Inspiration
“What I didn’t initially realize was just how much my emotional well-being hinged on being productive and helping others.” Working with a significant disability can present many obstacles, which is why when my husband and I relocated to California a few years ago, I was elated to take a break from my career in social…
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” Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.” Psalm 127:3 When we travel to developing countries, it’s not uncommon to find entire communities believing the lie that disability is either a punishment or a curse. As Americans, we feel shocked when we hear that babies born with…
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“God has given each of you a gift from His great variety of spiritual gifts.” 1 PETER 4:10 Every morning when I wheel up the ramp at our Joni and Friends International Disability Center (IDC), I bypass my office and head for the volunteer area. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are when Irma and Christian (her…
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Four-year-old Katya from El Salvador was born blind and with cerebral palsy. She, like other children in developing nations, was subjected to shame and rejection because she was born disabled. In her culture, many believe that a baby born with a disability is cursed. Feeling helpless and on the brink of despair, Katya’s parents, Wilfred…
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“It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” COLOSSIANS 3:24 When we first started the Cause 4 Life Internship Program our goal was to equip students to become leaders in disability ministry. Today our interns are changing lives as they live out the Gospel through their service! We had the privilege of sitting down with…
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Glorify God whatever the suffering. Back in 2013, Jay Erwin became paralyzed when a tree he was sawing crashed down on him, severing his spinal cord. As a marathon runner, many of his dreams ended right there and then. At the same time, Jay remembered a promise he had made to glorify God ‘whatever the…
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“Family Retreat is like having another family.” The Hintz family recently came to one of our Joni and Friends Family Retreats in Northern California this summer. Rich and Joanne came with their sons, Jeremy and Cody (who has Down syndrome). It’s normal for parents to feel overwhelmed and alone when taking care of a child…
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On November 29, 2018— my 18th birthday, to be exact— I submitted my application to become an intern at Joni and Friends, an organization to which I felt God was pulling me. I had only volunteered at one Family Retreat, but there was just something about Joni and Friends that was blindingly different than any…
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Last night, my husband ambled in from the living room with his iPad, wanting to show me “a precious video,” as he put it. I watched a clip of America’s Got Talent as Kodi Lee, a blind young man with significant autism sat at the piano – millions watched as he commanded the keyboard, giving…
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We love the words “move forward” because, like 1 Peter chapter 2, it encompaces growth. Growth in our salvation and our maturity. “… let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward into maturity …” Hebrews 6:1 We can’t remain infants in our pursuit of Jesus. Like each season, we must…
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