Once upon a time in Opelika, Alabama...

These last two months look like a fairytale to me.

Literally.

When I look back over ALL that's happened, all that's changed, all the people I've met, and all that has been provided for me, I have no words. I'm speechless.

Not the kind of fairytale you find at Disney World... but one that only God could write. Minus the talking animals and princess dresses, I'd say the magical wonder of impossibilities is very much the same.

At the end of every single work day on my tired drives home, all I can do is LAUGH. Not just chuckle... I mean laugh so hard I cry and scream. The only words I have left inside my lungs by the time I crawl into bed at night are: "God, did you really do that ALL today? You are so good. You are so real."

It was a 12 hour spontaneous decision to move to Opelika, Alabama from Toledo, Ohio back in late January of this year. But it's been one of the best decisions I've ever made.

God did something when I got here. He showed me who He was. He captured my heart with His love like never before.

It's like when I got here, all the prayers I've ever prayed started to come to life.

"God, use me."
"God, change my heart to be like Yours."
"God, give me dreams and passions for Your mission".

It was my third day in Alabama. I was driving back to my new home after a long day of job searching and trying to get connected with others. My sunroof and windows were open and I had Kim Walker blasting out of my 1995 Honda Accord. I had never felt so FREE... So full of peace and JOY. I was singing (actually screaming) along with the music and flying down the hills of Alabama the Beautiful with billions of stars all around me:

"I will pursue You. I will pursue Your presence."

If you know anything about Jesus Culture music, you know that any song of theirs lasting shorter than ten minutes doesn't exist. About 7 minutes into the song, I began to feel hot tears stream down my face.

The Lord hit me like a huge brick house. I realized in my heart that I was serious. I would seriously pursue Him and His presence at every cost and above all else. I saw the sacrifice He required for the love He intended. His love was so real to me in that moment that I just cried. I bawled. I let go. I surrendered. I could see a small vortex in front me holding pain, unknown, being misunderstood, loneliness, struggle, suffering... most of all: earth... All swirling around in a chaotic mix before me. That's when I sung all the louder: "I will pursue Your presence".

No matter what was about to come my way, I knew that it didn't matter. I knew that I would choose Him above anything, and He knew it too.

His love makes it nearly impossible to choose anything else. When you experience HIS love, HIS joy, and HIS heart, pursuing anything BUT His presence seems absolutely insane...
So that's what I started to do in a way like never before.

and THAT is when He began to

BLOW

MY

MIND.