When God Comes First -- Lilia's POV Series

I once possessed achievements people envied: excellent grades; popular with friends; a future full of opportunities. Yet deep inside I was empty. The turning point in my life was when I completely surrendered—letting God take first place.

POV, point of view, or "perspective," is influenced by a person's position and the angle from which they view things. I am a second-generation Asian American immigrant, a millennial, and have always lived in the New York area. I am also a Christian who honors the Lord as supreme. These identities all shape my "perspective." In this column moving forward, you will read fragments of my life, faith, and relationships. I hope that through the lens of my "perspective," I can offer you some inspiration and encouragement.

First, let me start with the most important part!

Is There Sincerity in This World?

For much of my early life, I lived in a world where sincerity felt rare. People came and went, relationships shifted like sand, and I often felt unseen. Yet one group of people stood out—Christians. Their sincerity was different. Steady. Genuine. Tender. Looking back, I now realize it was the first whisper of God calling my heart.

As an Asian growing up in America, it was hard to fit in. I had a bowl shaped haircut, wore only clothes from China, and never any jeans, and ate porridge at lunch. People laughed at me and I was an outcast and bullied for much of my school life. But when I was thirteen, I encountered a Christian family whose kindness felt so sincere. My parents do not follow such American traditions, but these Christians surprised me with a 16th birthday party. I thought, maybe there really is a God… a God who sees me. That was a beginning, though I did not yet know His personality or His name.

They brought me to church, but my mother always discouraged it, warning me not to fall into “those lies.” And because she's my mother, I resisted God. Every time I took a step toward God, I was held back by her. I was so confused.

Outwardly, everything looked fine—good grades, friends, opportunities. Inwardly, my heart drifted further from the One who loved me first. When I entered college, I told myself God was not real after all; that there is no God. That is when everything began to fall apart.

Lilia's POV ── We, second generation, are not far from the immigrant experience. Although we have more skills to adapt to American life, it is still hard to fit in, find true love, and share sincerely with a community. We are also seeking true love and fellowship.

When Life Falls Apart Without God

My first year of university became chaos. I lived the nightlife—partying until morning, drinking constantly, filling my emptiness with noise and people and distraction. I entered one of the top universities in the country, surrounded by success, admiration, and opportunity… yet I had never felt more empty or more lost.

That emptiness made me vulnerable. A fortune-teller in Times Square deceived me using the name of Jesus. At eighteen, desperate for direction, I gave her $20,000 over a year ── even stealing from my father’s life insurance policy. I believed lies, chased the wrong relationships, cried a lot, and spiraled deep into confusion.

One day, someone told me to watch The Passion of the Christ. That film broke me open. I saw a Jesus who was nothing like the manipulations I had fallen into── He was pure, sacrificial, true, and full of love.

For the first time, I understood: He is real because He died for me.

My heart softened. I started to believe in Jesus. I started to call myself Christian and pray for the first time. Yet I still had no church, no discipleship, no community—just a fragile prayer life and an understanding that Jesus is real.

Lilia's POV ── Yes, even Asian American children who were born here, speak perfect English, and have perfect grades, and seemingly have a great life, can feel empty and lost, afraid and confused, without God. This is because true peace and fulfillment does not lie in material things. It lies in God alone.

When You Truly Seek God, He Reveals Himself

After a year of praying alone, a student approached me and asked if I wanted to study the Bible. He introduced me to his teacher, a young woman who explained something that changed my life: “God desires a family. God desires you.”

At that moment, something supernatural happened. Heaven opened, and I saw my whole life—from childhood to that moment—through the eyes of God. I suddenly understood that He had been with me when I was lonely at the lunch table, every night when I prayed asking God if He was real── every tear shed because nobody remembered my birthday.

And then I heard Him whisper to my heart:
“Just as you pursued someone who didn’t love you, I have pursued you far longer and far deeper. And just as your heart was in pain, Mine was in greater pain for you.”

I wept for three hours straight. My soul finally understood the truth: God had been pursuing me long before I ever pursued Him.

I surrendered everything from that moment. I chose to put God first from then on. And placing Him first became the foundation that transformed every area of my life.

Lilia's POV ── For Asian immigrant parents with Asian American children, realize that there is no way we children can follow God and the world, half and half. It is either all God or no God. The message that God wants you to have a good life, so therefore, pursue your studies diligently, is not the truth. The truth is God desires each one of us wholly, completely, with abandon and full passion.

“The most important [commandment],” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” Mark 12:29

This answer comes not only from rational analysis, but more from love for people. Only by loving God with all our strength and making Him the first priority in all of life's considerations can people have true and lasting peace. Moreover, He loves people so much that He even sacrificed His life.

Putting God First in Career

I had dreamed of becoming a lawyer since I was 7 years old. I was pre-law, ambitious, and during the summer I accepted Jesus at 19 years old, I finally got an acceptance letter for a U.S. Senate internship. It was my childhood dream. Pre-law means a political career.

