Why Restore exists

I built Restore out of my own difficulty. I’m a believer in Jesus and I love Him with all my heart. I’ve spent many days praying and talking with Him, and I’ve seen Him answer prayer again and again. But I’ve also wrestled with things I couldn’t seem to break, with wrong attitudes, with things in my own heart I didn’t want to face, and with strain in my marriage.

I wasn’t looking for another verse of the day or a pep talk. I wanted real help from Scripture, something in plain words that could get to the root of my battles, help me see what was going on, and remove them so I could have a closer and more intimate walk with Him.

Restore is a tool to help me in my walk with Jesus: to notice what’s really going on in my heart, to find Scripture and prayers that speak into it, and to learn to put aside the lies and speak God’s truth into my life. Using it has helped me go deeper, to understand God’s promises, and to see more of His love and what He desires for my life.

I’m not someone who has everything figured out. I have my own struggles. I’m still learning, still being changed, still walking it out with Him. Restore wasn’t built by someone who had all the answers. It was built by someone who needed to find more.

I could not find the tool I needed, so I began to build it.

The question underneath it

There is one question that sits under everything here, and it is close to my heart. Jesus said that on that day many will say to Him, “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?” and that He will answer, “I never knew you.” They did great things in His name. What was missing was that He knew them.

So the question I ask myself, and the one I would gently ask anyone, is not only “Do I know Jesus?” but “Does Jesus know me?” Restore is built to help us draw near to Him: honest, unhurried and close, so that we are not only people who know about Him, but people He knows.

A tool, not the destination

The most important thing I can tell you about Restore is that it is a tool. It is not a substitute for your own walk with God, or for being led by His Spirit – no feature can be. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Nothing in an app replaces time in His Word and in His presence.

Restore can help you name what you are wrestling with, hold on to what is true, and take a next step, always pointing you back to Scripture and to Him. If it ever begins to feel like it’s replacing your walk with God Himself, it has failed at its job.

Who it is for

Restore is for people who already walk with Jesus, who are in the thick of something hard, and who want to go deeper and be healed. It does not assume you are just beginning. It assumes you are tired of staying on the surface.

What I hold to

Scripture first, and the words of Jesus as the final check. I am committed to the Word of God as absolute truth. Jesus said, “Thy word is truth” (John 17:17). What you read in Restore is my understanding of it, offered prayerfully and held with humility. I have tried not to bend it to fit what I would like it to say, and where I have been unsure I have tried to say so. Faithful believers and churches understand some passages in more than one way, and I leave you free to take it to God. I am not a professional counsellor, and Restore is not professional advice. The prayers in Restore are suggestions, a place to start and a guide only, so let your own prayers come from your heart and spirit. Restore is a tool, never a replacement for the Bible or for what God is saying to you.

• Scripture and sound teaching first. Restore points to the Word; it never replaces it.
• Your privacy as a promise. What you write belongs to you. It stays on your phone, and if you back it up, it is locked with a key only you hold.
• No advertising, no tracking, and nothing you write is ever sent to an AI. Read our promise.
• Restraint. A calm surface, with depth underneath, and nothing that clamours for your attention.

Who is behind it

Restore is made by NorthStar Ventures, a small New Zealand business. I am Andrew, and I am the one who reads your messages. You can write to me at restorewalkapp@gmail.com.

If you would like to know the day Restore opens, you can leave your email on the home page. I will send one message on launch day, and no more.