On July 11, 2019, my husband’s grandmother, Evangelina, went to be with our Lord at the age of 97. Evangelina lived a life of service to God; a devout Catholic, she vowed to live a life of obedience, humility, and poverty. On the night of her rosary, her spiritual family joined hands, surrounded her coffin, and serenaded her for the last time. As I sat in silence, I tuned in to the beautiful lyrics and began to weave the memory into my mind. I pondered the stories of personal witness that were shared by Evangelina’s spiritual family. It was very touching.  Days after the funeral the word “legacy” lingered in my mind. I had never considered it before. To be honest, it’s painful to think about. Typically, one leaves a legacy behind to their children, but sadly, my womb never carried a child. Proverbs describes a good man as leaving […]

“People ask me if I believe in God … people kept asking me that question, which I really don’t like. I don’t like that question, so I sat and thought about it for a good while and I tried to figure out why. And I thought, well … who would have the audacity to claim that they believed in God? If they examined the way they lived, who would dare say that?”–Jordan Peterson Growing up I was aware of how I carried myself in different circles– Joanna around non-Christian friends tried to fit in, be cool, stay relevant, and most importantly be liked. Joanna around Christian friends said “Oh my gosh” instead of “Oh my God” and “darn” instead of “damn.” I remember acutely as a teenager feeling this identity struggle inside of me. Was it okay that I was acting differently around my non-Christian friends? Did that mean I […]

Was there a parting of the skies? Goosebumps when they prayed? A booming voice from heaven? How are some Christians so confident about God’s will for their lives? MY EARLY YEARS OF DISCERNING GOD’S CALL I’m the first to admit in my early years as a Christian (2011-2014) I was hyper-spiritual about “callings.” Every other week I’d share God was “calling me” to do something. “I feel like God is calling me to go to Chicago this summer!” or, “I feel called to start a new job next year!” No one ever questioned how I knew. They just supported me if what I “felt called to” had spiritual reasoning. I had no idea how to listen to God as I was basically biblically illiterate. I observed other people’s faith I admired and noticed their confidence in God’s will for them. I wondered how they became so sure. Even in my […]

I will never forget the day I met Sioban. We were both on a plane headed to Santa Fe, New Mexico. We were fortunate to be in a row with two seats; she was sitting next to the window and I had the aisle seat, neither of us had to worry about the inconveniences of the middle seat. We did not speak; however, our body language fashioned a sense of courtesy by leaning away from each other to create the feeling of space. When the plane finally reached its cruising altitude, the captain announced it was safe to move about the cabin. I could hear clicking coming from the drink cart being prepared to make its way down the aisle. Instead of closing my eyes as I typically do on a flight, I reached into my tote and pulled out my Bible. I was behind on my Bible study and […]