Jesse Joyner, PhD

Author: Jesse

  • Joggling the Richmond Half-Marathon

    Let me start with a confession. I do not run much. I signed up for this half-marathon as a spontaneous, last minute whim because my wife was doing the full and I was tired of watching people do half-marathons and thinking (“I could do that”). So, without any training or stretching (except the biking that…

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  • I Saw The Wooden Paddle

    Today, Sarah and I enthusiastically voted – after standing in line for a mere hour and a half. I’m sure there are plenty of other people in this nation who waited much longer than that today. It was drizzling and a little cold, but it went by fast, especially since we had one another’s company.…

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  • Child’s Play is Not Just Child’s Play

    In an article from U.S. News and World Report, “children’s services” was on a short list of industries which are condusive to making millionaires out of those who run such industries (http://www.usnews.com/articles/business/small-business-entrepreneurs/2008/10/07/how-to-make-a-million.html). I work in a field called “children’s ministry,” where the goal is to reach kids with the message of God found in the…

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  • An Archaeological Find – In Our Apartment!

    The other night, Sarah came shrieking out of the kitchen, “There are two enormous cockroaches crawling around in the kitchen!” I, superhusband, went to the rescue, slightly aggravated that my wife had gotten so worked up about these two innocent creatures. They were long gone by the time I got to the kitchen, but we…

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  • How to Avoid the Economy’s Mess

    My wife and I sometimes listen to a podcast by a guy named Dave Ramsey. He teaches sound financial advice – things like not going into debt, living on a budget, and working hard for a living. Recently, his radio show has been bombarded with e-mails about the trouble in the economy. Since Sarah and…

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  • Jesse the Juggler DVD Release

    Announcing the release of the very first DVD from Jesse the Juggler! It is sensibly called “Live Show” and I just did my first run of 50 copies to see how this flies. If it goes over well, I’ll get more duplicated. For now, I’ll take it around with me to my juggling programs and…

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  • Ike Made it to Ohio!

    Hurricanes are typical for the coasts, but rare is the one that reaches far inland with strength to really damage much. I was traveling from Sweetser, Indiana to Richmond, Virginia yesterday (about an 11-hour drive). Instead, the whole trip lasted about 15 hours due to Hurricane Ike’s trek through the upper midwest. I was low…

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  • The Disconnect Between the New Testament and Today

    If we really read the stories of the New Testament and look around today…does anybody else see a completely different world, even a vastly different form of Christianity? Jesus and his followers administered physical healings, demon exorcisms, prophetic utterances, prayers in unknown languages, etc, etc. They lived communally – sharing their resources among themselves (at…

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  • Quote of the Day – John Piper

    “If money is the motive, your joy comes not from the ministry but from the stuff you can buy with your salary.” – John Piper, Desiring God.

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  • Quote of the Day – Dietrich Bonhoeffer

    “Every Christian community must know that not only do the weak need the strong, but also that the strong cannot exist without the weak. The elimination of the weak is the death of the community.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together.

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  • My High School Reunion

    Last Saturday night, I had the pleasure of attending my 10-Year High School Reunion (Godwin High, Richmond, VA, Class of ’98). Not only did I attend, but I also got to be on the planning team for the event, which gave me a unique perspective on how High School Reunions are fabricated (or at least…

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  • College Presidents Seek to Lower Drinking Age

    You probably know someone who is going through orientation for their first year of college right now. These fresh 18 year-olds are in for quite a ride, including the pressures of parties involving alcohol. In an effort to curb college binge drinking, there is a movement of around 100 college presidents (from institutions such as…

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  • Juggling a Chainsaw

      DISCLAIMER: DO NOT ATTEMPT! I juggled a live, running, sharp chainsaw for the very first time last week in North Carolina. I guess I was tired of being a juggler for 15 years and having people ask me, “Soooo, can you juggle a chainsaw?” I would always have to say, “No, but I’d like…

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  • Joggling and Surprising Sarah

    I surprised Sarah in two ways this past week. First of all, I won 2 golds and two silvers in the world joggling championships in Lexington, KY (I got in the local paper too). Joggling is the sport of running and juggling at the same time. I won a silver in the 5k (overall), a…

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  • I Love Camp Cedars

    I am here in Hordville, Nebraska at Covenant Cedars Christian Camp. It is part of the Evangelical Covenant denomination, which stands for solid Christian doctrine and the authority of God’s Word. Something I really like about this denomination is its diversity on the more peripheral issues that tend to split denominations out there. Anyway, I…

