Joni and Friends Ministry Podcast

Latest Episodes:

The Power of Generational Love: The Best Gift a Mother Can Give Jun 27, 2024

Show notes

This episode of the Joni and Friends Ministry Podcast packs a powerful dose of encouragement! Celeste Sharpe joins Stephanie Daniels to share about her experience living with cerebral palsy and finding deep, Christ-centered strength to become a person who can have gratitude through grief. Even when she needs encouragement herself, Celeste seeks to encourage others. Tune in for Celeste’s inspiring story about how she has been blessed to have guidance from two mothers—her biological mother, and her maternal grandmother, whom she lovingly called ‘Mom’, both of whom have pointed her to Jesus and brought her lasting joy!

Celeste Sharpe serves on staff with Joni and Friends as an administrative assistant in Human Resources. When she is not working, Celeste likes to read, write poetry, and sing. She also loves to encourage others!

KEY QUESTIONS:

Who has encouraged you most in your faith?
How can you encourage someone in the same way you would like to be encouraged today?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

Genesis 31:49: “May the Lord watch between me and thee while we are absent one from the other.”
Deuteronomy 33:25: “The bolts of your gates will be iron and bronze, and your strength will equal your days.”

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Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Founded by Joni Eareckson Tada, we provide Christ-centered care through Joni's House, Wheels for the World, Retreats and Getaways, and disability ministry training.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Joni Eareckson Tada On Mobility | Heart of the Founder Jun 20, 2024

Show notes

Tune in for this powerful installment of Joni’s “Heart of the Founder” series. Addressing the topic of mobility, Joni Eareckson Tada draws on deep personal experience, having lived with quadriplegia for more than five decades. While a phrase like “wheelchair-bound” suggests that a wheelchair is confining, Joni can attest to the freedom that mobility equipment can bring—not only for a disabled individual but also for their family members and community.

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More than one billion people in the world live with a disability. And the majority of people who need a wheelchair have to do without. According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 80 million people need a wheelchair and only 5–35% have access to one.

That’s why, through Wheels for the World™, Joni and Friends changes lives by hand-delivering wheelchairs and Bibles to people with disabilities around the world. 

Each year Joni and Friends collects thousands of used wheelchairs, which—instead of taking up space in landfills—get restored to like-new condition by inmates in prison-based restoration centers. This environmentally sustainable process offers inmates the opportunity to give back to society and the world and experience redemptive purpose in their own lives.  

 
You can get involved!

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Meet Special Needs Father and Pediatric Neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Warf Jun 13, 2024

Show notes

Meet Dr. Benjamin Warf—a committed Christ-follower, special needs father, and pediatric neurosurgeon. Dr. Warf has followed God’s call on his life since childhood. Shaped by his experiences growing up in Appalachia with a preacher father who had physical disabilities, and his innate love for science, Ben became a doctor. Serving as a medical missionary in sub-Saharan Africa, he has pioneered new ways to treat young children with hydrocephalus and spina bifida.

A neurosurgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital, professor at Harvard Medical School, and Joni and Friends board member, Dr. Warf has a passion for training the next generation of surgeons and improving access to quality care, both in the U.S. and abroad. In all aspects of his work and personal life, he brings the love of Christ to his patients, students, and family. Dr. Warf joins the Joni and Friends Ministry Podcast to share his story and encourage families—fathers in particular—who live with disability.

Learn more about Dr. Warf and his work:

“I am motivated personally by my children, one of whom was born with special needs. My experience as both a parent and a provider has deepened my understanding of treating children with disabilities and has particularly enriched my practice in the care of children with hydrocephalus and spina bifida and their families.” – Ben Warf

KEY QUESTIONS:

How has parenting a child with a disability enriched your life?
What would you say to special needs parents—especially fathers—who are struggling with the hardships of disability?
How have your faith and life experiences shaped your understanding of healing?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

John 9:1–3: “As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’
‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ said Jesus, ‘but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.’”
Isaiah 55:8–9: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Trusting God Through Hardship – Peter Coleman Jun 06, 2024

Show notes

When Peter Coleman set out to follow God’s call to serve as a missionary in Nicaragua, he couldn’t imagine the journey ahead. But as he faced danger, uncertainty, and life-threatening illness, Peter learned to lean on the Lord in new ways. Tune in for this episode of the Joni and Friends Ministry Podcast to hear Peter Coleman talk about living out God’s call and trusting Jesus through hardship.

