Jason C. Joyner is a physician assistant, a writer, a Jesus-lover, and a Star Wars geek. He’s traveled from the jungles of Thailand to the cities of Australia and the Bavarian Alps of Germany. He lives in Idaho with his lovely wife, three boys, and daughter managing the chaos of sports and superheroes in his own home. Launch, a YA superhero story, is his first published novel.

You can join Jasons’ Facebook group, The Heroes’ Hangout or find him at Twitter or Instagram.

 

 

 

 

Using Our Gifts

I’ve learned a lot about gifts lately.

My debut novel, Launch, is a YA superhero book where some teens develop special abilities that are Biblically inspired (think the strength of Samson as an example). They’re given these gifts, but it is up to them on how to use them.

This is true for all of us. We have choices on what we’re going to do with our gifts. They can be used to bless others, like teaching or offering hospitality. However, they can also be used for selfish or evil purposes. Think of gifted orators who have created cults of personality around themselves – what if they had been using that ability for good? Finally, we can even bury our gifts so they don’t get used at all.

So my story deals with some fantastical gifts (did you know Elijah outran a chariot? Super power, right there). But in preparation for releasing my book and the immediate aftermath, I’ve been so blessed by others’ gifts in my own situation.

My wife has given me undying support as I walk through the challenges of getting a book ready to be published. My publisher has had vision and daring to enter the Christian fiction world and put quality products out there. People who use their skill with graphics or words have helped to make my modest work better. Encouragement from friends who have been through the challenges before sustains me.

I just returned from a Christian writer’s conference called Realm Makers. The woman who started it would not have seen it to fruition without her husband’s amazing administrative gifts. We had amazing faculty, but we also had many volunteers serve others by helping attendees find their appointments, pray with one another, and set up things. I was blessed by a good friend’s hospitality when he had me over for a night after the conference because my flight left a day later.

The point is, we need each other and our gifts. Authors may have their names on the cover, but there is so much to getting a book published and out to readers. Just as an author needs a tribe to support them, we all need people with gifts in our lives. That’s what makes the church beautiful when it operates as Jesus intended. When we are functioning as the body of Christ, it means that roles are being played by those with giftings, and the work of the church can be done.

I may have written about supernatural gifts for entertainment and encouragement of teens and adults, but I have learned a lot in the whole process.

More about Launch:

Sixteen-year-olds Demarcus Bartlett and Lily Beausoliel are among a select group of youth invited to an exclusive, all-expenses-paid conference at social media giant Alturas’ California headquarters. Led by charismatic founder Simon Mazor, the world’s youngest billionaire, this isn’t the typical honors society. It seems that everyone here has some secret, untapped potential, some power that may not be entirely of this world. An ancient prophecy suggests that if these teens combine their abilities, they could change the course of history. The only question is: Will it be for better or for worse?

Buy Link: Amazon

Happy reading,