Hello! I’m glad you’re here.
I am Jennifer. I speak and create resources at the intersection of disability and faith.
Growing up an undiagnosed Autistic who was minimally speaking, I was never a leader, always the misfit. But God calls the things in this world we consider foolish or weak to display his might.
So here I am, a misfit leader.
I am the founder of Voices of Disabled Believers, a ministry that elevates the kingdom work of saints with disabilities and chronic challenges while also creating a resource of Disabled leaders for faith communities. My hope is to see faith spaces create room at the table (or turn over tables) so that people with disabilities can thrive in exercising the spiritual gifts and talents that God gives without partiality.
I am also the author of A Lamenter’s Pathway to Joy: Devotional Journal, which guides the reader through how to lament by observing the psalms of lament to discover deep, lasting joy.
I am a former biblical counselor now a body-mind aware and trauma informed communicator fervently creating more resources to help believers gain a theology of disability as well as to help Disabled and chronically ill believers name and heal from the harm of ableism and partiality. I am a certified Beyond Suffering instructor with Joni and Friends Ministry which has further equipped me to teach a theology of disability, bio-medical ethics and disability inclusion in faith spaces.
My faith experience, unfortunately, has been littered with the spiritual and psychological harm of earnest yet uninformed love. Through speaking engagements and writing resources, I am determined to help the modern Body of believers recognize and uproot the non-disabled partiality built into her foundations while elevating people with disabilities to assure them of the dignity and worth that is our birthright as image bearers.
In my spare time you can find me learning piano, propagating plants, training my service dog, discussing theology and culture with my husband, exploring my Jewish heritage, singing and playing games with my daughter, managing the rollercoaster that is my health, and collecting vintage brooches — only the sparkly ones will do!
Jennifer Ji-Hye Ko
The name Jennifer (jeh-nih-fur) is derived from several Celtic names meaning “white wave” or “pure phantom.” It is also a modern variation of the legendary Queen Guinevere, meant to embody the Arthurian heroine’s more favorable attributes.
Ji-Hye (jee - heh) is the Korean name my husband gave me which means “wisdom.” Our last name
Ko (k-oh) means “highness” as in “your royal highness.”
Endorsements
Crown of Thorns
The flowers scattered across these pages are a symbol of the thorns and blooms of the Disability experience. Legend has it that the Euphorbia milii, or Crown of Thorns plant, was used to make the crown thrust upon Messiah before his crucifixion. People with disabilities also wear a crown of thorns, though metaphorically. It is an adornment we didn’t ask for yet wear with God-given dignity as it provides the opportunity to chronically reside on the holy ground of fellowshipping with Messiah in suffering. While it is easy to focus on the sharp points, there is abundant beauty to be found in the long-lasting blooms birthed from thorns.
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