FROM THE CLOSET TO THE COMISSION

Closets can be a world unto their own for small children. Depending on your imagination, they can be a place of refuge like a warm cave or a cozy castle. Or they can harbor your deepest fears, inhabiting monsters and boogey men that make noises in the dark that lead to sleepless nights or bad dreams.

When Joanna Meyer was seven years old, her closet transformed into a revival tent.
"I came to Christ in first grade – sitting by myself in my bedroom closet. I wrote my mom a note later that said, 'I just acepeted Jesus as my lord and savior.'"

Joanna immediately saw Jesus change her life- her spelling grade went from a C to an A average.

Born in Chicago and later raised in Denver, Joanna's affinity for closets has even shaped her ministry perspective. "The thing I enjoy most about being on staff is living with a broad scope. By that I mean living with an eternal perspective and with the needs of the world in mind. I love encountering the 'nooks and crannies' of the world as we minister."

Some of those nooks and crannies would include Costa Rica and Zaragosa, Spain where Joanna spent a year and a half on Stint after graduating from the University of Colorado. "Stinting in Spain exponentially expanded my view of the world. Some of my best staff memories are helping launch the campus partnership in Puebla, Mexico, Long Beach Summer Project, and seeing former students walk with God and influence others as adults. Also sharing life with great staff teams."

As for her personal interests you can click on Joanna's profile section to the right. One thing she enjoys immensely outside of ministry is being an aunt. "I am a devoted slave to my 2 year old niece Rachel."

Below is a cool pic of Aunt Joanna's head sharing life with Rachel.

The thing I least enjoy about being on staff is when the backs of my legs stick to the seats in Moby Gym.
Joanna Meyer
GPI Regional Team
Boulder, Colorado

After returning from Spain, Joanna had a hard transition to make. A CU Buffalo girl, she was assigned to go to Lincoln, Nebraska, home to the rival University of Nebraska, and the epicenter of Corn Nation. Laying aside the black and gold memories of Bill McCartney and Ralphie storming Folsom Field against Tom Osborne's Cornhuskers, she went on to be the ACD at Nebraska where she would serve from 1999-2005. From there it was back to Boulder and the GPI office to commandeer our stateside and international projects and stop-outs.


Her current role is a good fit for this "closet Christian" who now has even more spiritual nooks to fill and crannies to explore. Along the way, the thing Joanna has valued the most is the growth and development that comes from the mission, even the hard lessons. "A ministry lesson God has taught me on staff recently is that I’ve learned brokenness plays a vital role in ministry. The experiences that we fear will 'derail' our life and ministry often lead to deeper relationship with the Lord and healthier, more fruitful ministry. It’s sweetly ironic that brokenness can lead to greater effectiveness."

Since we are into March it is time for another gravel road to identify and a book to vie for. To keep in step with Joanna's theme of global nooks and crannies I found a gravel road tucked away in a country we partner with for the March road of the month. So put on your international thinking cap and be the first person to e-mail the country pictured below...

And you will win the book pictured to the right. "The Holy Wild" by Mark Buchanan is our book of the month. Trusting in the character of God is the theme of this month's reading recommended by our own director of HR, Ryan Williams.

-Until next week
Bert