This “following Jesus” thing can make us have, well, #AllTheFeels.

Warm and fuzzy. Confident. Peaceful. Hopeful. Comforted. Reassured.

All great feelings. But ya know, sometimes Jesus makes us feel a little bit queasy.

Like when he asks us to take a leap of faith and puts an idea on our heart that feels a little bit like it’s out of the back 40. (That’s the country girl in me talking there.)

Those moments are what I have titled as the emotion called “Thrillified.” That’s thrilled and terrified combined.

I’ve always told those who I am ministering to or leading that if we don’t sometimes feel a bit nauseous regarding our walk with Christ, we probably aren’t walking close enough to Him. (Note: Thrillified queasiness is not to be confused with the unrest or non-peace when we are missing the mark. Gotta pay attention there.)

One of the most encouraging things I do in my personal walk is to look back over the years and reflect on those thrillifying-stomach-flopping-heart-fluttering moments.

Let’s see where I’ve been (please feel free to read this in what you imagine to be God’s voice. Probably like Morgan Freeman.)

March 2009: “Oh hey. Here’s a soldier. Yeah, you are gonna marry him. But only after a deployment. And after you realize how much you need ME you our life. ”

October 2010: “I told you that you were gonna become an army wife. Now, get ready to move across the country. Be sure to quit your job you love, too. But don’t worry.”

November 2010: “PS: Forgot to say that I want you to start working on your Masters Degree. In Christian Leadership. Because that should pair nicely with your undergrad of Animal Science.”

May 2011: “Don’t worry about those movers packing your stuff. It’s completely normal for them to need to take your couch off the balcony because they can’t fit it out through the doorway. Be sure to say goodbye to Kansas. And hello to Georgia.”

July 2011: “Surprise! You are called to ministry! Let working for ‘Jesus Dollars’ commence!”

January 2012: “‘Spose you better start working on that procreation of a family thing now.”

March 2012: “Sorry that your greatest fear came true… but I have a purpose in this. Don’t worry, your Baby Klove is safe with Me. Now, try again.”

March 2013: “Congratulations on your baby girl! Let’s pack all your wordly belongings and move across the country when she is 4-months-old.”

September 2013: “Welcome to Washington. Lead a homegroup.”

October 2014: “You want more boots-on-the-ground ministry, eh? Ok. Apply for PWOC Vice President. And get ready for some REAL (hard) homegroup ministry.”

March 2015: “Aight, girl. Let’s go a little deeper. Don’t play it safe– apply for Fort Lewis PWOC president. And say yes to that big leadership opportunity with Army Wife Network.”

May 2016: “Well done, good and faithful servant. Now… I want you to transition from being a shepherd to being a sheep. You can do this. I promise. Oh, and while you are at it– let’s do another cross-country move back to Georgia. Then have another baby.”

February 2017: “Hey, lookie there! You’ve got a son! You are welcome!”

PRESENT DAY: “Are you ready, my daughter? Ok… Time to get going again…

I want you to start working on your doctorate degree.

So folks… here we are. This week, I start classes to being the lonnngggg process of attaining my Doctor of Education in Community Care: Pastoral Care and Counseling from Liberty University.

I’m excited. I’m nauseous. And I’m soliciting helpers to teach me statistics since that’s my first class out of the gate. #ImmaWordsGirlNotNumbers

It’s gonna be a long (exciting!) journey. I’ve had a few naysayers tell me this is next to impossible. After all, I’ve got an army husband to support. Two Tiny Humans to raise. A ministry. Army Wife Network leadership responsibilities. A large chunk of pregnancy weight to shed.

But ya know what? Jesus had naysayers. So why shouldn’t I? Pretty sure my life verse is my life verse for a reason: