NEW YEAR NEW ME (I'M SERIOUS THIS IS FOR REAL) FEATURING DUOLINGO AND YOUVERSION

I started a Yoversion year-long Bible reading plan on January 1st , and it's been great so far. I've tried this before but couldn't keep up, so I'm keeping my hopes low and my dedication high.

But something has caught my eye. I love the Bible app's use of words to encourage me. I'll be going through my day, then they'll send this random notification telling me how proud they are that I'm keeping at my goal.

Not gonna lie, it's too sweet.

Not that I expected anything less from the Bible app. It's supposed to be the epitome of the gentleness and kindness.

But then I remembered I used to have one app some time ago when I wanted to learn French. The Almighty Duolingo had a way of also using words to get me to keep my streak even if it meant sounding manipulative. The first time, I saw a "you made Duo sad" email, I couldn't believe my eyes😂.

What in the emotional blackmail was going on here? I expected the app to be professional and encouraging but Duo uses a very different tactic. I'm not even complaining I love me an app with a personality. Check out their social media handles, it's even more chaotic.

I have downloaded Duolingo again for purposes of this post. And surprisingly, Duo has been very welcoming.

See the welcome I got. Running to hug me with a warm embrace and stuff 😂.

I'm planning to skip a couple of days to see whether Duo will still love me.

Update on 28th January - I've been consistent for a week and turns out I would lose all my progress if miss a single day. There's no turning back my people, guess I'll never find out if Duo is still toxic, I intend to be a very good student of Duo😅.

All this is to say that our words are powerful so do well to say nice things to someone this year. If a message from an unfeeling app can make me feel motivated or bothered, imagine what one from a living human would do.

And to also let y'all know two of the goals I have set for myself for the year. Finishing a chronological Bible reading plan and dusting up my French and Korean (yes Korean so that I can watch kdrama without subtitles🫣. You guys are my accountability partners in this one. Saints, pray for my success, I want to come with bragging rights eiii testimony rather... in December. A win for me(inserts thoughts " then it's over for all of you") is a win for all of us. I should be speaking better French than Emmanuel Macron in December.

On that note, happy new and welcome to 2025. The gospel prevails and our devotion to God is strengthened.

What two goals would you like to share with us?