Category: Juggling

“Holy Fools”: Exploring the Journey of Calling for Christian Variety Performers

January 27, 2022

I am happy to announce that my PhD dissertation has been published to ProQuest, an academic database for published research. I have made the dissertation open source, which means anyone anywhere can access the full content free of charge. Here is the full dissertation: https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/holy-fools-exploring-journey-calling-christian/docview/2622316783/se-2 Please share far and wide. I am very much excited…
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First Night Virginia!

December 12, 2017

I’m happy to announce that I will be returning to perform at First Night Virginia this New Year’s Eve in Charlottesville, VA. The shows will be at 6:30pm, 9pm, and 10:15pm at the First United Methodist Church in Charlottesville, VA on December 31, 2017. I hope to see you all there! Click on the link…
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Fidget Spinner and Water Bottle Flip Trick

May 26, 2017

The fad of 2016 meets the fad of 2017! It took me a while to finally get this combo trick, but the patience paid off….
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Three Surprising Things I’ve Learned from Juggling

January 26, 2017

Juggling is really old. Did you know that images of jugglers have been discovered on the walls of an ancient Egyptian tomb that is about 4,000 years old? Near the town of modern-day Minya, Egypt, you can visit the Beni Hasan tombs. In tomb number 15, you can see an unmistakable illustration of multiple women juggling…
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First Night Virginia!

November 29, 2016

I am happy to announce that I will be performing at First Night Virginia in Charlottesville on New Year’s Eve! My shows will be at 3pm and 5:30pm, respectively. Bring the whole family and tell your friends about it too. There are lots of other activities and entertainers for the whole family. See you there! Here…
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Juggling While in Motion

August 18, 2016

Last month I successfully juggled while flying down a zip line. I had tried the feat three or four times previously and I always dropped about halfway down the line. This most recent time, though, I made it the whole way (about 100 yards). Here is the video evidence, followed by some thoughts on the…
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Fun at Eagle Church in Indiana

March 7, 2016

Enjoy this short video of the machete juggling at the Upward closing ceremony for Eagle Church in Whitestown, IN! @jessejoyner juggling machetes at the Upward Awards Program 😳😁 Thanks for the incredible gospel presentation and show. You rock! #jessethejuggler #eaglechurch #upward #machetes A video posted by Eagle Church (@eagle_church) on Mar 5, 2016 at…
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Valentine’s Day Lesson for Children’s Church

February 15, 2016

Here is a brief presentation I gave for the kids at my church on Valentine’s Day 2016. I do some juggling in it, but if you give a similar lesson (which you are free to do, of course), just insert your own version of something impressive to demonstrate to the children instead of juggling. The…
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Atlanta Tour Recap

February 10, 2016

I just got back from three shows in the greater Atlanta area over the weekend. I had a wonderful time visiting three churches. At each one, I got to perform my show and share about the story of Christ. My prayer is that God’s Word will be planted in good soil in the hearts of…
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The Easiest Way to Learn Juggling

January 29, 2016

Perhaps you took a how-to-juggle seminar in third grade gym class, like me. Or maybe you warmed the bench (like me) on the baseball team and taught yourself how to juggle baseballs with all that time on your hands. But maybe you haven’t learned yet. Or the things you’ve tried have all failed. Over the…
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Fun in the Snow!

January 26, 2016

Happy Monday and enjoy this little video my daughter took of me trying out the fire during this past weekend’s snowstorm….
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Juggling Ice

January 20, 2016

I ordered some silicone molds that make perfect ice spheres about the size of a baseball. I put them in the freezer and out came the ice balls for juggling. I went outside and tried them out. I was able to do it – and of course my hands got very cold! The balls began to…
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How to Balance a Hat on Your Face

January 13, 2016

Enjoy this new video I just posted on balancing a hat on your face. Always remember two main things: Keep your eyes fixed on the highest point possible on the object you’re balancing. Tilt your head back farther than you think you should. Let me know if you have any questions!
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Teaching Kids About Street Performing

January 7, 2016

I performed for a small group of three to five year-olds at my daughter’s school today. They were studying about Europe, so I figured I would teach them about Europe’s rich tradition of busking (another term for street performing). I showed them a picture of a busker at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland as…
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The “How to Juggle” Trilogy

January 5, 2016

Today, I posted a short video on how to juggle five balls. That completes the “trilogy” of instructional videos on three, four, and five ball juggling. Here are all three (in order of three, four, and five). Let me know what you think!
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Not Your Ordinary Vacation Bible School

June 23, 2015

Starting tomorrow, I get to share at the “Not Your Ordinary VBS” at the First United Methodist Church in Monroe, LA. My family is able to join me for this trip as well! Please come if you’re anywhere near central Louisiana. Programs are in the evenings for the next few nights and start at 6:30pm.…
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First Baptist Church of Woodbridge Show

April 21, 2015

A few weeks ago, I got to share my show with First Baptist Church in Woodbridge, VA. It was a cold Saturday in early Spring but over a thousand people still showed up! I did two shows – one in the large sanctuary before the egg hunt and a second in a small cafe-like setting…
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Winter Fusion 2014

December 30, 2014

Last night was the kickoff for Winter Fusion, a retreat for youth from churches in Virginia. I got to perform my unicycle routine as a little teaser for the full show tonight. It’s been a lot of fun so far interacting with these young people and meeting their leaders as well. The fun thing for…
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The Power of Juggling

November 17, 2014

In my most recent newsletter (which you can access here), I told the story of how I had done a show for a high school where just days before I came one student stabbed another in the middle of class. A parent sent me a message after my show thanking me for bringing a little…
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Juggling Down a Zipline

August 8, 2014

Video evidence of my adventure juggling rocks while flying down a zipline! According to the laws of physics, the balls are flying forward WITH me as I toss and catch them. I don’t have to compensate for my forward motion. I simply juggle as if I was standing still in place. It’s actually quite amazing…
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The Upward Show When My Luggage Didn’t Arrive

March 14, 2014

In nearly 15 years of doing shows, there have been two times where my luggage did not arrive in time for the show. The first time was on Easter weekend about five years ago. My flight was diverted (due to weather, I think) to a different city than originally planned. I rented a car and…
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Life as a Professional Juggler: FAQ’s

December 12, 2013

By God’s grace, I am living a dream. I get to do what I love and I don’t even feel like I work. But what I do is serious “work” at the same time. I get a lot of questions from people about what I do, so I thought I would try to consolidate the…
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How to Juggle 4 Balls

November 26, 2013

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Historical Juggling Props Museum

November 12, 2013

I have the privilege of being a personal friend of the curator of the historical props juggling museum, David Cain. That means that when I juggle in his area (like I did last week), I can pay him a visit and get a free tour of the holdings. Currently, the museum is in his house,…
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Advanced Chinese Yo-Yo Trick: The Elevator

October 3, 2013

Years ago, I learned a trick with the Chinese Yo-Yo (aka Diabolo) that is known as “the elevator” or “the climb.” Since I use it in my ministry show to illustrate the resurrection of Christ (thanks for the idea, David Cain), kids who see my show call it the “rise-from-the-dead” trick. Whatever you call it,…
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