Longtime “Big Brother” host Julie Chen Moonves is known for her successful television career, but she recently made headlines for another reason: her Christian faith. She recently released “But First, God: An Audio Memoir of Spiritual Discovery,” a project rooted in her faith discovery.

She told CBN Digital, “When I finally found Jesus in 2018, I had never owned a Bible. And I was gifted one from a friend who was one of my favorite cameramen working in TV news.” That cameraman, who eventually became a pastor, helped Moonves on her faith journey as she dove into the Bible and discovered the truth for the first time.

Moonves recalled, “I found it very daunting and intimidating, and very big, and I thought, ‘Oh, I’m going to listen to an audio version of the Bible. And the only one I could find was a King James Version that sounded like I was listening to Shakespeare.” Moonves, who had previously written a children’s book called “Simon & Schuster,” offered to read the New International Version of the Bible for free. She thought the project would help her navigate the Bible while providing an easier-to-understand version.

Instead, to her surprise, the publisher offered her a chance to talk about her faith journey through an audio memoir, and that’s how “But First, God” was born. It’s a lens into Moonves’ journey of discovery after the successful host essentially spent 48 years ignoring God. Growing up, Moonves’ mother converted to Catholicism, but the family didn’t attend church, and she was free to choose her faith for herself. Ultimately, she opted not to place too much emphasis on belief.

Moonves said of her years before becoming a Christian, “I was so focused on this world, and I didn’t acknowledge that there was any other world beyond the world that we live in. I was very focused on my false idol then, which was work, my career, my job, and that’s who I was, and any blessing that came my way, I thought that it was something that I did to earn it and that I deserved it.” Moonves added, “I was just never thinking about God.”

However, all that changed in 2018, when she received that Bible and, amid life struggles, started thinking deeper about the Lord. Moonves said she tried out different churches on Sunday mornings and eventually landed at a Presbyterian house of worship. She said, “I found the sermons very easy to understand. And then, it started with Bible study classes. It started with YouTube videos from a wonderful Bible teacher.”

In addition to Bible studies, she said her mother moved in with her after her father died, and they started studying Scripture together. This experience further guided her along and helped solidify her journey. Moonves said, “That’s when I really start to understand who God is, and who I am, and why I’m here, and how He has blessed me all my life while I was ignoring Him. God gave me this career so that I could get to where I am today to use any and every platform, being a public figure and declaring Jesus, my Lord and Savior.”

This is the very mission the “Big Brother” host finds herself on today, as she’s embraced forgiveness and keeps looking ahead to what matters most: sharing her faith.