About Peter...

Peter Coleman studied Sustainable International Development at Brandeis University and went on to serve as a missionary deep in the jungles of Nicaragua where he and his team faced danger and hardship every day. After contracting a severe virus similar to Dengue fever in addition to malaria, Peter spent many weeks in the hospital. The illness took a brutal toll on Peter; he lost 40 pounds, 30% of his skin, and most of his memory.

Peter eventually made a full recovery and continued his thriving ministry work in Nicaragua until he sensed a clear call from God to return to the U.S. and began a new season of ministry work. Then in 2021 an unexpected stroke left a legion on Peter’s brain stem and sent him into a frightening medical decline, including the development of multiple large brain and brain stem tumors.

After six months in the hospital, Peter emerged unable to read or write, challenged to swallow food or respond to stimulation. But by God’s grace, Peter has made a slow recovery, surrendering to God every day. Despite the unknown ahead and the benign tumors in his brain, Peter looks to Christ—just as Jesus’s disciple Peter did in Matthew 14 as he stepped out of the boat to walk across the water.

KEY QUESTIONS:

When have you experienced God’s presence in the midst of a past hardship?
What life struggle can you entrust to God today?

KEY SCRIPTURE:

Matthew 14:25–33: “Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. ‘It’s a ghost,’ they said, and cried out in fear.

But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’

‘Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’

‘Come,’ he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why did you doubt?’

And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”

RESOURCES:

Beyond Suffering Bible
A Place of Healing by Joni Eareckson Tada

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Joni Eareckson Tada on Disability | Heart of the Founder May 30, 2024

Show notes

For more than five decades Joni Eareckson Tada has lived with quadriplegia and chronic pain. With the support of Christian community, she has found contentment in Jesus and trusted him to work in and through her life, reaching millions of suffering people with the hope of the Gospel.

KEY QUESTIONS:

What does the Bible say about disability?
When have you seen God work through a difficulty in your life?

RESOURCES:

Pursuing Contentment: Blind since age 3, singer-songwriter Ginny Owens shares how she has learned to live by faith and not by sight.
Beside Bethesda: This 31-day devotional covers the many questions Joni had about healing when she was first injured.

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Joni Eareckson Tada and Crystal Keating Welcome Stephanie Daniels to the Podcast May 23, 2024

Show notes

Tune in to hear Joni and Stephanie interview one another and introduce Joni’s “Heart of the Founder” series that will kick off this season. In our Heart of the Founder episodes, you will hear straight from Joni’s heart as she shares her experience and wisdom on a host of essential topics like disability, depression, suffering, and healing.

Meet Stephanie...

Stephanie serves at Joni and Friends in the role of community engagement. She’s always ready to share a word of biblical encouragement on our Joni and Friends social media channels! Stephanie first came to Joni and Friends as a volunteer at our Texas Family Retreat, and she immediately fell in love with ministering to families living with disability.

She and her husband, Paul, reside in Dallas, Texas, where they serve at Covenant Church through Paul’s love for teaching the Gospel and Stephanie’s heart for worship. The two are passionate about encouraging, equipping, and empowering the body of Christ.

Stephanie hopes the podcast will encourage everyone who hears it and inspire each listener to lean even more deeply into Jesus.

KEY QUESTIONS:

How have you seen God work through your suffering?

How can God use you to encourage someone else today?

RESOURCES:

Worship along with Joni and Stephanie!

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Growing a Heart for Disability Ministry – Wilame Leal Silva Oct 26, 2023

Show notes

In our final episode of season 5, we hear from Joni and Friends team member Wilame Leal Silva. He and his wife Erica Leal were overjoyed to hear they were pregnant with their second child. Then doctors gave a diagnosis that sent them reeling. Their son, they were told, had trisomy 13, a condition likely to end the baby’s life soon after birth. Even if Daniel survived, doctors said, he would be severely disabled and not live long. Grieved facing the loss of their son—and pressured to terminate the pregnancy—Wilame and Erica experienced disability in a new way. And while their son—to doctors’ amazement—was born without a disability, Wilame and Erica live with lasting deep empathy for families living with disability. Wilame joins the podcast to tell his family’s story, and share how God led him into disability ministry. Wilame Leal Silva currently serves with Joni and Friends as International Regional Director, Western Hemisphere.

