The Genesis of Three MPH

Every name has a story; this is ours.

Three MPH was an idea long before it had a name.

It slowly emerged after navigating through a difficult season of career burnout over eight years ago.

At just twenty-three years old, my work had already become my identity. I worked seventy to eighty hours a week, devoting all my time to building large online communities while trying to make a name for myself.

I was successful at it…until I wasn’t. And then it all came crashing down. 

I thought I was walking with God since He called me to entrepreneurship, but really, I was doing whatever I wanted to do and asking God to bless it. I learned how wrong I was after reaching a breaking point in my mental health.

I’ll unravel this story in more detail later, but know this newsletter idea was born out of a time of great vulnerability and humility.

While I didn’t initially set out to create an anti-hustle space, I felt inspired to share more of my intentional living journey around my mid-twenties.

Naturally, I wanted to dive right in but was afraid to repeat the same burnout cycle I had just put an end to. So I surrendered the idea and laid it down in prayer, asking God to tell me when to pick it back up.

I listened for His voice, but when a few months turned into a few years, I wondered if the idea wasn’t meant for me. Maybe I had gotten it wrong.

I wish I’d known I wasn’t supposed to write the story yet; I needed to live it first.

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A couple of years into the pause, I stumbled across a sermon recording on YouTube. Embarrassingly, I can’t remember who preached it—mostly due to my habit of watching almost daily sermons at the time—but I remember its message.

In the middle of the sermon, the pastor said…

“Jesus accomplished the greatest mission the world has ever seen, and he did it at three miles an hour.” 

Then he continued his message as if he hadn’t said the most profound thing. Fearing I would forget it, I quickly jotted it in my journal. But weeks later, it was still on my mind.

As I journaled more and read the four Gospels, it struck me how unhurried Jesus was. From meeting with the woman at the well to healing the woman with the issue of blood (yes, even while He was on the way to yet another healing), Jesus never changed His pace.

He never rushed from appointment to appointment. He didn’t succumb to the frenzy of the world. He chose to walk among crowds in the same way He walked to solitary places to pray (Mark 1:35).

This man who could do anything made the conscious decision to live His life slowly. 

His pace was remarkable then, and even more so now.

So I had to ask myself…

What would it look like to live at His pace? 

This simple question took me on a multi-year exploration, leading me back to the idea I had once surrendered.

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There’s so much meaning in a name, but getting it right can feel like a fool’s errand.

On rare occasions, an obvious name may appear early in the brainstorming process, but any entrepreneur will tell you not to fall in love with a name until you’ve done your research.

With over 543,000 new businesses launching monthly, you’ll likely stumble upon a name already in use. And as you research, you’ll quickly see why they say there’s nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

Since I had previously heard the concept of moving at three miles per hour, I had a sinking feeling the domain name was already taken.

When I began my search, I first typed in “3mph.com.” It was indeed taken, but it wasn’t active. I decided to contact the current owners of the domain but was quickly quoted a price of almost $30,000—far beyond the reach of a passion project.

I feared I had reached a dead end, the finality of an idea that never existed. 

Over the next few nights, the name would not leave me alone.

It kept coming to mind, disrupting my sleep and sanity. I couldn’t seem to let it go. 

Paying for the original domain name still felt out of the question, but what if I looked at the name from another angle? Then I considered spelling out the number three, something that hadn’t occurred to me initially. 

I typed in “threemph.com,” and yet again, it was taken. But this time, it redirected to the owner’s website. I was tempted to write this off as another dead end, but I figured if I had already reached out to one owner, I could try to contact another.

I wrote a short email about my interest in the domain name, held my breath, and sent it. I didn’t think I’d hear back, but three days later, I got a reply. 

The owner mentioned he previously had a plan for how to use the name but didn’t think he’d ever get to it, so he asked about my mission. He wanted to ensure it would go to a good “home” if he let it go.

My next reply detailed my idea and quoted a maximum price of what I was willing to spend. He responded that he deeply related to my mission and was willing to transfer it to me at no cost. 

I was dumbfounded. This stranger—a man I’d never met with a face I’d never seen—was willing to forgo a domain name sale because he simply wanted me to “create something beautiful with it.”

All he asked in return was to share in whatever I created next. 

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I left out an important detail. 

Amid this simple email exchange, God hadn’t told me to pick up the idea.

I know, I know, old habits die hard and all that. 

But because of His infinite grace, I recognized God had moved mountains to give me this name—something I didn’t deserve in my moments of impatience.

Refreshed with gratitude, I promised the Lord I wouldn’t do anything more with it until He gave me the green light.

No brainstorming. No outlining. No designing. And, hardest of all, no writing.

It was a year and a half before the Lord gave me the green light. It came in the form of an ordinary walk around the neighborhood trails with my pup Bailey. 

On a chilly December morning in the silent woods, I heard whispers of revelation and encouragement, confirming it was time to walk boldly into Three MPH.

And with that, I cautiously picked it back up.

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If I started this space when I had wanted to, it wouldn’t look like it does today. 

It would’ve been centered around my story instead of encouraging others to share theirs. I probably wouldn’t have talked as overtly about my faith. It’s possible it would’ve morphed into another opportunity for monetization since I have a laughable tendency to turn all of my hobbies into businesses.

But as the name suggests, Three MPH needed time to develop; it couldn’t have been rushed.

In truth, Jesus has already invited all of us into a life where we can work and rest at a distinctly different pace than the rest of the world. 

And if we’re willing to “ruthlessly eliminate hurry,” we may reap the eternal rewards of a simple life together.

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A moment to reflect 

Where do you sense impatience or distraction in the ideation process?