But after encountering Jesus, something inside me shifted. I prayed for guidance and three times I flipped a coin—heads to go to DC, tails to stay in NY. Three times: it was tails. Then, at last, I repented for testing God and surrendered my dream. It was like an earthquake shook my heart.

I stayed in New York to develop my new faith and studied the Bible and continued attending retreats and worshipping with the choir.

From then on, I put God first, even above my career. I knew my parents would be very disappointed, but God called me── God came first.

Now, looking back, I can tell you that God gave me something better. A few months later, someone invited me to write for a Christian media company. Through serving God—writing, selling ads, serving ministries—I discovered He blessed me greatly.

I ended up starting four companies. The last one was sold for a significant profit.

God taught me that when you put Him first, He will take you further than ambition ever could.

When I put God first and let go of my worldly ambitions for money and career, He gave me great peace, stability, a community of faithful friends, a calling, and a greater purpose - one that will enlarge His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

By putting God first in finances, He enabled me to support my family, my church, missionaries, and ministries. He provided abundantly—not for self-glorification, but for Kingdom purposes. I am grateful that He entrusts me with such callings. He is the Almighty. Praise God.

Matthew 6:33 states, “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” He showed me that: • Money cannot secure your future—God can. • Success cannot satisfy your soul—He can. • Wealth cannot protect your heart—His love can.

Lilia's POV ── For the parents who desire a better life for their children, that desire is not wrong. Just have faith in our greater God, who can provide not only the job, the security and finances, but also the calling and purpose. Your children can have true satisfaction in their hearts while being taken care of by the Lord. However, this can only happen if you put Him first, and pursue Him only. When I put God first and let go of my worldly ambitions for money and career, He gave me great peace, stability, a community of faithful friends, a calling, and a greater purpose── one that will enlarge His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.

Putting God First in Love

I also put the Lord first in love. Five years after being born again, God wrote the most beautiful love story for me—precisely because I refused to put any man before Him.

By then, I had no interest in dating. I didn’t even look at men. My heart belonged entirely to God. I prayed: “Lord, You know my wounded heart. If You do not speak, I will not move.”

When I met Jeff in church, we noticed each other instantly. He liked me immediately—but of course, I would not act unless God gave His blessing.

So Jeff waited three years quietly, faithfully, respectfully. He stayed in church, growing, serving, praying. Every six months he would send a small message or an emoji or picture and ask me how I’m doing. He genuinely cared about me. One day, a church elder sister asked us to have a meal together.

We ate and chatted, discovering we had many common interests—both analytical, thoughtful personalities. At that time, he was about to leave the church and follow his mother's wishes to enter the finance industry. I had experienced a similar situation, so I shared my experience with him. Just like that, we talked about life, faith, parents, careers, money... We had a common purpose in the Lord and began true fellowship.

From then on, he called and texted me daily. During that initial time, I prayed 40 minutes a day, asking God for clarity. At the end of two weeks of intense prayer, God gave me one sentence: “Use My love to love him.”

Immediately, heaven opened again. In an instant, I understood marriage. Marriage was not romance or even companionship; marriage was a school—a divine classroom where we learn to love another person with God’s own love. A preparation for heaven, where no marriage exists except the eternal marriage between Christ and His Bride.

Jeff and I read the Bible together for forty days from that day.

God also addressed my deepest fear—that someone I loved might one day leave me. He showed me that: • If I loved with God’s love, I would not fear abandonment. • If I used His love, God Himself would sustain the relationship. • And the person receiving God’s love would not easily walk away. This revelation became the foundation of our marriage. That is why our marriage remains strong today—because its first bond is not between two humans, but between us and God. It is the three-fold cord that Scripture speaks about—one that cannot be broken.

Lilia's POV ── My only request to Him had been: “Lord, let his faith be stronger than mine.” And God answered beyond measure.

For us Chinese people, it is uncommon to have only one condition. Usually girls want a good family background, material success, and more. However, I only wanted someone who can bring me closer to God. God answered that desire with my husband.

Additionally, he was everything I didn’t even ask for—handsome, tall, clear-minded, from a good family, well-educated, devoted to God.

A Life Built on “God First”

Today I can testify with all my heart: Every blessing in my life flowed from putting God first. In love. In career. In finances. In identity. In calling.──

Every time I surrendered something to Him, He replaced it with something better. Every time I obeyed Him, He honored that obedience. Every time I chose His voice over fear, He led me into truth. My marriage, my work, my finances, my healing—all of it began the moment I said:

Lilia's POV ── It is important to be utterly sincere before the Lord our God. He desires true worshippers who worship in truth and in spirit, not those who utter praises but whose hearts are far away. We must truly fear God, and realize that He alone is God and put Him first above all priorities. He is a good Father and knows how to give good gifts. We can trust Him. For us who are immigrants here in America, isn’t that the greatest peace we can ever have? Jesus is the true peace.

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Lilia Tse graduated from Barnard College, worked in digital media, and founded Adfire Health. She is currently a full-time mom, TikTok creator (@angelxic2), youth gospel camp counselor, and Sunday school teacher. She enjoys sharing the gospel on digital media and inspiring meaningful connections.