Joanne came to saving faith in Jesus Christ on 28th February 2002. It was an encounter she will never forget. The depression and suicidal thoughts that had crept into her life over time instantly lifted and an inexpressible joy filled her heart and mind that is beyond words. Her life was forever altered by the King of kings.
God was about to take Joanne on a journey she never thought possible, and in this journey, she has and is constantly discovering the wonder, beauty and goodness of a kind and loving God. In her learning to trust Him, He has and is fulfilling dreams that have been residing in her heart for as long as she can remember.
Joanne’s journey with God began at the age of 34 in Cape Town, South Africa where God revealed Himself to her in awesome and miraculous ways which convinced her that He is a God who is real and knows her on a very personal level.
Four years later, God moved her and her family to Dubai in the Middle East where she encountered the Gospel of grace and faith. It was from this period of time that everything changed in her ordinary Christian life. The revelation of her identity in Christ was a pivotal transforming factor that led to a new-found passion and fire for Jesus.
In January, 2009 the family relocated to Muscat, Oman – a city nestled between dry, rocky mountains. It was in this quaint, traditional Arab city that Joanne knew she was pregnant with ministry and a calling in God. It was after spending a year in prayer and seeking God that a ministry was born in their home early of 2010. It began by creating a place for believers in Jesus to gather together to worship Him, study His Word, discover their identity and purpose, encourage one another and thereby grow together as the Body of Christ – this in the midst of a Muslim nation. Never did Joanne ever imagine that it would become a place where so many people of many different cultures would come to saving faith in Christ, get water baptized and baptized in the Holy Spirit. The small house church became a bustling church of life and action which soon burst forth into a bigger venue. God opened the door for mission trips into Sri Lanka, Philippines and India as well as ministry into other nations.
Joanne personally witnessed how the Gospel of Grace impacted, transformed and empowered so many people’s lives and that is why she has become passionate about sharing this beautiful Gospel which truly is the “Good News of Jesus Christ”.
During 2014, God started speaking to Joanne and her husband, Simon, about returning home to South Africa, something she knew was inevitable as it is for so many expatriates. Her deep love for the Middle East, the Asian cultures that reside and work in the Gulf nations and the church family that had become so special to her made it difficult for her to digest at first, but God put a joy and a peace in her heart to confirm that the timing of their return was right. God graciously gave them and the church they had planted, a year to prepare their hearts for their departure. As always, Papa God brought all the right people, at the right time to step into positions in order to carry on the work which had started by opening their home to a small handful of believers.
Joanne is presently enjoying the sleepy, tranquil Klein Karoo, spending her time in God appreciating every blessing He has bestowed upon her and her family. She is catching her breath, taking in the fresh mountainous air while she steps into the next season that God has for her and her family.
As a child of God walking grounded in His favour and love, she is discovering some nuggets and passions that the Father knit into her before the foundations of this world. She is a wife and mother, an ordinary woman with an extra-ordinary God. She has come to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that if God can take and use this once shy and softly spoken woman to do things beyond her natural abilities, then God can certainly do it for you. It has become her passion to see the people of God come to know their Father for Who He really is and not how religion has painted Him to be and hence see the children of God embrace their true identities, their authority and their destiny in Christ. As the church grows in the revelation of His Grace, we will start to see a very different church prevail upon this earth, the church we were called to be – a church of power that knows their Father, a church that manifests their King and His Kingdom, a church that responds in faith to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Joanne is married to her teenage sweetheart, Simon. She met Simon at the age of sixteen and they married in Cape Town twenty-seven years ago. They are the best of friends and love each other more and more as each day passes. They have two beautiful children – Mathew, who is nineteen, a young man who loves to worship and spend time with the Lord and Hannah, who is twelve. She carries the wisdom of God and exudes kindness and love wherever she goes.
Joanne is truly excited for the things to come!
Blessings and love.