Explore disability ministry training and resources for you and your church.
Get involved with Joni and Friends international ministry by serving at an International Family Retreat.
Hear another family’s experience with trisomy 13: Walking Her Home: Learning to Say “Your Will, Not Mine”

KEY QUESTIONS:

Do you trust God to use your pain for his purposes?
When has God asked you to wait?
How do your life experiences equip you to reach others for Christ?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

Psalm 27:14: “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”
Deuteronomy 31:6: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Care for Caregivers – Rebekah Dowhy Oct 19, 2023

Show notes

Across the United States nearly 53 million people serve as caregivers to family members, friends, and others in need of care. On call around the clock, often without pay, caregivers can experience discouragement and burnout. Rebekah Dowhy knows the rigors of caregiving. After years of caring for her mother with multiple sclerosis (MS) Rebekah founded the Caregiving Support Network to provide caregivers with Christ-centered respite, community, and encouragement. She joins the podcast to offer help and hope to caregivers, and the communities called to support them.

“God placed the idea of the Caregiving Support Network on my heart when I was still caring for Mom around 2015. I knew other caregivers had to be facing the same hardships and joys, and was compelled to tell them that they were not alone. Through God’s providence and grace, the Caregiving Support Network was founded in 2022.” – Rebekah Dowhy

Learn about the Caregiving Support Network
More encouragement for caregivers from Joni and Ken

KEY QUESTIONS:

Do you or someone you know currently serve as a caregiver?
What are the greatest unmet needs among caregivers?
How can churches provide respite and encouragement to caregivers?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

Galatians 6:2: “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
Isaiah 40:31: “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

Walking Her Home: Learning to Say “Your Will, Not Mine” – Cami Lundt Oct 12, 2023

Show notes

Cami Lundt didn’t expect any surprises with her fourth pregnancy… until the doctor broke the shocking news. Baby Grace was diagnosed with trisomy 13 and a Dandy-Walker brain malformation—conditions that doctors considered “incompatible with life.” The baby, they said, had a 99.9% chance of dying just minutes after her birth. But God had a different plan. For almost five years, Cami and her family got to love and care for Grace, walking her home to heaven. Tune in to hear Cami’s story, and learn how God can meet you with his peace and strength, even in the most devastating circumstances.

After Grace’s death, Cami went into the healthcare field for several years. She has since returned to her teaching career in Wisconsin, as a Special Education Teacher, hoping to help those who find themselves in situations similar to what she experienced.

Get your copy of Cami’s book: Walking Her Home: Learning to Say, “Your Will, Not Mine”

KEY QUESTIONS:

How has God shown up for you in painful moments or seasons?
What do you do when the burdens of life feel too heavy to bear?
What do you need to entrust to God today?

KEY SCRIPTURES:

Isaiah 26:3: “You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.”
2 Corinthians 12:9: “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”

You make this podcast possible! Thank you for your support.

Find all podcast resources and message our team.

Follow Joni and Friends on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Find more encouragement on Joni Eareckson Tada's Sharing Hope podcast and her daily devotional.

How Including People with Disability Changes Church Culture Oct 05, 2023

Show notes

“When disability ministry starts to take hold in the heart of a church, it’s like hitting the refresh button on the Gospel in that church.”

Have you considered how including people with disabilities might positively impact your church’s culture? Stephanie Hubach is on the podcast to share the importance and value of including everyone in ministry.

Stephanie is a research fellow in disability ministries at Covenant Theological Seminary and visiting instructor in the seminary’s educational ministries program. Previously she served as the director of Mission to North America’s Special Needs Ministries. She is also a speaker and author of a devotional called Parenting and Disabilities: Abiding in God’s Presence.

People of all abilities have spiritual gifts to offer in your church.

Listen as Stephanie talks about how to build a social ramp so that all gifts can be employed in the body of Christ. Because as we’re saturated in the Gospel and develop more of a biblical worldview, we’ll look expectantly for God-given gifts in other people, including those with disabilities. Learn how you can encourage people of all abilities to be full participants in the body and life of your church!

Resources: