Seven years.

Why the most meaningful growth rarely goes viral, and how seven years of showing up changed everything.

Seven years ago, on January 23, 2019, I took a leap of faith and started an Instagram account with the handle @acaffeinatedcatholic. However, the story starts a couple years before then.

I had always loved writing, particularly about my Catholic faith and what it meant to live it out at that phase of life. In high school, I remember hearing about a girl a year older than me who started a blog. I had never been one to read blogs online, but I loved the idea of having an outlet to share my musings on the world. I hedged on it for the following year and a half, before taking a leap and creating a free Wordpress blog called The Abundant Adventure in January 2018, freshman year of college. Here is an excerpt from my original About Me page:

As I sit here writing this “About Me” post, I can’t help but burst with joy. This blog has been in the works for longer than I’d like to admit, and the fact that I’m writing this means that I’m finally almost there. I’ve put it off for so darn long because let me tell you, I’m scared. In fact, I’m absolutely terrified. Thoughts keep running through the back of my mind: What if I can’t follow through with it? What if people judge me? What if this is all a waste of time? Yet, here I am. I am finally following through with this little tug at my heart that I have felt for oh-so-many years. The Lord provides, and I trust that He will give me the strength to follow through with this. My heart is so exploding with joy, and my hands are shaking with nerves.

I look back on that post and beam with pride for my little 18-year-old self for taking the leap. I posted that with no idea if anyone would ever see it, but following the pull I felt on my heart.

Half a year later, I rebranded to A Caffeinated Catholic, for no real reason besides the fact that I liked the name more.

Frankly, I was originally against the premise of creating an Instagram page for my blog, because it felt like I would be making it a separate identity, and I felt so deeply that my words and my faith were a part of me. But as time went on, I noticed that people were following my personal Instagram in order to read my words (I was often promoting the blog on there).

This brings us back to the inception of @acaffeinatedcatholic.

Something I never anticipated with the creation of this account is, along with being a space to write, it became a space for community. I was connecting with people in the comments and in my direct messages, and the space began to flourish.

After years of steady posting and engaging with the community, in May 2024, my account randomly skyrocketed from 6,000 to 20,000 souls who were following along on my journey. It was overwhelming how many new faces were around, and I didn’t know why it was that exact moment that God wanted so many people to join this little community I had fostered over the years.

Since then, this account has opened the door to blessings I never could have imagined seven years ago – introducing me to people I never would have met and opportunities I never would have encountered.

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In a world of virality, where people seem to go from zero to 100K followers in a matter of days, I think it’s important to acknowledge that most of the world doesn’t move that way. Most meaningful things are built slowly. Growth often looks like one faithful step after another.

If you feel called to take a step in a certain direction, don’t wait for the Lord to explain the entire story before you move. He rarely does. The invitation is usually small: start the account, say yes to the opportunity, try the thing that keeps tugging at your heart. Clarity often comes after obedience, not before it.

When I started this account, I had no idea where it might lead. I just knew I felt a nudge, and by responding to it, I created space for the Lord to work in ways I never could have orchestrated on my own. That single yes became an open door.

We aren’t passive observers in our lives; we’re co-creating them with God. We can pray for miracles all we want, but we also have to give Him something to work with. He honors our free will deeply. He won’t force transformation; we have to meet Him halfway with our willingness.

So show up. Keep showing up. Offer your effort, your consistency, your imperfect yes. It may not pay off quickly or look impressive on the surface, but over time, faithfulness compounds. And often, you’ll look back and realize He was working all along... just not in the ways you expected.

So cheers to seven (honestly, eight) years of co-creating with the Lord. This life with Him is such a wonderful adventure.

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WHAT I’M SIPPING

Another week of absolutely loving my Nespresso machine. I have been making 1 or 2 shots of Arpeggio pods over brown sugar and adding frothed whole milk. Isn’t she stunning?

Cheers! Until next week, happy sipping!