Hello. My name is Joni.
For years I was certain that a career as an author-illustrator (hidden away from the world while I imagined up my next project) fit my social anxieties and limiting-fears just right. Pursuing these plans and inviting God to move in my life, it was too long before I saw how He was the one patiently, lovingly inviting me.
Letting go of the things I had been striving to build, I took hold of His hand and let Him lead me into a new direction. As I stepped away from career pursuits I saw more clearly how much my comfort-zone had really been a cage. While fear still tried for my attention in the face of new challenges, it didn't have a hold on me. I was free.
In 2018 God led me to take part in a 6 month missions training school with YWAM (Youth With A Mission) Kansas City. For the first time in my life I lived away from home, I rode a plane (or twelve), I saw God provide and move beyond my own abilities... But more than all the miracles and service I was humbled to be a part of, I had experienced in a deeper way what life was like with God. Not by asking Him to be a part (or even the center) of my story, but by deciding -
I wanted to be all in on His story.
Creativity is still a part of my life in the ways I love to experience and express Beauty, Truth, Goodness, and Hope. From reading a book meant for children, to dabbling with ink or watercolor, to beholding a blooming piece of nature. I love how God can speak to us in very personal, unique ways, each thread meant to lead us nearer to Him.
The most recent yarn of leading I've found before me is to continue my schooling with YWAM in Kona, Hawaii. God willing, I begin the 9 month course called Foundations for Revival & Reformation in September 2019.
This path has come with it's own challenges, but God is able and I trust He will make a way. The road ahead is unknown, but I know my Beloved to be ever faithful and as long as He's involved, I want to be, too.
I'm so excited to share this journey with you, my friends! Whether you read my rambling posts, leave me a message, or if you choose to support me in prayer or giving, thank you so much! How awesome that we get to behold and be a part of what God is doing- and that we get to do it together.