John W. Hiegel
I’m writing a new book—a memoir of my life, my testimony, and the lessons I’ve learned along the way. And I’m excited about what makes this project different.
My first book, Don’t Overthink It, shared reflections and things I had learned over the years through the course of my testimony. This new book will tell the testimony itself more fully than I ever have before.
I’m keeping the title private for now and saving the specific stories for the book. But I want to share why this project means so much to me—and what I’m discovering through the process of writing it.
From the reflections to the story behind them
There is a difference between sharing something you learned and telling the story of how you learned it.
A reflection might explain a lesson about trusting God. A memoir gives that lesson room: what you understood at the time, what questions you carried, how you responded, and what you began to recognize later.
That is what I want to explore in this book.
If you know me through The Overthinking Christian, you know me as Weston. I write my books under the name John W. Hiegel. The conversations we have here about faith, doubt, overthinking, and following God connect to experiences that have shaped my own life.
You may have heard pieces of my testimony in a video or read a reflection that grew out of a particular experience. This memoir gives me room to tell more of that journey in context.
What I’m discovering as I write
Writing my testimony is making me slow down.
It’s one thing to say, “I learned to trust God.” It’s another to remember what I was holding onto, what I feared losing, and how difficult the next step felt at the time.
A lesson I can explain today may have taken a long season to learn. And sometimes, revisiting that season helps me recognize something I hadn’t understood before.
That is part of what excites me about this project. As I write, I’m gaining new understanding and reflecting on the guidance God is giving me now.
I want to be honest about what I understood then and what I’m beginning to understand today. I don’t want to write as though I always knew how everything would turn out. Because I didn’t—and there are still things I’m learning.
Learning to trust without understanding everything
Proverbs 3:5–6 calls us to trust the Lord wholeheartedly, acknowledge Him in our ways, and not rely on our own understanding.
That speaks to a struggle I recognize in my own story. I often want to understand where everything is going before I take the next step.
I want an explanation for what has happened and clarity about what comes next. I’m still learning to bring those desires to God without requiring every question to be answered before I follow Him.
Even writing this book is giving me opportunities to practice that trust.
What I hope readers will find
My hope is that someone reading my testimony will recognize something of their own experience.
Perhaps they love God and still have questions. Perhaps they are beginning to understand an earlier season differently. Perhaps they need encouragement to keep bringing what they don’t understand back to Him.
I hope this memoir makes room for those conversations and encourages readers to return to Scripture as they consider what following God looks like in their own lives.
My first book shared reflections from my testimony. This memoir will tell the story behind those lessons more fully.
The manuscript is still in progress. I don’t have a release date to announce, but I’m excited to share updates as it develops.
Watch the announcement
In this week’s episode, I share why I’m writing this memoir and what makes it different from my first book.
Watch on YouTube →
A question to reflect on
Have you ever looked back on a season of your life and recognized a lesson you couldn’t see while you were living through it?
You’re welcome to share through the contact page, as much or as little as you’re comfortable with.
If you’d like to explore the reflections I’ve already shared, you can browse my currently available books. The new memoir is still being written.
Continue the Conversation with Don't Overthink It
If you've ever felt like you're falling short in your walk with God, you're not alone.
In my book Don't Overthink It, I share biblical reflections on grace, forgiveness, and learning to live faithfully without allowing overthinking to overshadow your relationship with Christ.
If this article spoke to something you've been struggling with, I invite you to explore the book and continue the conversation.
Explore Don't Overthink It by John W. Hiegel:
https://bookspace.com/john-w-hiegel
