust it.

JULY 2022 — Giving My Life to Christ

When Aly invited me to church, I said yes without hesitation.

She had been a faithful Christian for most of her life — her faith wasn’t just a small part of her, it was a driving force. And in so many ways, I had felt it long before I ever understood it.

Even in the tattoo I’d gotten years earlier — the guardian angel I couldn’t explain at the time — there she was, wearing a cross, watching over me. And now, in real life, here she was doing exactly that. Bringing me to the one place I didn’t know I needed to go.

The truth is, I did need saving. More than I realized. I wasn’t lost in the traditional sense — I was building a good life. But deep down, I was still doing it all in my own strength. Trying to control, achieve, protect, prove. And for years, I had been feeling the weight of that.

But God knew what would get my attention. He used the one thing I couldn’t ignore, love.

A connection so pure and undeniable it cracked me wide open.

That morning, sitting beside Aly in that church, I felt it — not fear, not pressure, but peace.

And for the first time in my life, I gave my life to Jesus.

FEBRUARY 2023 — A Night with God

I had been talking to Aly about something that was really weighing on me for weeks:

I wanted to hear God. Not just believe in Him or go through the motions, I wanted to actually feel His presence directly.

People would say, “God told me…” or “I felt Him speak to me,” But I wasn’t experiencing that.

So when I decided to take part in an ayahuasca ceremony — hoping for healing, clarity, something — that longing was still fresh in my heart.

What happened next changed everything.

I had an incredibly strong vision. It felt more real than reality.

I was with Jesus.

There was no fear. Only light, warmth and peace. And then came the love — so full, so overwhelming, it felt like my heart might burst. And in that moment, I felt God wrap me in a blanket of His love for me. Completely. Unconditionally. Like He had been there all along.

We played pool. We walked through nature. We talked like old friends about life and creation. It was both mystical and familiar.

But then came the moment I’ll never forget.

As we walked together, God spoke to me in a voice so gentle, so loving, it melted me.

He said:

“You know, there have been many times you’ve felt alone. But you’re not alone. You’ve never been alone. I’ve been here the whole time. You’re just a little stubborn — hard to get through to sometimes. But here I am. Clear as day.”

And then, softly, He added:

“May I remind you of all the signs, all the wonders I’ve shown you? How I brought you and Aly together? That wasn’t chance. That was Me. And the magic that relationship has produced — that was Me too. You are never alone, My son.”

As He spoke, it felt like my heart might burst from the sheer amount of love I felt. And then I felt it — like God Himself wrapped me in a warm blanket of His love. Completely. Unconditionally.

When I came to, I was in tears. God had answered my prayer. He wasn’t distant or abstract anymore. He was close, personal and constant.

And now, I know — no matter where I go that I’m loved, I’m enough, and I will never be alone again.

It’s a feeling of truth that I hope everyone gets to experience — because it changes everything.

THE PAST YEAR — Gentle Reminders

Since that moment, He hasn’t stopped speaking. Not in shouts — but in whispers. In the stillness. In the awe. In the exact moment I needed to hear Him most.

But here’s what I’ve come to believe: It isn’t until we fully surrender our hearts to God — truly let go — that He begins to move through us in ways we can finally see. Not because He wasn’t there before…but because we weren’t open enough to receive it.

Now, it’s different. I’ll pray a quiet prayer in my heart and within moments, something happens. A door opens. A weight lifts. A peace washes over me. A reminder that He’s here. He’s listening. He’s working.

A friend said to me recently: “Chip, this isn’t normal. You’ve had signs most people pray their whole lives for.”

Maybe. But I don’t think it’s about being special. I think it’s about surrender. God’s always speaking. We just don’t hear Him until we finally stop trying to speak over Him.

And when we do… we begin to see how close He’s always been. And how ready He is to work through us — if we’ll just let Him.

WHAT I NOW KNOW

I used to think faith was about rules. About performance. About pretending to have all the answers.

But faith, for me, has been the opposite.

It’s been about surrender. About learning to let go of control. About realizing that in my darkest, most uncertain moments… God wasn’t far away. He was right beside me. Patient. Gentle. Waiting for me to look up.

The signs were always there. The miracles were already unfolding. I just didn’t have the eyes to see them — or the heart to receive them.

Now I do. And every day, I choose to walk with the One who’s been walking with me all along.

If you’re feeling lost…If you’re tired of carrying it all on your own…If there’s a quiet part of you wondering if there’s more to this life — this is your reminder:

You are not alone. You are deeply seen. You are wildly loved. And the God who created you has never stopped writing your story — He’s just waiting for you to hand Him back the pen.