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  • How to Teach 2-3 Year-Olds a Bible Story

    I’m teaching at a VBS in Salisbury, MD (near Ocean City, MD) this week and had a rare challenge on the first night – teaching 2-3 year olds. Now, I have most of my teaching experience with k-5th graders, with a little bit of experience with the preschool age. But my prior interaction with 2-3…

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  • I Love Camp Dixie

    Camp Dixie is a Christian camp in Fayetteville, NC and I had the chance to speak at their “Beginner’s Camp” this past week (1st-4th graders). I had a blast at this camp. They had a theme called “Secrets of the Realm” and decked out the camp in Medieval decor. So I ran with that theme…

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  • To Be a Joyner: for Cara

    My brother, BJ, got married this past weekend to his sweetheart Cara. Cara is now a Joyner. Does she really know what that entails? She’s been gaining experience at it slowly and surely. First of all, Joyners play Scrabble – lots of it. We play slow Scrabble, fast Scrabble, online Scrabble, underwater Scrabble, you name…

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  • How to Live Well Without Owning a Car

    OK, I still own a car. But this blog title is also the title of a book by Chris Balish which I just checked out from my local library (to which I can easily walk and/or unicycle). Sarah and I have been influenced by this book recently, as we now bike more frequently, and we…

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  • New Home for the "Great Idea Blog"

    Hey folks, I am now merging my two blogs into one on this site. This simplifies my postings since the subject matter that I covered on both blogs had a good deal of crossover. By the way, there is an incredible free web tool called “Google Reader.” This thing is amazing. You can subscribe to…

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  • Jaw-Dropping Mapping from Google

    Google has done it again – something very practical, widely-used, and free. This time it is a feature called “Street View” on Google Maps. Google has mapped out every street and block of certain cities in America with a rotating camera on top of a car. That means you can type in any address in…

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  • Lions who Don’t Hurt Donkeys

    This morning, I experienced a “Wow” moment after reading a story in the Bible. Here I am, 27 years old, just graduated from seminary, the son of a pastor, currently serving in ministry – and I read a Bible story about which I was totally unfamiliar. I’m in Children’s Ministry, so I am used to…

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  • Book Review: Financial Peace, Revisited

    I just finished Financial Peace, Revisited by Dave Ramsey with thoughts by Sharon Ramsey (Viking, 2003). I blasted through this book, both because of its readability and since the subject matter is very practical. I have been listening to this guy’s podcasts recently and his conservative Puritan view towards money (hard work ethic, no borrowing,…

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  • Why to Buy Renter’s Insurance

    Shot taken directly outside our fire escape (no pun intended) in our 12-unit apartment building – this scene sits by my friendly neighbor’s door.

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  • This is a shameless plug for the best new conference of 2008 – the first annual Christian Juggling Conference. The Christian Juggler’s Association has been around since the mid-90’s and I believe that a conference has long been a desire of the leadership. Now, we get to see that desire come to fruition with this…

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Popular Posts

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

    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…

  • The Easiest Large Group Game Ever
    The Easiest Large Group Game Ever

    This is probably the easiest large group game ever invented.  If you can think of an easier one, please let me know in the comments. Heads or Tails! This game of heads or tails involves EVERYONE in your large group.  It is actually better the larger the group gets.  There is an elimination factor to…

  • Merry Christmas from the Joyners!
    Merry Christmas from the Joyners!

    Greetings from our family in Richmond, Virginia! We are thankful for you, our friends and family. We are also thankful to the Lord for His gift of the love to us all this season. This past year has been a roller coaster of experiences and emotions, specifically regarding our spunky little Annie, who is now…

  • Book Release! Incredibly Bad Dad Jokes
    Book Release! Incredibly Bad Dad Jokes

    I have been writing down my original Dad jokes for several years now, but recently they dramatically increased. While the past five months of my life have been the toughest for me as a Dad (with Annie’s medical crisis), the Dad jokes actually came out in full force during this season. You see, in my…

  • A Children’s Ministry Poem
    A Children’s Ministry Poem

    From the mouths of children come questions galore about heaven and angels and Satan and more. They speak what their hearts say without holding back, so the wonder of God is something they never lack. Oh God, who are you? Who inspires the minds of little ones many, so that they may find this Jesus…